Airplane!

release year: 1980
genre: comedy
viewing setting: home DVD, 9/12/05 and home VHS 1/3/98

synopsis: Food poisoning cripples an airliner, and wacky confusion ensues.

impressions: This movie is a spoof of airplane disaster films, and it's a good one. It consists of a nonstop string of gags, jokes, one-liners, and impressions. It's little more than several hundred funny bits, one after another - and thus it succeeds in being funny without having any greater meaning whatsoever.

something this movie has that no other movie has: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in the co-pilot's seat.

acting: Very few people in this movie give serious performances. I'd have to say that the guy who plays Johnny did the best job; he had some really off-the-wall material here. Leslie Neilsen deadpans his humor as usual. Robert Hays and Julie Hagerty are the couple who rekindle their romance amidst the disaster.

final word: Highly re-watchable, and it will make you laugh. Good for parties.

back to the main review page