← Back to Reviews
in
Cast: Joseph Bologna, Stockard Channing, John Beck, Sally Kellerman, Lynn Redgrave, Richard Mulligan
Genre: Comedy Action Spoof
About: A bicentennial movie spoof of disaster films of the early 1970s. A mammoth sized bus named Cyclops, is built and powered by a nuclear power plant. It runs non stop from New York to Denver. On it's maiden voyage, it runs into all sorts of trouble.
Review: Yahoo! I like this movie! IMO this is like a million times better than that other well known movie spoof, Airplane (1980). Sorry folks if that ruffles feathers! but it's true, this undiscovered gem is full of funny lines and people. And the comedy comes from wit, not from sight gags like Airplane relied on. The differences in style are like this: Airplane is like Mad magazine, while The Big Bus is like a Saturday Night Live comedy skit.
What I liked about this movie is it built an entire world around this monster bus. They actually included little details about how the bus works and that made this a neat movie. I loved the automatic tire changing scene and the automatic bus wash scene, ha! Somebody actually put thought into making this idea of a nuclear powered monster bus, seem plausible...they even have radiation suits that drop down from the ceiling in case of emergency.
But the coolest thing about this is the bus itself. It was real! They really built it and filmed it driving on the hiway. There's a first class and couch sections. There's a swimming pool, a one lane bowling alley and yes even a piano bar. This bus is loaded! And so are the passengers.
The brassy old lady, Ruth Gordon who sets next to the agnostic priest, Rene Auberjonois gave up some of the best lines in the movie. Equally good was Sally Kellerman and Richard Muligan as a quarreling couple who get hot and heavy every time they argue!...And Lynn Redgrave as a blue blooded snob, who's looking for love action with anybody that's available, hilarious! The entire star filled cast read like a who's who of 1970s actors.
The only drawback, the movie was too short and ended abruptly. Almost like they ran out of money to shoot a proper ending. Oh well, I laughed anyway. And the drunken bus driver bar scene? A freakin hilarious take on West Side Story!
+
The Big Bus (1976)
Director: James FrawleyCast: Joseph Bologna, Stockard Channing, John Beck, Sally Kellerman, Lynn Redgrave, Richard Mulligan
Genre: Comedy Action Spoof
About: A bicentennial movie spoof of disaster films of the early 1970s. A mammoth sized bus named Cyclops, is built and powered by a nuclear power plant. It runs non stop from New York to Denver. On it's maiden voyage, it runs into all sorts of trouble.
Review: Yahoo! I like this movie! IMO this is like a million times better than that other well known movie spoof, Airplane (1980). Sorry folks if that ruffles feathers! but it's true, this undiscovered gem is full of funny lines and people. And the comedy comes from wit, not from sight gags like Airplane relied on. The differences in style are like this: Airplane is like Mad magazine, while The Big Bus is like a Saturday Night Live comedy skit.
What I liked about this movie is it built an entire world around this monster bus. They actually included little details about how the bus works and that made this a neat movie. I loved the automatic tire changing scene and the automatic bus wash scene, ha! Somebody actually put thought into making this idea of a nuclear powered monster bus, seem plausible...they even have radiation suits that drop down from the ceiling in case of emergency.
But the coolest thing about this is the bus itself. It was real! They really built it and filmed it driving on the hiway. There's a first class and couch sections. There's a swimming pool, a one lane bowling alley and yes even a piano bar. This bus is loaded! And so are the passengers.
The brassy old lady, Ruth Gordon who sets next to the agnostic priest, Rene Auberjonois gave up some of the best lines in the movie. Equally good was Sally Kellerman and Richard Muligan as a quarreling couple who get hot and heavy every time they argue!...And Lynn Redgrave as a blue blooded snob, who's looking for love action with anybody that's available, hilarious! The entire star filled cast read like a who's who of 1970s actors.
The only drawback, the movie was too short and ended abruptly. Almost like they ran out of money to shoot a proper ending. Oh well, I laughed anyway. And the drunken bus driver bar scene? A freakin hilarious take on West Side Story!
+