Review of Cannonball Run II (1984) by Jon A — 30 Sep 2010

These movies were never about the race. They weren't about any semblance of a plot. They were about watching an insanely famous cast of actors getting together to have a good time, and inviting you to watch. There's the required number of stunts and action scenes in both movies, and a healthy dose of flashy cars, but no one remembers these movies for any of that. If there ever really was a completed script for either of these movies, I'd be beyond shocked. You KNOW that most everything that happened in this movie was improvised on the spot. It's the freewheeling spirit that makes these movies so fun to watch to this day.

In fact, there's BARELY a race in this movie at all. Some people may criticize that, but I look at it as the filmmakers took note of what people liked about the first movie, and gave them even more of it this time, so that leaves less room for actual racing. There's still a good number of auto stunts and crashes, and a big brawl scene so Jackie Chan can show of his fighting skills.

The movie relies on the charm of its stars, and they all have more than enough of that to go around. Burt Reynolds made this the last of his "good ol' boy car chase" movies. Dom DeLuise seems to be having the most fun of the whole cast. Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr. were effortless pros who obviously loved acting against each other. Jamie Far was obviously relishing playing someone other than Klinger. We also get a mob backstory that is loaded with actors who appeared in The Godfather movies, and they seemed to enjoy spoofing themselves. The weakest "perfromances" come from the women in the cast, who simply seemed to lack the knack for improvisation, which like I said, was key to the fun of these movies. Shirley MacLaine and Marilu Henner just kind of struggle through the movie. Susan Anton and Catherine Bach...well let's just say that they weren't hired for their acting skills.

This is what I like to call a "so bad, it's great" movie, adn a nice way to reminice the 80's. Just empty your brain, sit back, and enjoy the fun that was being had while making the movie. Be sure to watch the credits.