I love a good ensemble film, one where a bunch of characters some together and pool their collective talens in order to achieve a common goal. In this week’s episode I’ll be recommending a few films in which multiple characters team up and head out!
Smokey and the Bandit (1977)
Big Enos and his son have a taste for Coors beer, which back in the 1970s was illegal to ship east of the Mississippi. The two are willing to pay big money to anyone who can make the run from Georgia to Texas and back and deliver 400 cases of Coors in less than 28 hours, and the Bandit (Burt Reynolds) and his pal Cletus (Jerry Reed) are just the ones to pull it off. Unfortunately for them, the Bandit picks up a runaway bride named Carrie (Sally Fields) who left Junior, the son of Sheriff Buford T. Justice (Jackie Gleason), at the alter. With a Smokey from Texas hot on their tail, it’s “east bound and down” in a race to deliver the goods before the law ruins their fun.
The Great Muppet Caper (1981)
When Kermit, Fozzie, and Gonzo blow their first (and last) job as reporters for a newspaper in England, the trio must team up to clear their names and prevent the theft of Lady Holiday’s most expensive posession, the Baseball Diamond. Featuring a slew of cameos and starring Diana Rigg as Lady Holiday and Charles Grodin as her crooken brother, Nicky. Personally, I think this sequel to The Muppet Movie is actually better. Yeah, I said it.
Police Academy 4: Citizens on Patrol (1987)
In the fourth Police Academy film, citizens are being recruited to assist our favorite police department through their new outreach program, Citizens On Patrol (C.O.P.) The new recruits are unqualified buffoons… which makes them a lot like the officers already on the force.
Cannibal: The Musical (1993)
The sky is blue, and all the leave are green… that is, until Alferd Packer returns from a prospecting expedition gone wrong and instead of finding other survivors, search parties find evidence of (gulp) cannibalism. Written by and starring Matt Stone and Trey Parker of South Park fame, Cannibal: The Musical features an interesting plot, catchy musical numbers, and jokes you can really sink your teeth into (no pun intended).
I love a good “Hero’s Journey” plot, but films with groups of characters joining up to accomplish a common goal can be even more fun. If two is company and three’s a crowd, ensembles are a whole bunch of fun!
