The End

At the height of his Hollywood stardom in 1978, Burt Reynolds directed and starred in this atypical gallows sitcom-style movie. The result, unfortunately, is more of the funny-peculiar kind than funny-ha-ha. Reynolds stars as Sonny, a philandering, shady Southern California realtor who is shaken by a diagnosis of a leukemia-type terminal illness. Given mere months to live, a panicked Sonny awkwardly turns to religion, sex (Reynolds' real-life then-girlfriend Sally Field portrays the anti-hero's cat-hoarding mistress) and, finally, attempted suicide. The latter antic lands him in a mental hospital, where Sonny finds a sympathetic but bumbling loon (Dom DeLuise) willing to murder him. Lots of familiar faces (Carl Reiner, Myrna Loy, Norman Fell, Joanne Woodward, Kristy McNichol, Robby Benson) drift through this sketch-like scenario, at least giving this aimless farce some nostalgic value. Optional. (C. Cassady)