Jim Abrahams made absurd comedy work by keeping his actors serious. We prize his work with David and Jerry Zucker for its discipline and inventiveness, while allowing for some painfully corny wordplay.
Fi1m perspective
In Airplane (1980), people speak nonsense with the confidence of professionals dealing with an emergency. Jim Abrahams, David Zucker and Jerry Zucker understand how much comedy there is in leaving that confidence undisturbed. Casting dramatic actors such as Leslie Nielsen, Robert Stack and Lloyd Bridges gives ridiculous dialogue the authority it needs. We laughed even at some of the cornier exchanges because the actors delivered them without embarrassment. It is an excellent comedy, with a clear idea of how to make its foolishness convincing.
Abrahams's feature writing began with a 1977 film drawn from the group's theatre sketches. After Airplane, he and the Zuckers extended their parody to espionage and Elvis musicals in Top Secret (1984). Ruthless People (1986) took them into black comedy without the same dependence on genre spoofing. Abrahams later wrote and directed Hot Shots (1991), taking the parody approach into his solo directing work. The earlier films nevertheless belong to a partnership, and singling out one man's contribution has its limits.
Airplane also benefits from having its three directors write the screenplay: the performances and the jokes follow the same rules. Verbal misunderstandings sit alongside sight gags, and neither needs an actor to announce it. The jokes arrive quickly without bringing the story to a halt. A weak line is less damaging when another joke follows before we have had much time to dwell on it. That takes more care than the sheer number of jokes might suggest.
Still, Abrahams and the Zuckers sometimes settle for an obvious misunderstanding when the scene needs a better-written joke. There are lines in Airplane that no amount of earnestness can make worth hearing, and a low tolerance for puns will make those lapses more noticeable. We would not mistake the speed at which the film moves on for evidence that every joke has worked. Start with Airplane, provided an occasional groan does not spoil a good evening.
Biography
Jim Abrahams was an American film writer and director. Born on 10 May 1944 in Shorewood, Wisconsin, he died on 26 November 2024 in Santa Monica, California. He attended the University of Wisconsin–Madison and, with childhood friends David and Jerry Zucker, formed the Kentucky Fried Theater comedy troupe in the early 1970s.
Abrahams is best known for his work with the Zuckers on the spoof comedy Airplane! (1980), which he co-wrote and co-directed, and subsequent films including Top Secret! (1984), Ruthless People (1986) and The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988). He later directed Big Business (1988) and co-wrote and directed the Hot Shots! films (1991 and 1993). He received a BAFTA nomination for the screenplay of Airplane!.
