Austin Powers: International Man Of Mystery (1997)
The Moment: Having woken up after being frozen for 30 years, Dr Evil (Mike Myers) discovers that all of his evil plans are somewhat outdated.
What’s It Spoofing: Blofeld from the Bond films.
Why It’s Great: It sort of makes us love Dr Evil – he tries so hard, and it’s not his fault he’s behind the times.
Hot Shots! (1991)
The Moment: Charlie Sheen and Valeria Golino get down and dirty on the kitchen floor, slathering each other with food.
Best bit? He fries an egg on her stomach.
What’s It Spoofing: The sexy culinary scene from 9 ½ Weeks.
Why It’s Great: It’s funny and sexy. Right ?
Young Frankenstein (1974)
The Moment: That unforgettable sequence in which Gene Wilder dances in top hat and tails with his monster while crooning ‘Putting On The Ritz’.
What’s It Spoofing: Monster movies ( Frankenstein , Bride Of Frankenstein ) and monochrome musicals.
Why It’s Great : It’s a simple idea delivered with po-faced elegance.
Blazing Saddles (1974)
The Moment: Taggart (Slim Pickens) and his men take a time out around a campfire and eat beans – with explosive results.
What’s It Spoofing: Any scene from an old Western in which cowboys gather around a campfire.
Why It’s Great: Alright, it’s pretty puerile, and there are loads of other gags in the film that are just as funny. But for getting us to giggle like five-year-olds, it earns top marks.
The Man With Two Brains (1983)
The Moment: Dr. Michael Hfuhruhurr (Steve Martin) knocks over Dolores (Kathleen Turner), and instructs a little girl to call an ambulance – only his instructions are somewhat convoluted.
What’s It Spoofing: Any scene from a movie in which a character orders another character to call an ambulance. Normally they keep things a little simpler than Hfuhruhurr.
Why It’s Great: The little girl remembers Hfuhruhurr’s instructions exactly!
High Anxiety (1977)
The Moment: A man reads his paper while birds flock to a climbing frame behind him.
The worst part? Bird poo…
What’s It Spoofing: The Birds.
Why It’s Great: It’s a fun response to the one thing Hitchcock never addressed in his film – just how much crap that many birds would produce…
Spaceballs (1987)
The Moment: “Not again,” groans John Hurt as an alien bursts from his chest. Things are a little different second time around, though, as this mini ET comes with a top hat and cane…
What’s It Spoofing: Alien ’s chest-bursting scene.
Why It’s Great: Not only is it a funny send-up, Mel Brooks scored a cinematic touchdown by getting John Hurt to reprise his most famously blood-splattered role.
Dead Men Dont Wear Plaid (1982)
The Moment: Private investigator Rigby Reardon (Steve Martin) disguises himself as a svelte blonde and meets up with Neff (Fred MacMurray) in a hilarious pastiche of Double Indemnity.
What’s It Spoofing: Film noir as a whole, but this scene pays particular attention to Double Indemnity.
Why It’s Great: It seamlessly blends the old with the new, making for a bizarre but clever (and funny) viewing.
The Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult (1994)
The Moment: In the film’s opening scene, Frank (Leslie Nielsen) and co take down bad guys in a station…
What’s It Spoofing: The Untouchables.
Why It’s Great: It’s a parody of a scene from The Untouchables which was itself a tribute to the Odessa Steps scene in Battleship Potemkin . How’s that for layered?
Airplane! (1980)
The Moment: Old dear Barbara Billingsley steps in to help when a flight attendant finds it impossible to understand a passenger’s jive speak.
What’s It Spoofing: Street slang in general.
Why It’s Great: Billingsley is phenomenal. “Just hang loose, blood…”
