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Last night when I pulled up Netflix, Smokey & The Bandit was a few rows down on the main screen. I’m pretty sure I’ve watched the movie since I originally saw it as a kid, but it’s been a long time and it’s a classic, so I decided to give it a rewatch. I was not prepared for the result. I’m almost embarrassed to say it because it sounds so silly, but watching this movie filled me with what I can only describe as pure joy.
The happiness I felt while watching the movie probably has a lot to do with nostalgia. I mean, it’s an American classic that’s packed with legends, which means in addition to enjoying the movie you’re constantly remembering all of the other great things these people have done. Burt Reynolds is the Burtiest Reynolds he can be, and watching the movie will give you a new appreciation of just how good Norm MacDonald’ impersonation was. Jerry Reed’s always worth watching just for the accent, and it doesn’t hurt that he does several songs on the soundtrack (I’d forgotten that there was also a “Westbound and Down”). As for Sally Field, if you don’t love Sally Field, your soul is just broken. There’s probably nothing that can be done for you. I never really got Jackie Gleason, but he’s funny in the movie and I’ll stipulate that many people (mostly older than me) consider him a comedy legend.
On top of the nostalgia, it’s also just a really good movie. The most complicated part of the plot is confusion over why it used to be illegal to sell Coors beer in Georgia and, more importantly, why anyone would go out of their way to drink Coors. Once you get over that, it’s just a fun car chase through the south. Also, you can’t tell me that the “Gool ol’ boy jumps a bridge” scene wasn’t the direct inspiration for The Dukes of Hazzard. Hell, it might have even inspired the design of the General Lee, since Bandit has a Georgia flag license plate (this was back when the Georgia flag was still half confederate flag).
Anyone who needs to run to their feinting couch because six square inches of the car features a rebel flag is going to find other problems with the movie. It’s got Jackie Gleason, so a little racist humor is practically branding. There’s also sexism and racist stereotypes and everything else that you’ll find in nearly any movie made in 1977. You can probably live with it if you just acknowledge that humans perceive time in a linear fashion. Getting upset because Smokey & The Bandit doesn’t adhere to norms that didn’t exist yet is like getting mad at Juliet for not just sending Romeo a DM to let him know the poison was fake. Watching it’s not going to cause you to grow a MAGA hat any more than listening to Ozzy Osbourne is going to make you start eating bat heads for breakfast.
You should watch this movie, because it’s a classic for a reason. You probably won’t get the same weird rush of joy I got, but it’s still a lot of fun. Best of all, its’ from a time when Hollywood could still make a movie that was just a 90-minute movie instead of 90 minutes of movies and 45 minutes of ego.
