A movie that helped plant the seeds of Saturday Night Live and gave the Zucker brothers a foot in Hollywood's door, this long-revered television and movie satire combines sex and bathroom humor with timeless sight gags and slapstick. The uproarious film spoofs everything from television commercials, movie trailers, porn, and pop culture in general in a series of hysterical sketches. Infamous sketches include "Cleopatra Schwartz," a blaxploitation spoof featuring a sexy Amazon married to a rabbi; and the extended kung fu film parody "A Fistful of Yen." Raunchy humor and hysterical commentary on the media are served up with reckless abandon by the likes of Bill Bixby, Henry Gibson, George Lazenby, and Donald Sutherland, among countless others.
Plot Synopsis:
Fresh from their triumphant L.A. run at the Kentucky Fried Theater, the Zucker brothers and Jim Abrahams (AIRPLANE!) teamed up with John Landis for their first film, considered by many to be a satirical classic. This series of highly irreverent sketches spoofs standard television fare and pop-culture trends in general. Memorable episodes include "Cleopatra Schwartz," a blaxploitation takeoff that features a sexy black Amazon married to a rabbi; "Zinc Oxide," a spoof on educational films; a "Fistful of Yen," a martial arts masterpiece that stars a Bruce Lee-like hero fighting a massive stream of attackers; as well as the hilarious trailer for "That's Armageddon!" spoofing disaster films, with Donald Sutherland and Bill Bixby playing themselves. Other infamous trailers and commercials include the raunchy "Catholic High School Girls in Real Trouble" and "Scot Free," a board game based on the Kennedy assassinations and murder conspiracies, available from "Barker Bros." Nothing is sacred in this extremely funny parody, combining sex, sight gags, and slapstick comedy. The satirical and raunchy humor of the sketches, fake movie trailers, and commercials were influential in the format and creation of television's Saturday Night Live.
Plot Keywords:
Campy |
Clips And Highlights |
Cult Film |
Essential Cinema |
Recommended |
Slapstick |
Spoof
Production Notes:
Theatrical Release: August 10, 1977.
Landis's trademark: SYNW is the title of the Feel-O-Rama movie.
There is a poster advertising Landis's SCHLOCK in the Feel-O-Rama Theatre.
The girl behind the counter at the movie snack bar is Tracy Landis (John Landis's daughter.)
Screenwriters Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, and Jerry Zucker as well as John Landis all have various roles in the film.
Argon spokesperson: "Here at our multibillion dollar refinery in Fairbanks, we're extracting 2.5 billion barrels of crude oil each day from teenagers' faces."
Newscaster: "I'm not wearing any pants--film at 11."
Henry Gibson's plea: "Despite millions of dollars of research, death continues to be our nation's number one killer."
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