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| Burt Reynolds and Jan-Michael Vincent in HOOPER Year: 1978 Rating: ***1/2 |
By the time HOOPER hit theaters, star Burt Reynolds and director Hal Needham were already reeling from the blockbuster success of SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT, a car-chase movie with a lot of stunts — so it made sense to have their next literal vehicle be a tribute to stuntmen...
Plus the fact Burt liked doing his own, and Needham was a genuine Hollywood fall guy for decades, making this a doubled-down labor-of-love that mostly strays from the intentional silliness of SMOKEY... with a few exceptions...
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| Burt Reynolds and Jan-Michael Vincent in HOOPER |
Like the feeling both cast and crew are having more fun than the audience, especially an overboard and corny James Best, providing Burt's titular Sonny Hooper pain pills while on the set of a pretentious director's action flick...
Where Robert Klein is the Peter Bogdanovich-like diva auteur and BATMAN Adam West the Reynolds-like superstar while Hooper's the top stuntman... just starting to feel too old for the job...
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| Burt Reynolds and Jan-Michael Vincent in HOOPER |
Mostly because of a young upstart in Jan-Michael Vincent (who'd guested on Burt's 1970 detective series DAN AUGUST), perfect for the role opposite Reynolds for his natural ability to not seem like he's acting, or trying for any performance but being a tough and dependable anti-sidekick...
Leading to a nail-biting final stunt discussed/anticipated for the last half that... despite a cliche bar brawl and a filler romance with Sally Field (daughter of wonderfully nostalgic stunt-veteran Brian Keith)... puts HOOPER on a grounded, set-course contrasting the endless-road-zaniness of the previous film that got 'em there.
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| Burt Reynolds in HOOPER |
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| Burt Reynolds and Jan-Michael Vincent in HOOPER |
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| Burt Reynolds and Jan-Michael Vincent in HOOPER |
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| Burt Reynolds and James Best in HOOPER |
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Burt Reynolds and Jan-Michael Vincent in HOOPER with Brian Keith
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| Burt Reynolds in HOOPER |
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| Jan-Michael Vincent in HOOPER |
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| Jan-Michael Vincent in HOOPER |
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| Burt Reynolds in HOOPER |
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| Burt Reynolds and Cannonball Run villain George Furth in HOOPER |
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| Burt Reynolds and Brian Keith in HOOPER |
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| Burt Reynolds and Jan-Michael Vincent in HOOPER |
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| Big finale stunt in HOOPER |
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HOOPER Burt Reynolds watches DELIVERANCE Burt
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| Robert Klein, Alfie Wise and Jan-Michael Vincent in HOOPER |
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| Burt Reynolds and Tara Buckman in HOOPER |
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| Burt Reynolds and SALLY FIELD in HOOPER |
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| Great stunt from HOOPER |
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| Burt Reynolds and Jan-Michael Vincent on DAN AUGUST: DEATH CHAIN |
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| Burt Reynolds and Jan-Michael Vincent in HOOPER |
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| Burt Reynolds and Jan-Michael Vincent in HOOPER |
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