1980 - SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT II, car chase film without car chases

 Curiosity drove me to watch this sequel to Smokey and the Bandit, one of the most popular action comedies of the time.  The rumor was that this sequel was really bad and did not measure up in any way to the first film.  How bad could it be?  Well as it turns out the rumor was absolutely correct.  The film is a complete failure even for a simple minded sequel.  All the filmmakers had to do was remake the original movie but apparently they had loftier ambitions.  The film is an examination of the role of celebrity in America and the toll it can take on the rich and famous, in this case Burt Reynolds and his toupee.

Burt Reynolds is back as the happy go lucky driving ace "The Bandit." The Bandit has fallen on hard times, he's drinking to much and his girlfriend played by Sally Field who at this time were a couple in real life has left him.  He gets a chance to redeem himself with an offer to transport a pregnant elephant to the GOP convention.  Jerry Reed is back as The Bandit's sidekick and Dom DeLuise is the doctor taking care of the pregnant elephant.  You know you're film is in trouble when Dom DeLuise is the most nuanced character in the film.

Back also is The Bandit's nemesis Sheriff Buford T. Justice, in pursuit.   Jackie Gleason is not just playing one character but actually three in total, Gaylord Justice some sort of weird gay character and Reginald Van Justice who sings opera for no apparent reason.  Gleason was clearly allowed to ham it up throughout the film and it's safe to say he's not very funny.  Since this is basically another Burt Reynolds redneck comedy film we have The Statler Brothers, Mel Tillis and Brenda Lee showing up in it.  

 

The film was directed by Hal Needham the stuntman turned director.  Needham is a unique voice in the world of film.  He doesn't know how to direct actors, his staging of scenes is completely pedestrian and he doesn't seem to understand how dialog in films works.  Needham's expertise is in staging car stunts and toward the end of the movie there is a large scale semi-truck versus cop car show down which actually comes to late to save this boring film.  This film is a warm up for Needam's Cannonball Run films.  Needham in his own odd way is actually kind of an auteur he cetrainlhy has a distinct non style.

This was a career nadir for Reynolds and Sally Field or should I say another career nadir, they made five films together.  Field and Reynolds apparently didn't remember the old Hollywood message, don't act with kids or animals as they are complete scene stealers Smokey and the Bandit II has both.

The film was written by veteran comedy writer Jerry Belson but it's completely unfunny.  The cowriter is a man named Brock Yates who was one of the actual organizers of the real Cannonball coast to coat race.

As with many films in the world of cinema, Smokey and the Bandit II will sink out of sight and at best be a distant memory and a tribute to the inability of Hollywood to offer even simple minded entertainments to the movie going masses.

The running time is 101 minutes.