Initial release date: June 24, 1987
Studios: MGM/United Artist/Brooksfilms
Tagline: May The Farce Be With You
Plot: In a distant galaxy, planet Spaceball has depleted its air supply, leaving its citizens reliant on a product called "Perri-Air." In desperation, Spaceball's leader President Skroob orders the evil Dark Helmet to kidnap Princess Vespa of oxygen-rich Druidia and hold her hostage in exchange for air. But help arrives for the Princess in the form of renegade space pilot Lone Starr and his half-man, half-dog partner, Barf.
Cast
Mel Brooks -President Skroob/Yogurt
John Candy - Bark
Rick Moranis - Dark Helmet
Bill Pullman - Lone Starr
Daphne Zuniga - Princess Vespa
Dick Van Patten - King Roland
George Wyner - Colonel Sanderz
Joan Rivers - Dot Matrix (voice)
Writer(s): Mel Brooks (Hulu's History of the World Part 2; Paws of Fury: Legend of Hank)
Thomas Meehan (The Producers)
Ronny Graham
Director: Mel Brooks
Rated PG (96 minutes)
Spaceballs have always been one of my all-time favorite comedies! With all the hilarious moments that are scattered throughout the movie, there is no way anyone wouldn't laugh while watching this.
Everyone in this movie has their own memorably hilarious moment - including the always hilarious John Candy who played Barf (half-man, half-dog - his own best friend). Rick Moranis is also really hysterical as Dark Helmet and I can't really see anyone else playing the role. The scene where he plays with his dolls is one of the funniest scenes that he appeared in.
One of the funniest bits in the entire movie (which also includes Moranis) involves an actor who isn't exactly a household name - Michael Winslow. Like I said, the name won't sound familiar at all, but if you have seen the popular (and hilarious) 80s comedy Police Academy, he's the guy that did the funny sound effects. And in his scene as the radar technician, he does it again and is probably one of the most memorable scenes in the entire comedy.
This whole comedy features several gags that will really have you laughing from beginning to end. Spaceballs is definitely one of the best parodies out there! You can stream this hilarious Mel Brooks comedy on the Max streaming service.
Here are some fun tidbits for Spaceballs!
The Millennium Falcon from Star Wars makes a cameo in this movie. Take a close look at the exterior shot of the Space Diner, and it can be spotted parked there among the other space vehicles. George Lucas got a chance to read the screenplay before production began, and loved it so much he decided to have his visual effects company, Industrial Light & Magic, help make this movie.
In a 2013 interview, Brooks stated that he personally obtained Lucas' full permission to parody any and all things Star Wars-related but, on one condition, that absolutely no merchandise of any kind be produced for this movie. This is the reason why Yogurt and the Dinks do is merchandising (it's also why none of the merchandise seen in this movie was ever mass produced or publicly sold in any way).
Of all the jokes in this movie, Brooks says that the two he's most proud of are the running gag about merchandising and Col. Sandurz's renting Spaceballs before it was finished.
Rick Moranis suggested John Candy for the role of Barf.
Brooks came up with the idea for the movie when he discovered he has yet to spoof space movies, since he already parodied westerns with Blazing Saddles, made fun of horror with Young Frankenstein and gave silent movies the ax with Silent Movie.
James Caan was the original choice to play Lone Starr. Unfortunately, he was struggling with addiction issues at the time. A then unknown Bill Pullman won the role, as Caan was deemed too expensive to insure.
The scene where Mega Maid sucks the atmosphere off the mountain on the planet Druidia is a parody of the Paramount logo.
Along with Caddyshack II, Beetlejuice and Big, this movie is notable for containing the F-bomb in a movie rated PG during the early years of the PG-13 rating. Interestingly, the original video label erroneously states that this movie was rated PG-13.
The song that the Dinks sing in the desert is the "Colonel Bogey March," which has been used in countless movies and TV series, most famously The Bridge on the River Kwai.
Rick Moranis improvised the scene where Dark Helmet plays with the action figures.
The alien that pops out of John Hurt's chest and starts singing "Hello My Baby," and dancing with the hat and cane, is a parody of Michigan J. Frog from Looney Tunes.
The film had an estimated $22.7 million budget, and ultimately grossing $38.1 million during its US run, taking in $6.6 million on its opening weekend, finishing behind Dragnet.
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