Friday, January 13, 2006

Hooper (1978)

Last night I was perusing upcoming movies on HBO and saw, at 4am, Hooper!

This is one of those movies from my childhood that I really loved. When ABC used to show Sunday night movies, Hooper was probably on once or twice a year. Created by same the Smokey and the Bandit crew, it was another PG-rated Burt Reynolds vehicle.

Usually when I watch movies that I loved as a child, I find them to be a let down. Surprisingly, Hooper is still extremely enjoyable 25 years later (or whenever it was that I last saw it).

This is a movie about stuntmen. It really has pretty simple storylines in it: crazy stunts, a young stunt kid challenging the old guard, stuntmen partying and going crazy, stuntmen not being able to keep relationships going, hollywood directors act like jerks, etc..

Fortunately, the jokes are pretty funny and the movie is just the perfect length. I'm the king of thinking that all movies are too long, but this movie leaves you slightly wanting more! What a rarity!

In any case, check it out if you see it on cable. It's on DVD as well, I think I saw it for $5 at Fry's... should have bought it then!

Rating: Good/Bad movie. The best entry in the great tradition of flicks like Cannonball Run and Smokey and the Bandit.

No comments: