Smokey and the Bandit

It all has already said but then.. I also used to drive 18 wheelers in my previous life and this movie and the actors / actresses show nicely how it plays on road ( mostly ). So - not a great movie art but fun if you take it that way. Also already said but CB's can be useful, todays rigs have cell phones, satellite phones, GPS, etc.. but at that time it was who you know and know where you are. Sally Fields is always a delight, Burt Reynolds, Jackie Gleason, Jerry Reed, etc.. very fun acting. This movie has some old fashioned touch that is missing from too many ( assumed fun ) action movies today - also the effects are not as bad as in many todays movies, tire noise on gravel doesn't sound like tires on asphalt, stunts don't look like computer simulations and so on. Enjoy and dream driving..

This is a classic, and is one of the funniest movies of its day, nothing new can compare. It was fun beginning to end, meant as light time filler. Gleeson was perfectly cast as the sheriff. He had some great line that wouldn't pass the snowflake censors nowadays. The only common mistakes I have seen where few scenes switch from Lemans, to Plymouth's and while being destroyed back to Lemans. Followed by two sequels.

This movie is hilarious and the actors are great. This has to be Bert Reynold's signature film. He is never better than in this movie. He plays a wonderfully endearing and witty character; Sally Fields is is funny too. But the real star of this movie is Jackie Gleason as Sheriff Buford T. Justice. Mr. Gleason's performance is a classic and has to rank up there with some of the greatest comic characters in Hollywood motion picture history. In this movie Jackie Gleason proves once again that he was one of the greatest American comic actors and if you don't believe it, then watch the movie and judge for yourself. The movie offers nonstop laughter as Smokey and the Bandit play a cat-and-mouse game that keeps the audience engaged and laughing. Wonderful movie.

SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT is the classic good ol' boy car chase adventure flick, helping to typecast Burt Reynolds in the genre but also giving stunt driver Hal Needham a chance to show off his skills as director. The whole film feels based on a single car chase in LIVE AND LET DIE, and such it's very slight and superficial, enlivened by fun photography and earnest performances from both Sally Field as the love interest and a scene-stealing Jackie Gleason as the obsessed sheriff. Hardly high art, but it entertains.

I guess one reason I love this movie is because it doesn't pretend to be anything more than it is. It doesn't aspire to great movie-making. It was just supposed to be 90 minutes of entertainment on the big screen, and it's still entertaining. Take your brain off for a while and have fun with it. There are hilarious lines, some funny pratfalls and even a bit of home-grown wisdom: "How ignorant you are depends a lot on which part of the United States you're standing on." Or something like that. I get a kick out of watching the convoy/rocking-chair scene every time. Makes me wonder how in the world they got around Birmingham, but that's suspension of disbelief for you. LOL. Wish director Hal Needham had remembered that Alabama State Troopers drive Fords, not Pontiacs, but that's a small thing. My dad remarked on it every time, though. It's just cornball entertainment, rare enough these days. Pop some popcorn and have a blast watching it.

"Smokey and the Bandit" may be Burt Reynolds' best movie. At least it's certainly one of his most memorable. In it, he plays good ol' boy the Bandit, the classic speed demon outlaw, driving flat out through five states and back on one wild and crazy beer run. This movie has lots of laughs and action. It also offers a look into the culture of CB radio, which was a huge craze of the day. And who could forget the Great One, Jackie Gleason's hilarious portrayal of Sheriff Buford T. Justice, the bombastic, persistent lawman from Texas. "Smokey" will always be a comedy classic, and that's a big 10-4!