With the arrival of Extreme Movie in theaters and the recent hit Tropic Thunder on DVD, the spoof comedy trend that was reinvigorated by the original Scary Movie continues full farce. And with Not Another Spoof Movie forthcoming, we’ve reached a meta-movie apex. This stirs memories of classic comedies and what made them so great. I’m not saying that some of the recent spoof flicks haven’t been fun, but they wouldn’t have arrived without some venerable predecessors to pave the way. Aspiring spoofers take note – learn from these masters.
AIRPLANE! (1980)
Plotline: After the pilots of an airliner bound from L.A. to Chicago fall unconscious due to food poisoning, a traumatized ex-military pilot must be talked into landing the plane and saving the day. And impressing the stewardess/girlfriend onboard who just left him.
Inspiration: The plot and dialogue draw liberally (in some cases word for word) from the 1957 drama Zero Hour! Along the way there are references to Jaws, Casablanca, Saturday Night Fever, From Here To Eternity, and the Airport franchise.
Why It Succeeds: The irreverent Zucker-Abrahams-Zucker triumvirate, responsible for many classic ‘80s spoof movies, really took the spoof movie to a whole new level by playing serious scenes with veteran dramatic actors and humorizing them through weird non-sequiturs, racy dialogue, and hilarious visual puns.
Classic Moment: Airport officials read the doom and gloom newspaper headlines about the events with dismay.
Captain Rex Kramer: “Passengers certain to die!”
Steve McCroskey: “Airline negligent.”
Johnny: There's a sale at Penney's!
AUSTIN POWERS, INTERNATIONAL MAN OF MYSTERY (1997)
Plotline: Swinging ‘60s spy Austin Powers (Mike Myers) and his nefarious nemesis Dr. Evil (Myers again) renew battling after spending three decades in suspended animation.
Inspiration: James Bond and ‘60s spy spoof characters like Matt Helm.
Why It Succeeds: It sends up the machismo, egoism, and gadget obsession of high-tech spy movies to a T, but also pays loving homage to the era that begat them. Oh yeah, baby!
Classic Moment: After being unfrozen from suspended animation, and then learning that he has no inner monologue, Powers meets Miss Kensington (Elizabeth Hurley), the beautiful daughter of his former female cohort Mrs. Kensington (Mimi Rogers), who has been hired to acclimate him to the ‘90s. Quips Powers: “As long as people are still having promiscuous sex with many anonymous partners without protection, while at the same time experimenting with mind-expanding drugs in a consequence-free environment, I'll be sound as a pound.”
BLAZING SADDLES (1974)
Plotline: In the Old West, a corrupt politician (Harvey Korman) sends a black sheriff to rile up the small town whose land he wishes to acquire by force, in an effort to demoralize them. But when Sheriff Bart (Cleavon Little) teams up with a lightspeed gunman named Jim (Gene Wilder), the townspeople stand behind them rather than run away.
Inspiration: Hollywood Westerns (including John Wayne movies and Shane) and Looney Tunes cartoons.
Why It Succeeds: Mel Brooks delivers searing, incredibly politically incorrect humor that makes us face the racist foundation of our nation. And laugh uncomfortably at ourselves.
Classic Moment: After Bart frees Jim from his jail stay for drunkenness, they bond. Jim later offers solace to Bart when the racist townspeople initially reject him: “You've got to remember that these are just simple farmers. These are people of the land. The common clay of the New West. You know, morons.”
DR. STRANGELOVE, or How I Learned To Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
Plotline: When USAF General Jack D. Ripper (Zero Hour! ’s Sterling Hayden) sends an American bomber to attack Russia, he triggers international tensions, creating mayhem on a U.S. military base and prompting the Soviets to threaten use of their dreaded “doomsday device.”
Inspiration: Fail Safe and nuclear annihilation.
Why It Succeeds: It deals with a hot button topic (pun intended) with biting black comedy and truly shows the ridiculousness of war. Plus having Peter Sellers in three roles – as President Merkin Muffley, Group Captain Lionel Mandrake, and the ex-Nazi Dr. Strangelove – is simply brilliant.
Classic Moment: World leaders gather in a secret government location to work out how to cope with the impending nuclear disaster that could befall them. When the situation between East and West gets tense, a near melee breaks out in the chamber, prompting ruffled President Merkin Muffley to shout: “Gentlemen, you can’t fight in here! This is the War Room!”
GALAXY QUEST (1999)
Plotline: The starship crew of a fictional TV show is recruited to protect an alien race that has modeled its entire culture around broadcasts of the show that were beamed into space.
Inspiration: “Star Trek” and Star Wars.
Why It Succeeds: It pokes fun at fanboys while respecting their reverence, and it balances interstellar wit with heartfelt dramatic moments.
Classic Moment: Commander Peter Quincy Taggart (Tim Allen) and Lt. Tawny Madison (Sigourney Weaver) experience their own trash compactor moment as they have to escape laser-armed alien baddies by jumping through metallic “crushy, choppy things” placed in a most inconvenient place.
Madison: “We shouldn’t have to do this! It makes no logical sense. Why is this here?!?!?”
Taggart: “Because it’s on the television show.”
Madison: “Well, forget it! I’m not doing it! This episode was badly written!”
HISTORY OF THE WORLD, Part 1 (1981)
Plotline: Mel Brooks presents a series of sketches documenting human life from prehistoric times to the French Revolution.
Inspiration: Well, the history of the world. And ostentatious Hollywood representations of it.
Why It Succeeds: Another very un-PC film from Brooks that tackles numerous taboos and racial stereotypes. Many people will remember the chase scene with the giant joint, but the musical number about the Inquisition is truly brilliant.
Classic Moment: “The Inquisition, what a show!”
HOT SHOTS! PART DEUX (1993)
Plotline: Pulled from seclusion, Topper Harley (Charlie Sheen) is sent into Iraq to save several failed rescue teams and their original rescuees, leftover soldiers from Desert Storm.
Inspiration: The Rambo trilogy, Schwarzenegger movies, and the First Gulf War.
Why It Succeeds: Like the first Hot Shots! movie, it tears down the propagandistic overtones and overly patriotic sentimentality of many war movies.
Classic Moment: Charlie Sheen, reprising his somber voiceover from the Vietnam-era movie Platoon, and his father Martin Sheen, reprising his somber voiceover from the Vietnam-era Apocalypse Now, break their inner monologues when they spy each other’s boat passing on a river and simultaneously shout out: “I loved you in Wall Street!”
MARS ATTACKS (1996)
Plotline: In Tim Burton’s tongue-in-cheek sci fi flick, Martians come down to Earth to wreck havoc…and have fun doing it.
Inspiration: War of the Worlds and ‘50s alien invasion movies.
Why It Succeeds: The characters are so ludicrously over-the-top and the aliens are unrepentantly destructive, even taking vacation snapshots while they plunder. The film satirizes everyone from war-mongering conservatives to overly intellectual liberals, each with their own take on the invaders, with equal aplomb. And a surprise appearance by singer Tom Jones is a hoot.
Classic Moment: The Martians come to Congress to meet with our leaders. After a polite welcome – “The Martian ambassador is going to say a few words” – the aliens gleefully disintegrate everyone present. “They blew up Congress!”
MONTY PYTHON AND THE HOLY GRAIL (1975)
Plotline: The Knights of the Round Table seek the Holy Grail and along the way have to contend with everything from disrespectful minstrels and bovine-launching Frenchmen to shrub-worshipping giants and a killer bunny rabbit.
Inspiration: Camelot. Musicals. And silly Brits.
Why It Succeeds: This is Python at their most ridiculous and endearing. While the King Arthur myth is the most obvious target, they always triumph at lampooning the British habit of trying to maintain poise and dignity under the most ludicrous circumstances.
Classic Moment: In order to cross a bridge, King Arthur must fight the Black Knight, whom he quickly bests by severing a limb.
King Arthur: Now, stand aside, worthy adversary!
Black Knight: 'Tis but a scratch!
King Arthur: A scratch? Your arm's off!
Black Knight: No, it isn't!
King Arthur: Well, what's that then?
Black Knight: I've had worse.
King Arthur: You liar!
Black Knight: Come on, you pansy!
SHAUN OF THE DEAD (2004)
Plotline: A British electronics salesman (Simon Pegg) must save his family, friends, and the girlfriend who just dumped him from a zombie infestation.
Inspiration: George Romero’s zombie movies.
Why It Succeeds: The only ’00s release on the list, Shaun lampoons its chosen genre while providing some scares, and the coup de grace comes from the titular character living like a zombie himself, which makes it hard for him to first realize that the dead have arisen to eat the living.
Classic Moment: Unarmed, Shaun and his slacker best friend Ed pick out vinyl records to toss at two zombies in attempts to slice their heads open.
Ed: Purple Rain?
Shaun: No.
Ed: Sign o' the Times?
Shaun: Definitely not.
Ed: The Batman soundtrack?
Shaun: Throw it.
TOP SECRET! (1984)
Plotline: During the ‘50s, American pop star Nick Rivers (Val Kilmer) visits East Germany (oddly, still occupied by Nazis) and falls for and aids a beautiful member of the French Resistance (Lucy Gutteridge).
Inspiration: WWII spy films and Elvis movies.
Why It Succeeds: The fact that the Airplane! team pulled off the above combination in an alternate reality is genius in itself. And the exploding Pinto car gag, which viewers under 35 will have to Google to get, is priceless.
Classic Moment: In a secret room, Nick Rivers is introduced to members of the French Resistance, who all have unusual names.
Du Quois: This is Chevalier, Montage, Detente, Avant-Garde, and Déjà Vu.
Déjà Vu: Haven't we met before?
Rivers: I don't think so.
Du Quois: Over there, Croissant, Souffle, Escargot, and Chocolate Mousse.
A life-long movie aficionado and NYU film school grad, Bryan Reesman (www.bryanreesman.com) revels in everything from big-budget epics to obscure horror and cult movie gems that no one has ever heard of. He has been published in the NY Times, Playboy, American Way, Premiere and MovieMaker.
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