Director
Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, Jerry Zucker
Leading Actors/Actresses
Robert Hayes, Julie Hagerty
Supporting Actors/Actresses
Leslie Nielsen, Peter Graves, Lloyd Bridges, Robert Stack, Lorna Petterson
Genre
Comedy
Language
English
Awards
Nominated for 1 Golden Globe: Best Motion Picture - Comedy or Musical
Date of Release
1980
Producer
Jon Davison, Howard W. Koch
Setting and Context
An airplane flying from Los Angeles to Chicago - 1980
Narrator and Point of View
POV is that of Ted
Tone and Mood
Comedic
Protagonist and Antagonist
Protagonist is Ted. Antagonist is the poisoned fish.
Major Conflict
The passengers and pilots aboard the flight have been poisoned by the fish they were served for dinner leaving no one to pilot the plane.
Climax
Ted takes over as pilot even though he is terrified of flying and is able to land the plane and save the passengers.
Foreshadowing
The co-pilots passing out foreshadows disaster is on the way.
Understatement
It is understated that everyone will live.
Innovations in Filming or Lighting or Camera Techniques
N/A
Allusions
The film is an allusion to the very real danger of food poisoning upon an aircraft.
Paradox
Ted is a former fighter pilot, paradoxically he is terrified of flying.
Parallelism
McCroskey's "terrible week to quit" bit is paralleled multiple times in the film - with his smoking, drinking, pill popping, and glue-sniffing.
