The Straight-Face Strategy
The secret sauce of Airplane! isn't just the absurdity; it’s the deadpan. The directors made a specific, brilliant choice to cast actors known for serious, dramatic roles rather than stand-up comedians. These actors deliver lines about "drinking problems" (literally splashing water on their own faces) with the same gravity they’d use in a Shakespearean tragedy.
For a teenager raised on the hyper-aware, post-ironic humor of TikTok, this style of "playing it straight" is actually quite familiar. It’s the same energy as a high-effort "shitpost." If your kid is into absurdist internet humor, they’ll likely respect the craft here. It’s a great entry point for the funniest classic comedy movies because it doesn't beg for laughs; it just piles up the nonsense and lets you keep up.
The "Background Gag" Marathon
Most modern comedies put the joke front and center. Airplane! puts the joke in the foreground, the background, the PA system, and the subtitles. It’s a movie that rewards rewatching because you physically cannot catch every visual gag the first time. Watch the windows in the background of the cockpit, or the signs in the airport terminal.
This density is why the movie still holds up while other 80s comedies feel slow. There is no "dead air." If a verbal pun doesn't land, a guy is probably hitting a giant gong in the background three seconds later. This makes it a solid pick when you're trying to build a family film library that actually ages well, as it’s one of the few older films that matches the frantic pacing of modern media.
Navigating the 1980s Friction
You need to be ready for the "record scratch" moments. Because this movie was made in 1980, it leans on some tropes that feel like a gut-punch today. The "jive" subtitles and the jokes involving a young boy in the cockpit are the specific moments where you’ll see your teen raise an eyebrow.
The best way to handle this isn't to apologize for the movie, but to treat it as a crash course in how satire works. The film is parodying the "disaster" genre of the 70s—movies where every character was a thin stereotype. Airplane! takes those stereotypes and cranks them to eleven to show how ridiculous they are. Sometimes it’s biting and smart; sometimes it’s just a product of a less-sensitive era.
If you want to see how these classic comedy movies can still bridge the generation gap, use those cringey moments as a pivot. Ask if they think the joke is punching up or down. It’s a more interesting conversation than just "it was a different time."
