Hot Shots!

Infobox Film
name =Hot Shots!

---

caption =Theatrical Release Poster
imdb_id =0102059
amg_id =1:23268
writer =Jim Abrahams
Pat Proft
starring =Charlie Sheen
Cary Elwes
Valeria Golino
Lloyd Bridges
Jon Cryer
Kevin Dunn
Bill Irwin
director =Jim Abrahams
producer =Bill Badalato
Pat Proft
distributor = 20th Century Fox
released =July 31, 1991
runtime =84 min.
music =
awards =
language =English
budget =
followed_by = "Hot Shots! Part Deux"

"Hot Shots!" is a 1991 comedy spoof starring Charlie Sheen, Cary Elwes, Valeria Golino, Lloyd Bridges, Kevin Dunn and Jon Cryer. It was directed by Jim Abrahams, co-director of "Airplane!", another parody, and was written by Abrahams and Pat Proft.

Plot summary

"Hot Shots" has been described as "Top Gun" meets "Airplane!". The film begins at Flemner Air Base 20 years ago. A pilot named Leeland "Buzz" Harley (Bill Irwin) loses control of his plane and ejects, leaving his co-pilot Dominic "Mailman" Farnum (Ryan Stiles) to crash alone; although Mailman survives, he is mistaken for a deer owing to the branches stuck to his helmet and is shot by a hunter. Topper Harley (Charlie Sheen) wakes up from a nightmare he has about this event when Lieutenant Commander Block (Kevin Dunn) asks him to return to active duty as a pilot in the U.S. Navy. This poses a dilemma for Harley, as he previously left the Navy to live with Native Americans.

Harley becomes romantically involved with his therapist, a woman named Ramada (Valeria Golino), although she is already involved with another top gun pilot (Cary Elwes). He hates Topper because of the loss of his father to Buzz Harley and believes Topper may do the same to him. Amidst the chaos, the owner of an aerospace firm is trying to sabotage the mission in order to make the current fighter jets look bad in hopes that the Navy will replace them with his German-made jets. However, Topper Harley successfully completes the mission to destroy a nuclear power plant despite his jet's malfunctioning armament.

What is perhaps the most iconic scene in the film depicts former Middle-Eastern dictator Saddam Hussein, relaxing on a lounge chair beside a swimming pool and sipping a drink in a tall glass through a straw. Suddenly a bomb, nearly one metre in length, falls out of the sky and into his lap, much to his surprise. (This scene has been cut in Malaysian reruns of the film on Star Movies.)

Cast

*Charlie Sheen - Lt. Topper Harley
*Cary Elwes - Lt. Kent Gregory
*Valeria Golino - Ramada Thompson
*Lloyd Bridges - Adm. Thomas "Tug" Benson
*Kevin Dunn - Lt. Cmdr. James Block
*Jon Cryer - Lt. Jim "Wash Out" Pfaffenbach
*William O'Leary - Lt. Pete "Dead Meat" Thompson
*Kristy Swanson - Kowalski
*Efrem Zimbalist, Jr. - Wilson
*Bill Irwin - Leeland "Buzz" Harley
*Ryan Stiles - Dominic "Mailman" Farnum
*Heidi Swedberg - Mary Thompson

Reception

"Hot Shots" was both a critical and commercial success, grossing over $180 million worldwide [cite web|url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=hotshots.htm|title="Hot Shots!" at Box Office Mojo|accessdate=2007-12-23] and tallying 81% positive reviews on review-collection website "Rotten Tomatoes". [cite web|url=http://au.rottentomatoes.com/m/1036179-hot_shots/|title="Hot Shots!" at Rotten Tomatoes|accessdate=2007-12-23]

equel

In 1993, a sequel was released, "Hot Shots! Part Deux", which parodied action genre, primarily the "Rambo" films. Jim Abrahams returned as director, as did Charlie Sheen, Valeria Golino and Lloyd Bridges, all of whom reprised their roles from the first film, as well as Jerry Haleva as Saddam Hussein, who had a larger role in the sequel. Ryan Stiles returns in a new role. The film also starred Richard Crenna, Rowan Atkinson and Miguel Ferrer. Unlike the well-received "Hot Shots!", reviews for the sequel were mixed. [cite web|url=http://au.rottentomatoes.com/m/hot_shots_part_deux/|title="Hot Shots! Part Deux" at Rotten Tomatoes|accessdate=2007-12-23] Nonetheless, "Part Deux" was still a financial success at the box office, grossing over $130 million worldwide. [cite web|url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=hotshots2.htm|title="Hot Shots! Part Deux" at Box Office Mojo|accessdate=2007-12-23]

Airplanes

The planes that make an appearance in the movie are:
*T-38 Talon
*F-5 Tiger II
*Folland Gnat
*F-4 Phantom II
*Airbus A300
*C-135 Stratolifter
*Boeing 727
*DC-8
*A-7 Corsair II

References

External links

*imdb title|id=0102059|title=Hot Shots!