Topic: POLICE SQUAD (IN COLOR), THE NAKED GUN and other Zucker / Neilsen joy

[madhair60]

Airplane 2 is underrated.

https://youtu.be/SSDsgBKdCAQ

[famethrowa]

William Shatner and the machine with the red lights going back and forth is fantastic https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kG-0V-85H_0

Two absolute gems there: Shatner opening the video screen door to come through; and "Ted Striker's 400 Polka Favourites"

[kngen]

Airplane 2 is underrated.

Yeah, for a cash-in sequel that dispensed with the entire writing and production crew of the first, it's far better than it has any right to be. Hiring two young chaps that would go on to be instrumental in creating The Simpsons was a pretty lucky break, you'd have to say.

[Poison To The Mind]

?? Airplane 2 is written & directed by Ken Finkleman*, the bloke who did the Canadian ripoff of Drop The Dead Donkey and Frontline, and had previously only written Grease 2. Who are the Simpsons connections?


* this definitely sounds like a Simpsonsy name tbh

[Beep Cleep Chimney]

?? Airplane 2 is written & directed by Ken Finkleman*, the bloke who did the Canadian ripoff of Drop The Dead Donkey and Frontline, and had previously only written Grease 2. Who are the Simpsons connections?


* this definitely sounds like a Simpsonsy name tbh

Al Jean and Mike Reiss from The Simpsons were uncredited scriptwriters on Airplane 2 alongside Finkleman.

[Jake Thingray]

Rather hope everyone's forgotten An American Carol.

[mobias]

Rather hope everyone's forgotten An American Carol.

Yeah I had in mind that one of the Zucker brothers was a right wing libertarian. I just couldn't remember how or why I thought that but you just reminded me of that movie.
I didn't realise it was that long ago though.

[Jockice]

Airplane 2 is underrated.

I still think the 'is that a good sign?' 'It does the job,' bit is the best gag in the entire Airplane/Naked Gun/Police Squad oeuvre.

[studpuppet]

Airplane 2 is underrated.

Airplane 2 is rated. Top Secret! is underrated.

[mobias]

Top Secret is in a league of its own I think. Airplane is a far better movie from a purely cinematic point of view but Top Secret is just something else entirely. From encasing Omar Sharif in a crushed taxi to Christopher Villiers being sodomised by a bull there's no other movie quite like it. Some of the visual gags veer into dadaism. Its just a totally bonkers movie.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hXqLWqCqDHc

[Morrison Lard]

you'd have to say.

Yeah, for a cash-in sequel that dispensed with the entire writing and production crew of the first, it's far better than it has any right to be. Hiring two young chaps that would go on to be instrumental in creating The Simpsons was a pretty lucky break

[lankyguy95]

But seriously give it a watch, it's great.

Watched it this evening. I had seen clips of it before but yeah... it's great. Took me about fifteen minutes to warm to it but once I did I enjoyed it every bit as much as Airplane and The Naked Gun. The joke rate is... surreal.

[Alberon]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hXqLWqCqDHc

“Our surgeons did what they could, but it took them two hours just to get the smile off his face"

[Huxleys Babkins]

Yeah, for a cash-in sequel that dispensed with the entire writing and production crew of the first, it's far better than it has any right to be. Hiring two young chaps that would go on to be instrumental in creating The Simpsons was a pretty lucky break

Nice.

[Claude the Racecar Driving Rockstar Super Sleuth]

A cash-in sequel that dispensed with the writing and production crew of the first, altogether.

[Dusty Substance]

Top Secret is in a league of its own I think. Airplane is a far better movie from a purely cinematic point of view but Top Secret is just something else entirely. From encasing Omar Sharif in a crushed taxi to Christopher Villiers being sodomised by a bull there's no other movie quite like it. Some of the visual gags veer into dadaism. Its just a totally bonkers movie.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hXqLWqCqDHc

I recently watched Top Secret  for the first time for well over 30 years and was blown away by the effort they put in for the sake of comedy.

The train station scene, the Peter Cushing backwards book shop and, most of all, the underwater bar fight in the finale. These scenes wouldn't be out of place in a Buñuel film.

[McFlymo]

I will never tire of this gag:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2pmdE-xP_K4

I clicked it expecting it to be this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFhpctuUwb4

I was expecting: https://youtu.be/het1kl-A8qw?t=18

[BeardFaceMan]

I recently watched Top Secret  for the first time for well over 30 years and was blown away by the effort they put in for the sake of comedy.

The train station scene, the Peter Cushing backwards book shop and, most of all, the underwater bar fight in the finale. These scenes wouldn't be out of place in a Buñuel film.

Even amongst comedy fans Top Secret doesn't seem to be that well regarded, people will always talk about Airplane, Police Squad or The Naked Gun first. Which is extraordinary because as you say, from a comedy standpoint, it's quite remarkable what they've managed to cram in to those 90 minutes, both in quality and quantity.

[Poison To The Mind]

Al Jean and Mike Reiss from The Simpsons were uncredited scriptwriters on Airplane 2 alongside Finkleman.

Ta, I checked the wiki and even searchengined "airplane 2 al jean" on a guess before posting.

[studpuppet]

Even amongst comedy fans Top Secret doesn't seem to be that well regarded, people will always talk about Airplane, Police Squad or The Naked Gun first. Which is extraordinary because as you say, from a comedy standpoint, it's quite remarkable what they've managed to cram in to those 90 minutes, both in quality and quantity.

And diversity - in the same film that has "I know a little German - he's over there", and the phoney dog poo gag, it also has guard being thrown off the battlements and shattering on the ground. A two-fold joke about the fragility of 'baddie' guards and the unrealistic-ness of dummies falling in movies, but it also has a horror movie-style musical coda which sends it off-kilter from the knockabout gags around it.

[mobias]

Top Secret also has the 'Oh no I'm back in school' gag in it. Which is one of my favourite scenes in any movie ever. If something shit happens to me in my life I always just cast my mind back to being back in school and a big broad smile comes across my face and I just think.... 'thank god.'

'Claus is a moron who believes only what he reads in the New York Post.'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0g7VoRQPswg

[The Culture Bunker]

I could do with watching Top Secret! again, as it must be 10 years or so since the last time. It's one of those films that makes me wonder why Val Kilmer didn't have a better career. Maybe that Batman fiasco did for him - looking at his filmography post 1995, I've only seen one of them: 'Kiss Kiss Bang Bang'. Oh, and I did watch a couple of episodes of the Knight Rider reboot, in which he did the voice of KITT. Meh.

[mobias]

Did Val Kilmer not have a bit of a reputation as a difficult actor? He was quite a troubled guy I think. I'm sure I read an interview with him where he said he was terrible at picking good movies. He was offered what would become famous roles but turned them down.

[mobias]

I recently watched Top Secret  for the first time for well over 30 years and was blown away by the effort they put in for the sake of comedy.

The train station scene, the Peter Cushing backwards book shop and, most of all, the underwater bar fight in the finale. These scenes wouldn't be out of place in a Buñuel film.

One of my earliest childhood comedy appreciation moments was laughing uncontrollably at that whole train station scene especially the bit where the tree out in the countryside pulls alongside and overtakes the train as a man chases after it. Its surreal art as comedy.

 'I want a schnauzer with my Wiener schnitzel.'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YapRwteQuW4

[Thursday]

Top Secret also has the 'Oh no I'm back in school' gag in it. Which is one of my favourite scenes in any movie ever. If something shit happens to me in my life I always just cast my mind back to being back in school and a big broad smile comes across my face and I just think.... 'thank god.'

Yeah that's one that's funny and almost upsetting at how true it is.

[mobias]

Is this pure coincidence this has just been posted by The Poke?

https://www.thepoke.co.uk/2021/02/16/this-genius-train-joke-in-top-secret-is-making-everyones-day-better/

[Ptolemy Ptarmigan]

Never noticed before that the wind is blowing Kilmer's hair, for obvious reasons. If you're not expecting the joke you wouldn't notice of course.

[BeardFaceMan]

Fun fact - Val Kilmer was dating Cher while making Top Secret. He would also ask the Zuckers for notes on his character and motivation and stuff, he was a serious actor and didnt quite get the comedy, which helps the performance I think. He was just playing it straight because he didn't know how else to do it, if he tried to be funny he would have been awful. That's him singing all the songs too.

[Rizla]

Top Secret is ace, not least cos it has lovely Lucy Gutteridge in, who starred with Denholm Elliot in the best episode of Hammer House of Horror, Rude Awakening ("You really shouldn't have done it, Mr Shepley..").

[mobias]

I marvel at Lucy Gutteridge' glowing breasts https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qMojOwk2jOg