Jazmin Li
Airplane! is a 1980 comedy masterpiece that is widely regarded as one of the greatest spoofs ever made. It is a parody of the big-budget disaster films that dominated Hollywood in the 1970s, specifically the airborne ones, like the Airport series. The film introduces a deflating assessment of the tendency of theatrical film producers to push successful formulaic movie conventions beyond the point of logic. It is a non-stop joke-packed film with puns, gags, slapstick, one-liners, comebacks, wordplay, and absurdity.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Release Date | 1980 |
| Genre | Comedy |
| Plot | A pilot with a fear of flying who has difficulty maintaining a relationship with his stewardess girlfriend, but is tasked with landing a plane full of passengers |
| Directors | Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, and Jerry Zucker |
| Writers | Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, and Jerry Zucker |
| Parody Of | Disaster films, specifically the airborne ones like the Airport series; TV commercials; celebrities; cultural phenomenons; and movies |
| Rating | 7.7/10 |
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What You'll Learn
Airplane! is a parody of the Airport series of disaster films
The 1980 comedy film Airplane! is a parody of the Airport series of disaster films, which dominated Hollywood in the 1970s. It is also a spoof of other big-budget disaster films of that decade, introducing a "deflating assessment" of the successful formulaic conventions of the genre.
Airplane! is a remake of the 1957 film Zero Hour!, which is described as the "serious version of Airplane!". The film's writers, Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, and Jerry Zucker (ZAZ), modelled their script closely on Zero Hour! and even considered it necessary to negotiate the rights to create the remake.
Airplane! also parodies other films, including Jaws, The Wizard of Oz, and Saturday Night Fever. It references horror movies, war movies, westerns, and fantasy adventures.
The film is filled with puns, gags, slapstick, one-liners, comebacks, wordplay, and absurdity. It stars Robert Hays as Ted Striker, a pilot with a fear of flying, and Julie Hagerty as his stewardess girlfriend, Elaine Dickinson. The cast also includes Leslie Nielsen, Robert Stack, Lloyd Bridges, and Peter Graves, who spoof their established tough-guy images.
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The film spoofs the 1957 film Zero Hour
The 1980 comedy film Airplane! is a parody of the big-budget disaster films that dominated Hollywood in the 1970s. It is based on the 1957 film Zero Hour!, an adaptation of Arthur Hailey's 1956 Canadian Broadcasting Corporation teleplay Flight into Danger.
Zero Hour! tells the story of Ted Stryker, a former WWII fighter pilot who is traumatised by his combat experiences and doubts his piloting abilities. During a commercial flight in 1950s Canada, the pilots and some passengers suffer food poisoning, and Stryker is forced to land the plane in heavy fog.
Airplane! co-writers and co-directors Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, and Jerry Zucker recorded Zero Hour! while taping late-night television and found it to be a "perfectly classically structured film". They initially wrote a script that closely followed the dialogue and plot of Zero Hour! before deciding to buy the rights to the entire film and create a parody.
Airplane! spoofs Zero Hour! by including absurdity and intermixing it with the setup and danger of airline disaster films. For example, a scene in which a doctor, with a beating human heart bouncing on his desk, talks in an office full of mayonnaise jars, sets up a pun about the renowned Mayo Clinic. The film also includes a disco-dance scene, in which Ted Striker is tossed into the air and his stunt double is visible among the spectators.
Airplane! received universal acclaim from critics and is widely regarded as one of the best films of 1980. It has an approval rating of 97% on Rotten Tomatoes and an average rating of 8.45/10.
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It also references the 1975 film Jaws
The 1980 comedy masterpiece *Airplane!* is a parody of the big-budget disaster films that dominated Hollywood in the 1970s, specifically the airborne ones, like the *Airport* series. However, like any great parody movie, it also references other movie classics, including the 1975 film *Jaws*.
The opening credits of *Airplane!* spoof *Jaws*, with a plane in place of a shark. The film also includes a disco-dance scene, in which Ted dances in a style reminiscent of John Travolta in *Saturday Night Fever*, with a Bee Gees soundtrack playing in the background.
Airplane! is a straight-up remake of the 1957 film Zero Hour!, with a few changes. The film's writers, David Zucker, Jerry Zucker, and Jim Abrahams, first saw Zero Hour! when they were recording late-night television, and they found it to be a "perfectly classically structured film". They initially wrote a script that closely followed the dialogue and plot of Zero Hour!, but they later made changes to create a parody within copyright law.
In addition to spoofing *Jaws* and referencing *Saturday Night Fever*, *Airplane!* also includes nods to horror movies, war movies, westerns, swords-and-sandals epics, and fantasy adventures like *The Wizard of Oz*.
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Airplane! is a comedy with puns, gags, slapstick, and absurdity
The 1980 film Airplane! is a comedy masterpiece and one of the greatest spoof films ever made. It is a parody of the big-budget disaster films that dominated Hollywood in the 1970s, specifically the airborne ones, like the Airport series. It also references horror movies like Jaws and fantasy adventures like The Wizard of Oz. The film is packed with jokes, puns, gags, slapstick, one-liners, comebacks, wordplay, and absurdity.
Airplane! is a remake of the 1957 film Zero Hour!, which is a largely forgotten drama that served as the primary source of inspiration for the comedy. The film's writers, Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, and Jerry Zucker (ZAZ), routinely recorded late-night television and reviewed the tapes to pull commercials and find content they could make fun of. They unintentionally recorded Zero Hour! and found it to be a "perfectly classically structured film." The script for Airplane! initially stayed very close to the dialogue and plot of Zero Hour!, with ZAZ believing they needed to negotiate the rights to create the remake and ensure they remained within the allowance for parody within copyright law.
Airplane! also has specific references to the 1975 Airport film starring Charlton Heston and Linda Blair, the first sequel to the original 1970 Airport movie. For example, the scene in which a passenger plays the guitar and accidentally almost kills a sick girl is a direct nod to Airport 1975. Additionally, the argument between airport announcers "Betty" and "Vernon" over the red and white zones is a "send-up" of curbside terminal announcements. ZAZ hired the real-life married couple who had recorded the announcement tapes used at Los Angeles International Airport to voice these characters.
The film also includes parodies of TV commercials, celebrities, cultural phenomena, and movies that were popular in the 1970s and 1980s. Some of these references may not be understood by modern audiences, but they still work because they fit in with the rest of the absurdity in the film. The density and variety of the gags, as well as the exciting and thrilling plot, are what make Airplane! such an enduring and endearing film.
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The film received an approval rating of 97% on Rotten Tomatoes
The 1980 film Airplane! is a parody of the big-budget disaster films that dominated Hollywood in the 1970s. It is particularly a parody of the 1957 film Zero Hour! and the 1968 novel Airport, written by Arthur Hailey, which also inspired the 1970 film Airport.
Airplane! received an approval rating of 97% on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 69 reviews. The film has been described as "an uproarious spoof comedy full of quotable lines and slapstick gags that endure to this day". The site's critical consensus acknowledges that the film is "unabashedly juvenile and silly", but its blend of comedy, absurdity, and exciting plotlines has ensured its enduring popularity.
The film's appeal lies in its ability to combine hilarious comedy with an exciting, thrilling plot. The screenplay is packed with puns, gags, slapstick, one-liners, comebacks, wordplay, and absurdity. The cast's straight delivery, even in the face of absurdity, adds to the humour and ensures the film's enduring appeal.
Airplane! also stands out for its parody of TV commercials, celebrities, cultural phenomena, and movies that may not be familiar to younger audiences. Despite this, the gags work due to their alignment with the film's overall absurdity. The film's writers and directors, Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, and Jerry Zucker, intentionally created a script that borrowed heavily from Zero Hour! to ensure they remained within the allowance for parody within copyright law.
In addition to its comedic elements, Airplane! also includes a romantic storyline and a real drama involving multiple passengers getting sick and incapacitated pilots. The film's unique blend of humour, suspense, and romance has contributed to its enduring popularity and critical acclaim.
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Frequently asked questions
Yes, Airplane! is a parody of the Airport series of disaster films that ran throughout the 1970s. It also parodies other movies, TV shows, commercials, celebrities, and cultural phenomena.
Airplane! is about a pilot, Ted Striker, who has a fear of flying and struggles to maintain a relationship with his air hostess girlfriend, Elaine Dickinson. Despite this, he is tasked with landing a plane full of passengers.
The cast of Airplane! includes Robert Hays, Julie Hagerty, Leslie Nielsen, Robert Stack, Lloyd Bridges, Peter Graves, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
