Happy Birthday, Burt Reynolds! A guide to some of his best movies.

4. “Smokey and the Bandit””
It would be a huge mistake to claim that “Smokey and the Bandit” is a great movie, but if you want to know why Burt Reynolds was a huge star in the 1970s, this movie will show you. With a story so flimsy it could blow away in the breeze, “Smokey and the Bandit” gets by on Burt’s genuine charm and the ease with which he interacts with Jerry Reed and Sally Field; Reynolds seem to be having so much fun it’s irresistible, ... more 

4. “Smokey and the Bandit””
It would be a huge mistake to claim that “Smokey and the Bandit” is a great movie, but if you want to know why Burt Reynolds was a huge star in the 1970s, this movie will show you. With a story so flimsy it could blow away in the breeze, “Smokey and the Bandit” gets by on Burt’s genuine charm and the ease with which he interacts with Jerry Reed and Sally Field; Reynolds seem to be having so much fun it’s irresistible, and if Hal Needham seemed more interested in car chases than character development, they’re pretty great car chases. The downside of this movie’s success, however, is that Reynolds insisted on working with Needham again on the regrettable “Smokey and the Bandit II,” “The Cannonball Run,” and the truly awful “Stroker Ace.” less