Smokey and the Bandit Part 3

Smokey and the Bandit (part one, that is) was a really funny movie with a great Burt Reynolds. But this time around, almost everything goes wrong. Almost...

Because there is this one scene at the beginning of the movie as Jackie Gleason spoofs 'Patton', and I loved that part (as I love Patton), but that's about all the joy this movie gave me...

Cledus 'the snowman' is the bandit in this one, as Burt Reynolds turned it down (and rightfully so), but he's so awful it's hard to describe. If he'd said 'I am the bandit, I am the bandit' one more time I would've slapped him in the face.

As everybody deserves a good slapping after making this one. One question left: What were they thinking?

2/10.

Sheriff Buford T. Justice (Jackie Gleason) is retiring despite never having caught the Bandit. Big Enos and Little Enos challenges him to transport a fish sign from Florida to Texas for his beloved badge. After getting hounded, Buford accepts the challenge with his son as his co-pilot. Big Enos hires Snowman (Jerry Reed) for $250k who dresses up to be the new Bandit. Dusty Trails (Colleen Camp) has have enough of her lecherous boss and quits on TV. She hitches a ride with the new Bandit.

This is a mess and I don't care about any of it. Other than the archival opening, Burt and Sally are not even in this movie. It is really Smokey and the Fake Bandit. The movie doesn't even make geographic sense. He leaves Florida for a shortcut through Mexico which is complete non-sense. The first two movies survived on Burt and Sally's charisma and chemistry. That cannot be recreated with Fake Bandit. It's an impossible task.

Deary me. Where do I begin? I usually have no problem watching stupid films. They give you an opportunity to just sit back, relax and enjoy the fun. Except when they are so bad that no matter how hard you try to enjoy it, you still wish there was a noose that you could use to end the misery of it all. The dialogue in this film was unbelievable. Anyone who found it funny is in urgent need of a funnybone transplant. The car chase scenes are endless, and very very lame. I don't think there is much more to say except that this film should be avoided at all costs. It is an insult to humanity, and if I were one of the actors i would quickly immigrate to the north pole and wear a sack over my head in complete and utter shame.

Smokey and the Bandit Part 3 (1983)

* 1/2 (out of 4)

Big and Little Enos bet Buford T. Justice (Jackie Gleason) $250,000 that he can't complete a day's ride in the time they give him. If he doesn't he must hang up his badge forever. The sheriff decides to take the bet and soon the Enos' boys hire The Bandit (Jerry Reed) to try and slow him down.

SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT PART 3 probably never should have been made. The previous film's director Hal Needham and star Burt Reynolds weren't interested in many this because they were tied up with STOKER ACE. This didn't stop Universal as they made the film with Gleason playing both the sheriff and The Bandit but test audiences hated the film so then Reed was brought back and the end results are what you see.

I must say, this is certainly the worst film in the series and it's awful on many levels but at the same time I think it's much better than STOKER ACE. With that said, there's no question that this movie shouldn't have been made as there's just not enough going on with it to make it worthy of the previous two films. What's more shocking is that the original version with Gleason in both roles has yet to ever be released, which is a real shame. I'd love to see exactly what it was like.

The problem with this movie is that it just as an incredibly cheap feel to it. From start to finish you can tell that they are using editing to try and make something out of very little. Even the car chasing are really lacking here as you can tell they don't have that magic touch that Needham brought to the first two films. Crashing through bags of ice, a milk truck and other items is mildly entertaining but none of it makes you really excited.

As for Gleason, I'm sorry but even with bad material he's still quite funny at times. The jokes here are usually pretty lame but he still gets a few good lines in. The majority of the humor comes from putting him in weird situations and this includes running into the KKK, arriving at a nude colony and there's even an orgy at a motel. None of these situations are funny and we're basically relying on Gleason's one-liners. Reed is wasted in his few scenes in the film and even the late appearance by Reynolds can't save the film.

SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT PART 3 has an awful reputation and more times than not it's not even brought up in discussions. It's easy to see why people hate the film but I think its reputation is much worse than the picture actually is.

The big question here is whether a "Smokey and the Bandit" movie can be done without Burt Reynolds and Sally Field. I guess that's a yes, but you really shouldn't try it. "Part 3" has Buford T. Justice once again tailing the Bandit (now Jerry Reed behind the wheel) and at least they go back to the car chases; that, and the Knight Rider Firebird looks good on the road. It'd be easy to say that Reed is much better as a side player, but really, he didn't have anything to work with here. These gags are terrible.

Urban legend tells of a workprint with Jackie Gleason playing both roles ("Smokey IS the Bandit!") and that I'd like to see. The potential for irony speaks for itself. But this TV-grade movie is a weak effort.

4/10