Blu-Ray review by
THE END can be purchased on blu-ray at MovieZyng.com by clicking the image above.
It wasn’t Burt Reynolds, but Dom DeLuise who served as my gateway to discovering this film. My family and I have long cherished the 1980 comedy FATSO, in which DeLuise stars as an overweight 40-year-old man coming to terms with his lifelong battle of the bulge. FATSO was the only feature film ever directed by actress Anne Bancroft, working under her husband’s BROOKSFILMS production company.
Last year, I had the privilege of conducting an exclusive interview with actress Candice Azzarra, who played DeLuise’s love interest in the film. One of the most exciting revelations from that conversation was learning that Azzarra had a copy of the original short film FATSO, which Bancroft had directed as a proof of concept, starring herself alongside DeLuise. This rare piece of film history had never been made available to the public—until we released it for viewing on our YouTube channel, courtesy of Candice Azzarra.
Now, back to THE END—one of several films that Reynolds and DeLuise starred in together, their chemistry making them a reliably hilarious comedic duo. THE END, directed by Reynolds himself, is a dark comedy about a man named Sonny Lawson (played by Reynolds) who, after being diagnosed with a terminal illness, embarks on a series of increasingly absurd and unsuccessful attempts to take his own life. While this premise may sound bleak, the film’s humor thrives on its outrageous situations and the sheer comedic energy of its stars.
Not surprisingly, DeLuise steals every scene he’s in. One of my biggest gripes with the film is that it takes too long to get to the mental hospital scenes, where his character, Marlon Borunki—a wildly unhinged yet oddly endearing fellow patient—makes his entrance. From the moment DeLuise appears, the film shifts into another gear entirely, and his manic, childlike performance injects a level of chaotic hilarity that was missing from the first act. His interactions with Reynolds are pure gold, and it’s easy to see why the two worked together so often.
It’s fantastic that THE END has finally received a proper Blu-ray release. While I was hoping there would be at least a couple special features on this new disc, it is sadly bare bones. Let that not detract from the greater importance - that a new generation of movie lovers will discover not only the comedic talents of Burt Reynolds but, more importantly, the unmatched brilliance of Dom DeLuise.
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