cult film freak: OLIVER REED PLAYS THE CONNED BADDIE IN 'THE STING 2'

Written by James M. Tate / 5/27/2014 / No comments / eighties , martin matthews , oliver reed , seventies , sixties , yvonne romain

OLIVER REED PLAYS THE CONNED BADDIE IN 'THE STING 2'

5/27/2014 | No comment

1983 rating: **1/2

Not sure what Hollywood was thinking. "Let's make a sequel to THE STING and replace Paul Newman and Robert Redford with Jackie Gleason and Mac Davis."

But it's really not too bad. Seems like a made-for-TV flick that you watch digesting dinner. Gleason and Davis are grifters pulling two cons at once: screwing doofus kingpin Karl Malden out of money on a fixed boxing match and getting revenge on baddie Oliver Reed... playing Robert Shaw's character from the original... for killing a fellow grifter. In this role, and providing a legit edge throughout, Reed takes Shaw's villain to the hilt, making him someone not just worth ripping off, but stopping... permanently. Which won't be an easy task.

There are some fun moments; nothing gained, nothing lost overall. The main con gets a bit confusing as Davis pretends to be a professional boxer, but the little moments in-between are enough to carry things moderately. Mac Davis and gal drifter Teri Garr try their best to carry things along while Jackie Gleason is basically collecting an easy paycheck. Thankfully we have Oliver Reed to remind us, and the characters, there's always something to lose.

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Tags : eighties , martin matthews , oliver reed , seventies , sixties , yvonne romain

James M. Tate

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