Now, while I had never actually heard bout this 1998 crime action movie "Hard Time", from director Burt Reynolds, I have to admit that I wasn't really harboring the biggest of expectations. But I still opted to keep an open mind and watch the movie, giving it a fair chance.

And color me impressed. Writers David S. Cass Sr. And Steve Wesley put together a surprisingly entertaining script and storyline, when taking into consideration that "Hard Time" is a TV movie. I was genuinely and wholeheartedly entertained throughout the course of the 90 minutes that the movie ran for. In fact, I will actually go as far as to saying that this movie is definitely in the top ten of Burt Reynold-starred movies.

The storyline was nicely constructed, and there was a good pacing to the narrative. So the writers really managed to pull this one off quite well. Surprisingly well, in fact.

The cast ensemble in the movie was quite impressive. There is a good amount of familiar faces on the cast list, both in bigger and smaller roles. Burt Reynolds carries the movie quite well in the role of Det. Logan McQueen. And he is joined by the likes of Charles Durning, Robert Loggia, Mia Sara, Billy Dee Williams, John D'Aquino, Ja'net DuBois and Roddy Piper to mention but a few. The acting performances in the movie are good.

If you enjoy crime action movies, then "Hard Time" is definitely a movie that is well-worth sitting down and watching. I was rather surprised, and quite entertained, by what director Burt Reynolds delivered here.

My rating of "Hard Time" lands on a six out of ten stars.

Star-director Burt Reynolds is a cop paired with Charles Durning. Durning, at 75, plays a man looking at retirement, and neither man is as young as he used to be. In the opening sequence, they're pursuing a man, and Reynolds puffs as he runs, while Durning waddles.

The plot concerns the fallout from a suspect being killed, and the attempts of Our Heroes to clear themselves. For a TV movie, it's decently written, Reynolds gets good performances out of Robert Loggia, Mia Sara, Billy Dee Williams, and Alice Ghostley. In fact, it's just what I expected it to be, a modern B movie, with few surprises - except for the final one -- with everyone coming in to do a good job for a paycheck.

I've no recollection of this playing on TV in the UK which doesn't of course mean it didn't, I don't watch everything on every channel every day; in fact I bought this on DVD which was marketed as a 'double' together with Lighning, one of Ed McBain's 87th precinct stories. Neither effort is much good and both have TV written all over them. This is yet another cop drama and for some perverse reason it goes out of its way NOT to say where we are, even the tags on the cars have no state id. There are three leads who have all payed their dues without becoming superstars, Burt Reynolds, Robert Loggia and Charles Durning. There's nothing much to grip us plot-wise, everything has been done a zillion times before, the best you can give it is that no one bumps into the furniture.