Movielogr
The Cannonball Run (1981)
Directed by Hal Needham
Twitter Facebook Google+Sports | Comedy | Road Movie
Overview
A cross-country road race is based on an actual event, the Cannonball Baker Sea to Shining Sea Memorial Trophy Dash, organized by Brock Yates to protest the 55 mph speed limit then in effect in the U.S. The Cannonball was named for Erwin G. “Cannonball” Baker, who in the roaring 20’s rode his motorcycle across the country. Many of the characters are based on ruses developed by real Cannonball racers over the several years that the event was run.
Rated PG | Length 95 minutes
Actors
Burt Reynolds | Roger Moore | Farrah Fawcett | Dom DeLuise | Dean Martin | Sammy Davis Jr. | Jack Elam | Adrienne Barbeau | Terry Bradshaw | Jackie Chan | Bert Convy | Jamie Farr | Peter Fonda | George Furth | Michael Hui | Bianca Jagger | Molly Picon | Jimmy Snyder | Mel Tillis | Rick Aviles | Warren Berlinger | Tara Buckman | John Fiedler | Norman Grabowski | Joe Klecko | Grayce Spence | Robert Tessier | Alfie Wise | Johnny Yune | Lois Hamilton | Simone Burton | Finele Carpenter | Susan McDonald | Janet Woytak | James C. Lewis | Fred Smith | Roy Tatum | Dudley Remus | Hal Carter | Brock Yates | Kathleen M. Shea | Nancy Austin | Vickie Reigle | Bob Stenner | Ken Squier | Samir Kamoun | John Megna | Linda McClure | Laura Lizer Sommers | Richard Losee | Richie Burns Wright | Hal Needham | Valerie Perrine | Steve Dressler | Renee McCullah | Dave Mungenast | Tim R. Worley | Ben Rogers | Lori Randolph
Viewing History (seen 1 time)
| Date Viewed | Device | Format | Source | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 06/24/2014 | TV | Blu-ray | Library | 6 stars |
| (Average) 6 stars |
Viewing Notes
James Bond and Lawrence of Arabia jokes?!?!
This is such a wild movie. It’s not really very good but the fact that it exists is worthy of something. Crazy casting that includes Roger Moore pretending to be Roger Moore w/the Bond theme (off by one note to avoid getting sued even tho they probably could’ve sued). Jamie Farr as the Sheik w/the score from Lawrence of Arabia.
Jackie Chan representing the Japan Team, his first American movie I guess? this is interesting because Golden Harvest is the studio behind this movie. Dean Martin still has some life here. Wish Peter Fonda and his biker gang got a bigger presence.
Needham directs but it’s sloppy in many ways. The entire film is more like a exercise in having fun with a great cast rather than making a solid movie. The outtakes over the end credits kinda prove this out. Kinda hoped Tara Buckman would have been a bigger star given her character here. Too bad. Always dug her.
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