I have to tell you two things about 1977’s Smokey and the Bandit that you will find impossible to believe. The second most difficult thing to believe is this: Smokey and The Bandit is structurally perfect.
But before we can talk about that, we really have to look at the late 70s/early 80s car culture of the Southern United States. As you can tell from Hollywood’s output, the car-centric and trucker-centric counterculture of the South and Plains was a hot commodity.
You’ve got Smokey and The Bandit of course (1, 2, and 3), Cannonball Run (1, 2, and 3), Stroker Ace, Thunderbolt and Lightfoot, Convoy, Any Which Way But Loose, as well as some lesser knowns like Eat My Dust and White Lightning. And lest I be accused of forgetting a touchstone of my own childhood, Dukes of Hazzard on television. That is a lot of chases, jumps, and wrecks. But it’s also a lot of what today we’d call “problematic imagery.”
Running throughout this media, you’ll see a lot of “rebel” iconography. Which in and of itself isn’t shocking. These are stories about people who like to drive fast and have fun, a staple of America’s rebellious car culture since the Model T. Unfortunately, in this case, the iconography is predominantly Confederate.
The South’s problematic imagery will rise again!
Stars and Bars, horns that play Dixie, and an overall conflation of being rebellious with being “country” which, in this case clearly means “southern.” It may have been brief, but across screens both small and silver, the South rose again. Kinda like the bile in my throat as I think about it.
I wore Dukes shirts and drove Hot Wheels of the General Lee all over creation. I loved the Bandit, and never thought twice about the Georgia state flag on his license tag. If I can quote another article on this topic:
“In 1955, John Sammons Bell, chairman of the State Democratic Party in Georgia, designed a new flag that would ‘honor our ancestors who fought and died and who have been so much maligned.’ A publication by the Georgia State Senate Research Office entitled ‘The State Flag of Georgia: The 1956 Change In Its Historical Context,’ noted “when the battle flag was incorporated into the Georgia state flag, the state was in a desperate situation to preserve segregation.’”
This is pretty sickening. And in the case of Bandit, kinda nonsensical. The only thing I can guarantee Bandit is rebelling against is speed limits and liquor laws. Bandit and Snowman both are shown to be men of the people, mixing with all manner of folks as long as they’re of the open road (except bikers, which is particularly confusing). They have African American associates who are clearly longtime friends. Bandit gets along with everyone regardless of race, creed, or color. His love interest is even a Jewish musical theater dancer!
Meanwhile, Sheriff Buford T. Justice is shown to be racist, misogynist, sex-negative, anti-gay, and abusive to his family. Justice even disregards the authority of other law enforcement despite his own insistence that such disrespect is “pure, simple, ol’ fashioned Communsim.”
Alternative Trump Campaign Slogan
So who exactly is the Man that Bandit is rebelling against? I find this question borderline inexplicable. Naturally, that won’t stop me from trying.
Directors at this time were starting to feel constrained by the Hollywood machine. Despite their own staggering levels of privilege in the USA at large, in Hollywood, they were cogs in the machine. But as artists, they saw themselves as much more. They began to envision themselves as fighting against the Man. Or, you know, studio execs. That’s the same as racist, sexist, and classist power structures, right?
And so they created films where a lone Rebel, far away from the urban centers of America, thumbs his nose at Authority. But this theme is largely uninformed or unconscious, so the Rebel bucks the Man while also a guy who gets along with Jews and African Americans because that’s how the directors want to see themselves. Never mind their Confederate imagery and “South will rise again” posturing. Which creates a sort of buffet rebellion where they have the privilege to pick and choose which power structures to buck up against.
And Authority becomes whatever man is handy without a great deal of thought about what it might represent outside of studio execs. Which leads to a conflation between bigoted county mounties and more enlightened African American highway patrolmen. They throw away the urban but retain the urbane, thus betraying their own privilege.
“Oh, pardon me. You sounded taller on the radio.”
That lack of self-awareness could have led to an extremely distasteful tone deafness in this movie. But the stellar performances and solid narrative approach combined into undeniable appeal. Watching it, it’s no wonder this movie was such a hit and has remained in the cultural consciousness. Although it may be thematically half-baked and shot on a shoestring budget, there’s no denying it is fun.
The main characters are broad as hell but never stop being engaging, entertaining, and funny in their own individual ways. Many of the side characters are interesting enough they could carry an episode of a trucker or street racer television show on their own. The cars are sexy and go real fast. The music is catchy. And, as I mentioned, it is structurally perfect.
There are a million ways this is true, but I’m going to hone in on seven.
1. The inciting incident: This is the Problem the story is going to try and resolve, the thing that turns your protagonist’s world upside down. This should be as close to the film’s opening as possible.
Bandit’s inciting incident is Big and Little Enos betting he can’t deliver the illegal Coors in 28 hours. In this movie, it happens after exactly one other scene that explains to those of us who may not know that moving Coors across the Mississippi is a damned foolhardy thing to do. Perfect.
These effin’ guys…
1.5: It’s worth pointing out that Bandit’s incredible expertise are shown in a couple of very clever and economic scenes that also let Burt Reynolds mug for the camera in a way nobody else could get away with. This shows rather than tells the audience of Bandit’s skills. The camera mugging also lets them know they should plant their tongue firmly in their cheek for the next hour.
2. Acceptance: This is when the protagonist, who has been sailing along pretty well, realizes that things are decidedly more complicated than he expected. This is usually the end of Act 1 and should happen around the 30% mark of the story.
For Bandit, this happens when Frog gets in the car and Bandit finds himself in hot pursuit from Sheriff Buford T. Justice. Shit just got real, and it happened at the 23% mark. Perfect!
2.5: There’s some rock solid escalation of the whole conflict when Bandit AND Justice run afoul of other highway patrolmen. Bandit is clearly a force to be reckoned with, but so is Justice. Escalation of the threat is a vital part of the storytelling. Otherwise, we start wondering why the protagonist doesn’t just solve the problem already.
3. Midpoint: This is the point in a story when the stakes go up, the nature of the contest is escalated, or there’s a reversal of fortune against our hero. This usually happens in the middle of Act 2, so roughly the 50% mark.
For Bandit, this is when he tries to drop Frog off at a bus station, but they both clearly regret it. He also meets Justice face-to-face and realizes nothing is going to stop the sheriff from pursuing him. He finds Frog is also fleeing the scene in his car, and now they’re in this together. The contest just became personal to both of them, and it happens 45.7% into the movie. PERFECT.
No surprise that he goes from here to the bathroom. Also in a goddamn hurry.
4. Point of No Return: This is when things start to trend toward the Climax of the story. The battle and where it will be fought becomes clear. We now know the “when, where, and how” of the final conflict. At this point, we’re nearing the end, so this must happen no later than 70% into a story.
For Bandit, this happens when Snowman cockily says, “It’s a clear run to the ‘Bama state line.” He says this 58% into the film’s runtime. Better than PERFECT! (Better because this movie is also pretty great at setting a fast pace.)
5. All is Lost: Something goes horribly wrong and we’re left unsure our hero will be able to triumph. Nevertheless, he reaffirms his commitment. With Bandit, this is when he’s pursued by dozens of law enforcement officers and a chopper. “Did you count on this?” Frog asks. “No. No I did not,” Bandit admits. But when Bandit suggests they give up, Snowman refuses. “We come this far didn’t we?” he demands just before blowing his horn and taking the lead.
6. Climax: The conflict comes to an end, usually with success. Bandit delivers the beer, wins the bet, and demands “a way out of here…and the money.” Big Enos gives him the keys to his Caddy, and it appears that Bandit, Snowman, and Frog will escape the police none the worse for wear. Our heroes triumph! PERFECT!
7. Resolution: But this is when we see how the world has changed because of our heroes’ success. This is the emotional pay off. How has this journey changed our heroes?
With the Bandit, the answer is joyfully not at all. Before he can even get in the Caddy and drive away, Little Enos bets him double or nothing on run all the way to Boston for clam chowder in 16 hours. Bandit accepts, of course.
God willing, we’ll all see each other again in Smokey and the Bandit 2: The Chase After More Money
But, as they drive away toward Boston, Big Enos gives 20 to 1 odds he’s got Bandit this time. Little Enos, who spent the early scenes of the film refusing to believe in Bandit’s legend, peels off some money and says, “I’ll put $500 on the Bandit.” Bandit’s legend has grown! PERFECT!!
Look, gang, there’s a reason this is one of Alfred Hitchcock’s favorite movies. That master of modern film could put aside a lot in the name of fun, but do you really think he could ignore something that lacked a structurally sound narrative? And so I rest my case. Nearly the hardest thing to believe about Smokey and The Bandit is its perfection…at least at a narrative level.
But what’s the most unbelievable thing about this movie? That Bandit and Frog had sex in a Trans Am, obviously. I mean, what are they, circus contortionists?
