Saturday, November 3, 2007

No. 27 - Burt Reynolds Six-Pack

In 1975 alone, Burt Reynolds made no less than four films -- W.W. and The Dixie Dancekings (surprisingly good), At Long Last Love (execrable), Lucky Lady (underrated), and Hustle (don't do it). In other words, he churned out a lot of films in the 70's.

I would like to highlight Burt's best of the 70's:

Deliverance: Great banjo music, friendly locals and pristine Georgia wilderness lure four Atlanta men for a weekend they'll never forget.

White Lightning: Burt gets behind the wheel for the first of his classic redneck car chase flicks. This time, redneck sheriff Ned Beatty is on his tail.

The Longest Yard: So great they remade it with Adam Sandler.

W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings: Burt as a charming good-old-boy (did he play any other kind) who robs filing stations with a squirt gun. Director John Avildsen's next film was about a boxer from Philadelphia who has a girlfriend named Adrian.

Lucky Lady: Burt's first teaming with 70's icon Liza Minnelli. They would later do Rent-a-Cop in the 80's.

Starting Over: Burt should have been Oscar-nominated in this mid-life crisis classic from 1979 (the year that gave us those other great mid-life crisis movies, 10 and All That Jazz).

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