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Airplane! (Don't Call Me Shirley! Edition)
Directors: Zucker, David, Zucker, Jerry
Actors: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Frank Ashmore, Jonathan Banks, Craig Berenson, and Barbara Billingsley
Rated: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Retail Price (not our price): $12.99
Release Date: 2005-12-13
Theatrical Release Date: 1980-07-02
Studio: Paramount
Run Time: 87 minutes
Format: Array
Format: Color, DVD-Video, Widescreen, NTSC
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
Discs: 1


Editorial Reviews (supplied by Amazon.com):

1) Amazon.com essential video
The quintessential movie spoof that spawned an entire genre of parody films, the original Airplane! still holds up as one of the brightest comedic gems of the '80s, not to mention of cinema itself (it ranked in the top 5 of Entertainment Weekly's list of the 100 funniest movies ever made). The humor may be low and obvious at times, but the jokes keep coming at a rapid-fire clip and its targets--primarily the lesser lights of '70s cinema, from disco films to star-studded disaster epics--are more than worthy for send-up. If you've seen even one of the overblown Airport movies then you know the plot: the crew of a filled-to-capacity jetliner is wiped out and it's up to a plucky stewardess and a shell-shocked fighter pilot to land the plane. Robert Hays and Julie Hagerty are the heroes who have a history that includes a meet-cute à la Saturday Night Fever, a surf scene right out of From Here to Eternity, a Peace Corps trip to Africa to teach the natives the benefits of Tupperware and basketball, a war-ravaged recovery room with a G.I. who thinks he's Ethel Merman (a hilarious cameo)--and those are just the flashbacks! The jokes gleefully skirt the boundaries of bad taste (pilot Peter Graves to a juvenile cockpit visitor: "Joey, have you ever seen a grown man naked?"), with the high (low?) point being Hagerty's intimate involvement with the blow-up automatic pilot doll, but they'll have you rolling on the floor. The film launched the careers of collaborators Jim Abrahams (Big Business), David Zucker (Ruthless People), and Jerry Zucker (Ghost), as well as revitalized such B-movie actors as Lloyd Bridges, Peter Graves, Robert Stack, and Leslie Nielsen, who built a second career on films like this. A vital part of any video collection. --Mark Englehart

Customer Reviews (supplied by Amazon.com):
Average Customer Rating: 4.5 out of 5

1) Airplane   [Rating: 5 out of 5]
I had this movie on VHS and the machine ate my tape, so I had to get a replacement. I watch this movie frequently, and it still makes me laugh.

2) One of the best comedies ever made   [Rating: 5 out of 5]
Airplane! Is directed by Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, and Jerry Zucker. The film stars Robert Hays, Julie Hagerty, Leslie Nielsen, Robert Stack, Lloyd Bridges, Peter Graves, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Barbara Billingsley, and Lorna Patterson. Elmer Bernstein contributes the musical score.Airplane! is a parody of "aircraft in distress" movies. The film primarily parodies the film Zero Hour, but throws in elements of other similar films, including the Airport series. But this doesn't keep it from spoofing other films, including Jaws, Saturday Night Fever, Casablanca, and From Here To Eternity. The plot of the film follows Ted Striker, a war veteran whose stewardess lover has left him and decided to move on. In an effort to win her back, he buys a ticket on her next flight - but gets more than he bargained for. Both pilots and numerous passengers fall victim to food poisoning. It's up to Striker, who has never flown an airliner before, to land the plane - with laugh-out-loud nonsensical gags, puns, and flashbacks occurring all the while.The Zucker/Abrahams team never fails to get laughs from its audience - and no film epitomizes that like this one does. From the film's infancy on the ground, right up to the laugh-laden jet ride across the country, the laughs never stop, with great scenes around every corner. It's one of the greatest comedies ever made - no questions asked.The cast of Airplane! Could not have been better selected. Amongst the stand-outs in the cast are Robert Hays as Ted Striker, the war veteran on a quest to get back his lover, Robert Stack as an on-the-ground captain who has to instruct Striker how to land the plane (and it doesn't help things any that their characters have a bad past), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as himself masquerading as a first officer on the ill-fated flight, Peter Graves as a pedophiliac captain, and of course, Leslie Nielsen as the doctor on board the plane - who keeps a straight face no matter how ludicrous what he says is. Perhaps even more amazingly is that, despite his great performance here, this was Nielsen's first comedy role ever! And it changed the direction of his career forever. Great cast, enough said.Elmer Bernstein composed the musical score for the film. A legendary film composer, he had scored films of various genres as far back as the early fifties. For Airplane!, he composes a "serious" score, despite the comical nature of the movie. Not only does this actually work in the movie's favor, but it's a move countless composers since have copied. Airplane! Has received two DVD releases from Paramount over the years. The first release was a bare-bones issue, not unlike most of Paramount's early DVD releases. Fortunately, the company has decided to go back and rerelease most of their popular films - this time with worthwhile extras. In the case of Airplane!, the new edition is the "Don't Call Me Shirley!" Edition, after one of Leslie Nielsen's most priceless lines in the film. There are a ton of new bonus features included here, and it puts the old DVD to shame. Needless to say, be sure it's the version you're picking up!It's tough to review comedies, but rest assured - Airplane! Is a masterpiece. With lightning-fast humor coming from a brilliant cast, you won't stop laughing.Thumbs up

3) review of Airplane (the film)   [Rating: 5 out of 5]
I bought this as a gift. I have seen the film before and know the person I bought it for will enjoy it.

4) Airplane(don't call me shirley edition)   [Rating: 2 out of 5]
Don't buy this version unless you've never seen the movie!!! If you've seen the movie , watching this version will bore you to tears and get you sick of the movie. when striker says he's pouring sweat there is a cut out scene. I believe there is a line where trying to remember where he heard the name says striker, striker , striker and slapstick goes on alot. nearly all the funnies are taken out of the movie. Who has the long haul version? as it says on the back of this version? where can I get it. because I definately would give the long haul version all five stars.

5) Clever   [Rating: 4 out of 5]
This movie was more clever than laugh-out-loud funny. I snickered rather than laughed at most of the jokes. It is one of the more intelligent spoof movies out there...you need to have some brain cells to appreciate and "get" many of the jokes. This movie was made in 1981 I think. So it just goes to show you that a good movie is a good movie regardless of what time it was made in.