One of the most squirm-producing TV interviews that Barbara Walters ever conducted was one in which Burt Reynolds poured out his heart about his desire to father a child. (It might have been interesting to see his female fan mail the week after broadcast.) Paternity would appear to be a direct dramatization, or rather comedization, of that desire, and its chief effect is to produce numerous more squirms. Reynolds portrays a highly eligible bachelor named "Buddy," who is a model of conceit, selfishness, and inconsiderateness, and who is worried about departing from the earth without leaving anything behind to remember him by. His reasons for wanting a child (he doesn't want a wife to go with it) never become very clear or convincing, though one is free to speculate that the real reason is to make himself look more mature by comparison. The primary emotion evoked by his predicament is pity for the unborn baby. With Beverly D'Angelo, Paul Dooley, Norman Fell, and Lauren Hutton; directed by David Steinberg. (1981) — Duncan Shepherd
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