June Review: Airplane! (1980) (Patreon)

Can I admit something? I'm afraid of flying. Everything about the airport experience feeds into my deep, deep fear of being aware I am in the sky. So I feel confident as someone with such a perspective in saying Airplane! (1980) is actually a horror movie.

Just kidding! But in all seriousness, this alleged "comedy" manages to hit just about every irrational fear I've ever had while sitting on the tarmac. "What if a plane crashed through this window?" "What if I have food poisoning on this flight (again)?" "What if Robert Hays is literally the only person on this plane who can fly it?" Despite this, Airplane! (1980) maintains a humorous tone which, to the non-aerophopic, is a purely laugh-inducing experience.

Anytime I approach a comedy from the 80s, there comes the risk of what passed for comedy at the time no longer being politically correct, or even simply too based in it's own era to resonate with modern viewers. Airplane! (1980), despite the odd line that isn't perfectly PC, never crosses the line into unwatchability. Leaning heavily into clever (but non-referential) dialogue and physical humor, this comedy stays comedic well outta the 1980s. It's also a supremely quotable movie, with one liners flying from the first scene. Airplane! (1980) might not have aged perfectly, but neither is it spoiled milk. If I had to associate it with a drink, it'd be a coke. It's not getting better with age, but you can still drink it just fine. 

The performances across the board are exactly as they need to be, with standouts including Robert Stack (Captain Rex Kramer), Leslie Nielson (Dr. Rumack), and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Roger Murdock, or himself, depending on which character you ask). None of the cast is under-performing, though the real star of the show is Otto, the automatic pilot, playing himself.

In between the fantastical and irreverent props and gags, is a now itself humorous vision of airline travel. Smoking sections on airplanes, a lack of heavy TSA, non-crew in the cockpit, and other relics of 80s flight pepper the screen. It's not a particularly notable part of the film, but does provide the occasional air of a period piece. 

Airplane! (1980) is a classic comedy that, for the most part, holds up, but isn't doing much in the way of plot. As a spoof of the film Zero Hour! (1957), it doesn't need much of one. Airplane! (1980) skates by on snappy writing and comedic sensibilities, you never doubt that the ending will feel fine, and the plane's persistent peril is always undercut for the viewers by a joke, so you're not left to sit with the stakes for long. 

So for those free from the holding pattern of aerophobia, Airplane! (1980) is a fun, light time with a handful of awkward moments and many more memorable comedic beats. And if you're like me, and can't stand even the thought of some questionable airline fish, maybe don't watch this film on a plane. 

7 out of 10 Steak Dinners