Burt Reynolds "Heat" 1986 vs Stratham's "Wild Card"

[whitehall]

Exactly the same plot centered in Vegas. I like Jason Stratham but he is a British one trick pony who doesn't have the dramatic ability to pull it off. For all his critics Burt Reynolds did it better.

 

[Flopper]

Exactly the same plot centered in Vegas. I like Jason Stratham but he is a British one trick pony who doesn't have the dramatic ability to pull it off. For all his critics Burt Reynolds did it better.

Reynolds was struck in the face with a metal chair on the first day of filming of Heat, which resulted in a joint dysfunction leading to surgery. He was restricted to a liquid diet and lost thirty pounds from not eating. The painkillers he was prescribed led to an addiction, which would plague him most of his life. Drugs, and car accidents would result in multiple back surgeries, years of physical theory and a quintuple coronary artery bypass surgery.

However, it seemed this guy as a young man had an almost unbelievable life. A football star at Florida State who was widely thought of as the sexiest guy to every put his foot on campus. With only one acting role and no formal training, Burt got his first Hollywood role in multiple episodes of Gunsmoke followed by a number of appearance in movies and leading roles in several TV series. It didn't take long for every female star in Hollywood, young or old to go after him. In the Seventies, being thought of as the supper star with the acting ability of an understudy in a grade school play finally convinced him that he needed acting lessons and an acting coach. The result was some pretty decent acting in movies such as Deliverance, The Longest Yard, and Boogie Nights. By the 1980s his star was fading as problems with drugs and heath increased. Despite, stardom, his many affairs, and financial success, he never was very happy in his career and even less so in his love life and never felt he was a good father.

 

[whitehall]

Reynolds was the real deal and the kind of guy you would have liked to have known. RIP

 

[Flopper]

Reynolds was the real deal and the kind of guy you would have liked to have known. RIP

People who knew him personally said he was a really nice person that went out of his way to help people. Unfortunately, a few bad decision and some bad breaks really messed up his life.
He got into acting as just a lark, getting a role on Gunsmoke and some pretty awful TV in the 60's but in the 70's he started taking his acting seriously and did some really good movies. However, in 80's, he started turning down serious roles that people like Clinton Eastwood, Harrison Ford, and Jack Nicholson made famous. preferring, light rom cons and action adventure. Although critics generally panned his movies, he was a dependable box office draw and he managed to make few really good movies in 80s and beyond.

 

[hjmick]

Statham.

 

[whitehall]

People who knew him personally said he was a really nice person that went out of his way to help people. Unfortunately, a few bad decision and some bad breaks really messed up his life.
He got into acting as just a lark, getting a role on Gunsmoke and some pretty awful TV in the 60's but in the 70's he started taking his acting seriously and did some really good movies. However, in 80's, he started turning down serious roles that people like Clinton Eastwood, Harrison Ford, and Jack Nicholson made famous. preferring, light rom cons and action adventure. Although critics generally panned his movies, he was a dependable box office draw and he managed to make few really good movies in 80s and beyond.

Reynolds pretty much played the same Burt Reynolds in most of his movies from the "Gator" stuff to Bandit and the lame detective stuff like "Shamus" but he was likeable. For my money the only movie he really acted out of character was "Deliverance"

 

[Flopper]

Reynolds pretty much played the same Burt Reynolds in most of his movies from the "Gator" stuff to Bandit and the lame detective stuff like "Shamus" but he was likeable. For my money the only movie he really acted out of character was "Deliverance"

I think Boogie Nights along with Deliverance, and the Longest Yard are his best. The film with his best acting was Boogie Nights. Reynolds hated the movie and the director. After seeing a rough cut of the film, Reynolds fired his agent for recommending it. Despite this, Reynolds won a Golden Globe Award and was nominated for an Academy Award for his performance, which is the highest acting recognition he ever received. It's kind of strange the movie he really hated and wish he had never made, is the movie that he delivered his best performance.

 

[surada]

Reynolds was the real deal and the kind of guy you would have liked to have known. RIP

He was very kind and helpful to my son.

 

[Flopper]

We have discussed Burt's best films but what about his worst. Undoubtable his worst in terms of acting, script, and direction were Cannonball Run and it's sequels. Roger Ebert gave the film a half-star out of four, calling it "an abdication of artistic responsibility at the lowest possible level of ambition. In other words, they didn't even care enough to make a good lousy movie". Variety described the film as "full of terribly inside showbiz jokes and populated by what could be called Burt and Hal's Rat Pack, film which takes place in that redneck never-never land where most of the guys are beer-guzzling good ole boys and all the gals are fabulously built tootsies".

The 16 million dollar film of which Burt was paid 5 million and 5% of the profits has gross over 160 million which goes to show that you can make a lot of money making movies with no redeeming qualities. The movie was such a financial success, a big paycheck persuaded Burt to do Cannon Ball II which was a financial success but was an even bigger theatrical bomb. Roger Ebert gave it a 1/2 star. it spawned a third Cannonball movie called Speed Zone.

The backers of Speed Zone were sure that Reynolds would do the movie. However after reading the script, Burt said, "this is the worst script I have ever read and the storyline is even worse and there is no way I will be associated with it." Good call by Burt. The movie was a critical disaster, although it did manage to make a few bucks. Ebert gave 0 out of 4 stars. The film received negative reviews from critics around the country and was nominated for three Golden Raspberry Awards including Worst Picture and Worst Director, with Brooke Shields winning Worst Supporting Actress.