Genre: Comedy
Directed: Hal Needham
Stars: Burt Reynolds, Sally Field, Jerry Reed, Jackie Gleason, Mike Henry, Pat McCormick, Paul Williams, Macon McCalman, Susan McIver, George Reynolds, Sonny Shroyer, Linda McClure
Production: Universal Pictures
A pair of southern, good 'ol boy truck drivers are dared into bootlegging beer while being chased by countless police cars on the Fourth of July. Their aided by a runaway bride nicknamed Frog (Field) and cast of colorful characters running interference and keeping tabs on them via CB radio. The only way the plot of Smokey and the Bandit could be more unabashedly American is if someone stuck a firework up their a** while singing the national anthem. Did I mention that our protagonist, the infamous Bandit is played by none other than masculinity incarnate Burt Reynolds?
urgh, urgh, urgh! |
Dem Duke boys cause happiness wherever they go, Boss Hogg whenever he goes. |
Perhaps "thin" isn't the word to use; rather it's small and maladroit compared to cheeseball truck-centric originators like Plunder Road (1957) and Red Ball Express (1952). There's not a lot of unnecessary subplots or backstory; heck even the time-clock aspect of the film is frightfully underplayed, choosing instead to focus on mythologizing the star, the car and the CB radio. Yet largely thanks to Jackie Gleason's scenery-chewing pomposity we never get the feeling that this film is anything more than a cheap and fun carnival ride. One whose trajectory is a barrel of laughs and whose ending is surprisingly layered given the time it was released.
But who cares; stuntman turned director Hal Needham certainly doesn't and neither do the throngs of fans who have made this film a populist classic. I say let the good times roll!
Final Grade: C+
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