Review of The Big Bus (1976) by Edith N — 11 Apr 2007

I'd never heard of [i]The Big Bus[/i] until I was, well, looking through the library's catalog under "b." I think I was better off; I might as well have just watched [i]Airplane![/i] again. It's substantially better. In fact, [i]The Big Bus[/i] seems to be [i]Airplane![/i]'s poor cousin.

Part of it is the cast. [i]Airplane![/i] has a better cast. Sure, it was Julie Delpy's first role, but she did go on to a whole bunch of bizarre guest spots, including the obligatory stopover in the [i]Law & Order[/i] franchise. (It's your turn, Stockard Channing!) However, the Zucker-Abrams-Zucker policy of "find really famous people and make them do really bizarre stuff" worked for them on a level that the makers of [i]The Big Bus[/i] couldn't hope to emulate.

Also, [i]Airplane![/i] is funnier. Or, you know, funny. While [i]The Big Bus[/i] has a few bright spots, and is certainly worth watching if you're a spoof afficionado, it's not all that good. Though Rene Auberjonois as the priest who's lost his faith is almost worth watching the movie for.

So as we all know, the best character--or anyway the weirdest!--in [i]Airplane![/i] is Johnny, the weird guy in air traffic control. According to the film's trivia track, they didn't really bother scripting him. They just kind of told him where the scene was going and let him at it. This gave way to the classic line about the plane looking like a big Tylenol, I guess.

And, of course, there's Leslie Nielsen. Up until this film, he'd been a serious actor. The folks at ZAZ wanted dramatic actors for as many roles as possible, because it makes the movie funnier. And Leslie Nielsen went along with it and hasn't looked back; he wasn't getting good dramatic roles anymore, because he was starting to look like someone's grandfather. Lloyd Bridges went along for the ride with him, too.

So if you're going to watch one, watch [i]Airplane![/i] However, if you've got the spare time, [i]The Big Bus[/i] isn't bad.