Airplane! is one of the most famous and acclaimed examples of a sub-genre of similar gag-based comedies that defy logic, reason, and the "fourth wall" to produce laughter in any way possible, with comic references to other famous 'straight' disaster films such as Airport. When this type of comedy works, it is exceptional (the animated cartoons of Tex Avery were a great influence), though it can be difficult for filmmakers to achieve success when working on a movie that denies characterization and even plot development. Other successful movies of this type include Mel Brooks' Blazing Saddles and the "Road movies" of Bing Crosby and Bob Hope. More recent movies of this sort include Hot Shots, The Naked Gun, the Austin Powers series and Scary Movie. (A number of other films in this genre were less successful, including Loaded Weapon, The Big Bus, and Spy Hard.)
In some foreign release (including Australia), Airplane! was entitled Flying High. The film is regularly shown on television, with many devotees rewatching the film, in the process catching other 'gags' that they didn't notice, due to the sheer number of sight, sound and dialogue gags (often overlapping), in earlier viewings.
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Surprisingly, Airplane! does have a plot, though, derived from the 1957 movie Zero Hour. Airplane! is very nearly a remake of Zero Hour!, lifting its major characters and most of its story line. Indeed, many of the best known lines are repeated verbatim. (For example, "Can you face some unpleasant facts?" and "I guess I picked the wrong week to give up smoking.")
The plot is that when the pilots of a commercial airliner get sick, an ex-fighter pilot (Robert Hayes) must conquer his fear of flying to fly the plane to its destination. Hayes' girlfriend (Julie Hagerty) is a stewardess; Nielsen portrays a doctor on board. His catchphrase in the film became famous worldwide. In response to the question from a passenger "Surely you can't be serious?" Nielsen's character would respond: 'I am, and don't call me Shirley'.
Some critics have claimed that the movie's most important achievement was in bringing to an end the Airport series of movies, which could no longer be taken seriously.
In 2000, the American Film Institute listed Airplane! as #10 on its list of the 100 funniest American films.