I’ve post this story elsewhere but true story. The day after Leslie Nielsen passed away my wife and I were carpooling to work when the DJ came on to give the morning news. He said, “In sad news Leslie Nielsen passed away yesterday “ I immediately said, “Surely you can’t be serious!” Without missing a beat the DJ responded, “I am serious and don’t call me Shirley!” My wife just turns and stares at me and I start laughing.
A fun fact, the film's creators (Zuckerberg brothers & Abraham's), where concerned how the scene with the men speaking jive would translate in foreign countries. In Germany, they came up with a novel solution. They dubbed the two black men with men speaking in a Bavarian accent, which really tickled the German audience.
@@creech54 Yeah, it's amusing that he was so famous for his comedy later in his career, because he was so famous for being a serious actor prior to this. That was part of what made him work so well in this... it felt so out of place having a famous serious actor doing comedy... and so well! Check out his first film, Forbidden Planet. A true sci-fi classic.
The first time I watched this, I was over half-way through the film before I noticed that the "jet airliner" had propeller engine noises. There are a lot of subtle jokes like that, which make re-watching it so fun. Especially for those of us old enough to get the references, like Jim's never having a second cup of coffee at home.
That joke only hits if you have seen that couple in the original commercial. The follow up where Jim never vomits at home is funnier if you have seen the commercial, but the absurdity of the statement makes the joke work regardless of prior knowledge.
As a result of this movie awakening Leslie Neilson's comedic side he loved pulling a particular practical joke. He bought a tiny little pump up device that you'd hide in the palm of your hand. Once filled with air, you'd release it by removing your finger from a valve. It would sound like an incredibly real FART!!! He would go on talk shows and let the producer in on the gag telling them to let the hosts know he had a gastrointestinal problem that was very embarrassing so not to call attention to it. At various points during the interview he would 'let loose' while keeping a dead pan serious expression!!! Watching the hosts squirm and turn red was AWESOME!!!! Oh, and the auto pilot's name was Otto. Of course.
This film is primarily a parody of Zero Hour. Great to see you enjoying it. The writers have a cameo as the men holding the light signaler at the beginning who accidentally signal a plane right into the airport. Their mother has a cameo as the woman putting on makeup during the crash.
I don't think I've seen Zero Hour. I guess you're thinking of Robert Hays' military flashbacks? But a LOT of the rest of the movie is primarily a parody of Airport and its sequel, even down to the food poisoning taking out the pilots.
Robert Stack is so brilliant in this film. He did all the rolls and stunts when he was beating up the pamphleteers in the airport too. A dude. Great commentary as always.
@@ShanWatchesMovies Something that made "Airplane" much more hilarious at the time of it's release is, the audience were familiar with the actors, Leslie Nielsen, Lloyd Bridges, and Robert Stack as serious leading men only, so to suddenly see them in comic roles was extra funny. Also, Barbara Billingsley, who's character was able to translate Jive (urban slang from the 1920's to 1980 or so, originating from Harlem in NYC and spread around the country through touring musicians), was familiar to the audience as the mother on the late 1950's family sitcom, "Leave it to Beaver", so it seemed out of character, for her to be able to speak Jive.
@@ShanWatchesMovies There's a series that came first, cancelled after a few episodes. But... I think it's better to watch that AFTER the trilogy. The films reuse some of the series gags and jokes, but are better made with some actual form of story arc. Enjoy the reused jokes in the films first and then go back and watch the show. General recommendation: Ed Wood (1994, Burton and Depp at their peak together, movie for movie lovers)
"They're showing the same thing over and over again." There is no repetition with the instrument panel gag. They actually went to that level of effort. That's what makes it art. Best. Leo.
During the "Clearance Clarence" scene when they're taking off most people seem to miss that he grabs a control knob like it's a transmission shifter and puts the plane into gear. One of my favorite blink and you'll miss it moments.
Funnily enough, this is actually a remake of a serious movie called Zero Hour. The gag about Kareem Abdul Jabar was based on a famous football player being in the movie, trying to transition to acting.
I can't believe how much I'd forgotten from this film, even though I just saw it for the first time in 2017. The "drinking problem" bit is one of the best things ever.
Part of their MO is if something serious is going on in the foreground, something funny is going on in the background. And vice versa. And deadpan, deadpan, deadpan. Best. Leo.
Exactly! I almost had a hard time concentrating because so much was going on at the same time. A film like this deserves multiple views because its impossible to get all the jokes the first time!
If you want to see Leslie Nielsen in a dramatic role, which is no less funny, see him in Forbidden Planet (1956). Somewhat groundbreaking and very influential, It suffers a bit from 1950s social attitudes permeating the script. Still worth watching if for no other reason than seeing where Gene Roddenberry got a lot of his ideas for Star Trek. Best. Leo.
4 года назад
I watched The Naked Gun four times in the cinema, it's the only feat of such of a kind I have done with any movie. All four times were with auditoriums maxed out of people and all four times I had rib cage pain from laughing so hard. 😂
@@jamesparson a published, broadcast, or recorded work that continues the story or develops the theme of an earlier one, but that's not important right now.
I always liked the bit with the old lady speaking Jive. It's made even better by the fact the lady is played by Barbara Billingsley, who was the mother on Leave it to Beaver (Which is the go to '1950's family sitcom'). Leslie Neilson was a dramatic actor before this, playing the exact same sort of character (which is what made it funnier to see him in this role) and completely changed the sort of roles he was in.
I laughed even harder while reading the wikipedia page after finishing the movie! I couldn't believe that such a wholesome character was saying those lines!
Little bit of trivia; they couldn’t use a propeller type plane due to copyright issues with Airport movies they were parodying. The plane has jet engines but the sound is of propellers running.
This is only partly a parody of the Airport movies. Everyone thinks that because those movies were popular then. But it's really a scene-for-scene sendup of "Zero Hour", a film from the 50's.
My understanding is that they wanted a prop plane but the studio insisted on a jet for the modern times. So the model was a jet and the sound was a prop plane - they still got what they wanted. And it made for a delightful gag on its own.
Fun fact: _Airplane!_ was the very first comedy role Leslie Nielsen ever played. He'd always been in serious roles. In fact, he, Peter Graves and Lloyd Bridges were cast in this film specifically because they were typecast as competent professionals; roles they played with gravitas and great earnestness. The Zucker Brothers and Abrahams needed them to play those cliché roles absolutely straight, not hamming it up at all. And they did. Nielsen did it so well, in fact, that it became impossible for him to play serious roles ever again. He ran with it and made it a whole new career. Other fun fact: The movie parodied a lot of clichés from airline disaster films of the 70's, but the plot and main characters were from a 1957 film called _Zero Hour!_
I left a like before I even watched the video. Anyone who watches AIRPLANE! deserves a like. I was going to write this message in "jive" but I wasn't sure if you had a translator.
@@jp3813 I said anyone who "Watches" Airplane! deserves a like. I made no insinuation about whether or not Shan would like it. No gun was jumped in my original comment.
@@randomthoughts5601 I'm just saying that if a reactor ends up declaring that Airplane is the worst movie they've ever seen and anyone who finds it funny is dumb, that video might not deserve a like.
@@jp3813 If in his final thoughts on Airplane! Shan had said that it was the dumbest movie ever, I would still have given him a like for at least giving the movie a chance. Shan seems to be fairly critical, but fair in his evaluations of film and cinema. Had he supported his "dumbest movie ever" claim with examples of why he came to that conclusion, I would have respected his opinion, even if I did not agree with it. I find it hard to believe that Shan would call anyone dumb for liking any movie. Based on his other reaction videos he seems to understand that different people will like or hate a movie based on their own opinions, personal preferences, and pre conceived expectations of a movie. I don't want to turn the comment section into a semantic back and forth. I found this channel and appreciated the way Shan approaches movies. He is methodical, and analytical in his break down of movies. I have always appreciated when a movie can bridge the gap between the artistic side of story and character, and the technical side of filmmaking, and Shan seems to share that appreciation with me. Doesn't mean that I will always agree with his opinion, but I will respect that it comes from a love of cinema.
This was Leslie's first comedy role. The only serious role I saw him in was The Forbidden Planet (covertly calling for a remake of that classic). "I am serious, and don't call me Shirley!" The Airplane 2: The Sequel was just as awesome!
The most underrated character of the whole movie, Johnny aka the "I can make a broach, a hat" and "it's a pretty white one with wings", is just hilarious.
What makes the humor is that the film is full of famous actors known for more serious work. Robert Stack (Kramer), Lloyd Bridges (McCroskey), Leslie Nielson (before this movie, he was a serious actor). Peter Graves was Captain Oeveur. He was a popular TV actor in the 60's and 70's. He was the star of Mission: Impossible. After the Airplane 2 sequel (which takes place in outer space) Abrahams and the Zucker's (also known as ZAZ) made Top Secret, which is very much like this, but instead of parodying a disaster film, it's a combination war film and Elvis Presley-style musical.
Just joined ur Patreon... i really encourage others to also become a patron if at all possible, because you give really sensational feedback in your videos and - in a landscape crowded with reactors - you stand totally out of the crowd. Great work!
It’s hard to make a good comedy, it’s almost impossible to make a really big scale comedy. The Great Race wasn’t bad. Awesome performances by Jack Lemmon and Peter Falk. Steven Spielberg’s 1941 didn’t quite get there. A guilty pleasure of mine is “How To Murder Your Wife”. Don’t throw knives at me over the portrayal of married relationships in this movie, it was released in 1965. Great performances by Jack Lemmon, Virni Lisi, Terry Thomas, Eddie Mayehoff, and Claire Trevor.
Airplane!... forty years later, still the most hilarious movie I've ever seen. Relentless, unapologetic. It's safe to call it a masterpiece. And yes, the autopilot is awesome. Love that we have the opportunity to meet his lady at the end. "Air Israel" XD
Even though a lot of jokes in this movie get missed because they reference commercials and other things from the 70’s it’s still so much fun because it’s stuffed to the gills with gags. I’m glad you enjoyed it 😄 I like your reviews of the films that you watch 👍
It wasn't until I watched this again a few weeks ago that I noticed the baby being thrown in the air during the airplane crashing through the window scene. And that "drinking problem" joke kills me Everytime. Really enjoying your channel.
The amazing thing about this movie, besides paving the way for a whole genre of zany comedies, is that even after 40 years... it's still just as funny as it was in 1980. :D
Comedy was always Leslie Nielsen's passion. In his earlier serious roles he was acting against type. He loved fart jokes, and when he died and was buried, his grave was graced with a headstone that has "LET 'ER RIP" chiseled on it.
That was really fun watching you crack up. I saw it in the theater when I was 11 and it was amazingly funny. We'd never seen ANYTHING like it before. You should watch the film TOP SECRET and the television show POLICE SQUAD. Same people, and still hilarious.
True story I was travelling around Asia. In Thailand at a port in a storm loads of passengers were stranded listening to announcements of our journeys being delayed. I turned to a guy sitting next to me and said, “guess I chose the wrong day to give up sniffing glue”. He got up and moved seats. Guess he wasn’t an Airplane fan.
Kramer, who helps Stryker with landing, was played by Robert Stack. He would later go on to host the series "Unsolved Mysteries". A lot of people who watched TV in the 90s had to have seen at least a few episodes during that time.
I grew up watching this movie, so awesome! As much this movie is just gags, all the jokes are great & are either hilariously random or have JUST enough cleverness to make them pop that much more. it's like they have 1 layers of funniness. Comedies don't even have jokes anymore. They just have references & for some reason people laugh.
I loved your reaction to this. Really great fun to watch! You would probably also like Top Secret (1984), another parody from the same directors. That one is a spy spoof.
@@ShanWatchesMovies so many "hidden" little things like that, that make movies in this genre so fun. Also you're taught to watch the foreground and yet much of the comedy is in the background or off to the sides.
15:22 - It's actually not a "serious" conversation, because it's a parody on another movie about football (I think) where the coach is giving a pep talk to somebody about somebody else named "Gipper"...so when they say "win just one for the Gipper" they're actually making fun of that other movie line. You'll notice they play a football fight song as he gets up with renewed determination too. LOL
It's a rip on "The Knute Rockne story". In the movie, George Gip, who is played by Ronald Reagan, gives the speech. This is why Reagan was always referred to as "The Gipper". This joke was a big laugh when the movie came out.
Great reaction. You caught on to a lot more of the jokes than others I've seen on YT. The subtleties in this movie are abundant: These are a few: The plastic Jesus statue on top of the cockpit dashboard ( most people bought those for their cars in the 40's and 50's). The man in the taxi was played by Howard Jarvis .. a controversial and famous California lobbyist in the 70's who championed Prop 13 .. a tax bill that saved property owner's from paying too high of taxes. Some of the actors were well known for their popular dramatic roles which made the film even funnier i.e., Peter Graves (Mission Impossible TV series) Robert Stack (The Untouchables TV series) and Lloyd Bridges (Sea Hunt TV series.) The scenes of the plane flying while hearing propeller sound effects rather than jet engines. The woman talking to herself about her husband never wanting a second cup of coffee was straight out of a TV coffee commercial at the time. The Hare Krishna's (The guys dressed in Togas, whom at the time, plagued airport terminals by approaching everyone for donations) refusing to donate to another religious group. The WWII Imperial Japanese soldier committing Hara Kiri. The white-handled gear shifter (?) in the cockpit scene. "One for the Zipper" line and the Notre Dame background music was referring a movie about Notre Dame College football player George Gipp ("One for the Gipper"). These are just a few of the more subtle things I've noticed in more then a dozen times seeing this movie that never commented on ... and I still discover more each time I watch it.
4 года назад
The epitome of this style of comedy is The Naked Gun.
What makes this movie so good is the serious delivery, the actors must stay super serious in order for the jokes to work, and they absolutely do. The next movie for you is "Spaceballs". :) I've never enjoyed a reaction like yours, your laugh was infectious. :)
Agreed. It gets alot of hate for not being as good, but i watched again recently and laughed all the way through. Much better than i remember and definitely worth a watch. If nothing else its worth it just for the Shatner scenes 😁
@@razorfett147 I like when they tell the passengers that they're just a tad of course but there's no need to panic. Also we're out of coffee, sign lights up OK panic
Another thing that makes this movie so funny is that all the older actors, Loyd Bridges, Peter Graves, Robert Stack, and of course, Leslie Neilson, were all dramatic actors.
This was Leslie Nielsen's first comedy role, before this he was only known as a dramatic actor. The older woman who speaks jive is the same actress who played June Cleaver, Beaver's wholesome 50's mother on Leave it to Beaver (TV). The airplane was a jet but the flight sounds are from a propeller aircraft. The guy in the Taxi was Howard Jarvis, the man most responsible for limiting California's rampaging escalation of property taxes with Proposition 13.
I’ve been grateful for this movie my whole life as it helps me to laugh off my horrible aim when I’m trying to drink from a glass (my drinking problem isn’t quite as bad as Ted’s but it is a long-standing issue). 🥛🤪😂
Many movies were parodied in Airplane, including Airport, Jaws, Zero Hour. The horse in the bed reference is a satire of The Godfather, where a decapitated horse's head was used as a death threat. Also, the beach scene where they are kissing and overwhelmed by water and seaweed was a satirical reference to ''From Here to Eternity''. Also, ''Let's win one for the zipper'' is a reference to a Ronald Reagan movie where an inspiring speech calls on the football players to ''win one for the Gipper'' which was George Gip's nickname.
Leslie Nielsen was originally a serious actor before changing to comedy. One of his best was “Forbidden Planet” (1956). A sci-fi movie that laid the groundwork for a number of shows from the Star Trek to Lost in Space. Extremely well done and certainly worth watching.
I always loved the irony of a man getting stabbed to death while a jukebox is playing Staying Alive. A little bit of casting trivia, they wanted Bill Murray to play the Ted Stryker part but he asked for too much money and Leslie Nielson got the role of the doctor after it was turned down by Vincent Price (who later said it was the worst decision he made in his career) and Christopher Lee.
Notice that some of the best jokes came in threes. The Shirley joke, the explaining of what buildings are, the drinking problem, the people offing themselves while listening to Striker, etc. And those African-American passengers were speaking what was known as jive-talk. Jive talk is substituting urban slang here and there into sentences. It was never meant to be an entire language. Those two actors who spoke it in the movie wrote all of their lines themselves and even taught the old lady, Barbara Billingsley (the mother from the 50s TV show Leave it to Beaver), over lunch on how to speak it and sound naturally doing it.
I know an adorable fact from this film: One of the directors, Abrahams, met his wife on the set. They were filming one of the first scenes where Striker is walking through the airport, and she was there as an extra in the background. And Abrahams saw her and was like "Cut!" and went to talk to her.
Hi Shan...at about 8 minutes in, Ted is suddenly talking to a Japanese soldier who commits suicide...the was the actor James Hong, who has been in hundreds of movies, I think. He is the voice of Mr. Ping, the goose Dad of Po the Panda in the Kung Fu Panda movies. He also played David Lo Pan in the classic John Carpenter action adventure comedy Big Trouble in Little China. LOL
Right after you said "here are our three directors" the film cuts to the guys with the director lights, sending a plane into the terminal. Those guys were the Zucker brothers. I guess this is meant to be a metaphor for how they're directing the film....
Here's one joke no one ever seems to get: That guy stranded in the taxi was Howard Jarvis, the California politician responsible for Proposition 13 in 1973, which did a lot of damage in the state, including services people relied on, as well as the rundown of public schools. Believe me, seeing him stranded there for hours got a LOT of laughs in that theater!
The best thing about this movie is that even though it does parody a few movies like Jaws and such, the film itself just parodies a genre of movies in itself. That makes it more timeless than a lot of the newer parody movies that actually riff on popular movies in the year prior.
That's the Henny Youngman School of Comedy. Keep the jokes coming fast and furious. So, you didn't like that one? Wait a minute for the next one. Best. Leo.
Another fun fact, Airplane is almost an exact lift from the 1958 film Zero Hour, there is dialogue that is identical, same for the core story line. There is a RU-vid comparing both together, fun to watch.
Technically I'm pretty sure Groucho Marx actually used the "don't call me Shirley" line Flywheel, Shyster and Flywheel back in the early 1930's before it was popularised in Airplane.
This movie just feels me with so much nostalgia. I watched it like 4 times as a kid for the nudity scene before I realized that it was actually funny as hell
This movie is full of iconic actors just like several disaster movies from the 70s. 4:14 legendary actor Peter Graves from the TV show Mission Impossible 11:47 legendary actor Lloyd Bridges father of Jeff and Beau Bridges So many of these legends are not known for comedy but they are superb in this film.
