Les fourgueurs

Miami police detectives Ernie Fortunato (Dom DeLuise) and Doug von Horne (Jerry Reed) are partners working stolen goods in a squad run by Captain John Geiberger (Ossie Davis). Sergeant Louise Webster (Suzanne Pleshette) has been brought in to fix their lack of convictions. Doug has the idea to take over a rundown pawn shop to film all the thieves fencing their stolen goods.

This is a mildly humorous comedy directed by Dom DeLuise. It mostly relies on the loveable characters in the squad doing funny things. Quite frankly, it relies on the performers themselves more than anything else or the writing.

I saw this with the neighbors kids in the summer of 79 at the theatre, and thought what an odd film it was. Essentially Dom Deluise and Jerry Reed reprise their Smokey and the Bandit chemistry to organize an urban fence for a police sting.

As a kid I simply didn't understand too much of the plot, but thought it was entertaining in a sort of silly-adults acting silly sort of way. It's also got a kind of happy yet "justice is served" ending for what it's worth, making all feel happy at the end.

Kind of an odd film that deals with law enforcement, stolen goods and the "human" side of crime (if you can call it that). I'm not sure it's a film I'd see again, but I didn't mind seeing it the first time, and I think I caught it a couple more times on HBO a couple years later.

Give it a shot.

This is a funny movie. It was way too long in coming to DVD. I bought it for my sons and brother for Christmas. We worn out the VHS copy.

The ensemble cast is excellent. Each character has its unique personality. Very well acted, and it looks like they had a lot of fun making this. Sadly most every one of the main characters are gone now.

It does have the repertoire company of Burt Reynolds, but I think it is a better film with this cast then if Burt had taken the lead.

I wish Dom DeLuise had made more films. He became more interested in cooking later in life. He was a very funny man. I used to love him on Johnny Carson.

Please take the time to seek out this movie. You'll enjoy it!

This film plays as if it was originally written with Burt Reynolds as the star, but he couldn't/wouldn't do it.

It features pretty much the Usual Reynolds-Film Suspects -- Jerry Reed, Alfie Wise, Pat McCormick and others, and has exactly that air of slightly sardonic, semi-detached humour that Burt's raised eyebrow and patented cackle/chuckle convey so well (to the extent that his laugh was used as part of an animated pre-credits studio logo sequence for "Smokey & the Bandit").

That said, the cast make an excellent ensemble, play well off each other, and deliver the goods quite satisfactorily.

Quite an agreeable way to fill in an otherwise wasted hour and a half or so; if you're not expecting Great Drama, i don't think this film will fail to entertain.

(Watch for the then-Mayors of Miami and Miami Beach in Very Funny cameos. I won't tell you where -- if you don't spot them, check the end credits.)

Pleasing screwball comedy about Miami cops who catch petty thieves through a fencing front. DeLuise excels as star and director, as do Reed and Pleshette.