Adapted from an Elmore Leonard novel, Burt Reynolds directs and stars in, Stick aa Ernest “Stick” Stickney an ex-con just out of prison after a seven-year stint for armed robbery. No sooner has he arrived home in Florida, Stick decides to accompany a friend on a drug deal. Unfortunately, the drug deal goes bad, and his friend is murdered. Forced to go into hiding, Stick works as a chauffeur for a wealthy eccentric named Barry Braham (George Segal) and begins a romantic relationship with Barry’s financial advisor Kyle (Candace Bergen).

Stick starts out with impressive photography and a strong action piece in a swamp, but quickly becomes ridiculous. The usually reliable George Segal plays Barry so over the top, it falls into camp; combine that with Reynolds doing some of his characteristic clowning, and it lessens the suspense of the story. The tone of the film is noticeably uneven and can hardly be considered among Burt’s best work.

According to the audio commentary included on this disc, Universal was unhappy when Burt turned in his original cut and asked for reshoots months later. He did them, but clearly wasn’t happy about it. There’s a clear shift in tone from the first half to the second. It’s fairly easy to spot where the reshoots were spliced in, as Reynolds looks noticeably different. He’s lost weight (due to an injury suffered making his next film) but he’s still himself. Candace Bergen is gorgeous, but she’s not given much to do.

If watching Burt Reynolds fight an albino hitman interests you, Stick is worth a look. If not, give it a pass.

Presented in the 1.85:1 aspect ratio, Kino Lorber’s 1080p transfer is a strong one. The level of detail, depth and texture are pleasing. The image mostly clean (though the opening titles appear dirty), with no obvious print damage and a nice level of natural film grain. Compression artifacts aren’t an issue. Fans should be pleased with this transfer.

The DTS-HD 2.0 track is free of issues and serves the film well enough. Dialogue is clean, clear and concise throughout. There are no issues with any type of audio distortion.

English SDH subtitles are included.

The following extras are available:

    • Audio Commentary with Film Critic Nick Pinkerton: As mentioned above, Pinkerton shares much information about the making of Pinkerton also has a few things to about Reynolds as an actor and director. Very informative.
    • Image Gallery (HD) A collection of behind-the-scenes photos and publicity materials.
    • Trailer (HD)