Top Secret! Review

MPAA Rating: PG
Released: 1984

Top Secret! was a Cold War comedy by the same twisted minds that brought us such comedy classics as Airplane and The Naked Gun. This time they take aim at spy movies and rock musicals, lampooning each mercilessly as a popular American rock star is called to perform behind the Iron Curtain. While in East Germany, the shallow star stumbles across a band of underground rebels, leading to a hilarious battle for freedom.

Airplane was an undeniable comedy classic (it scored a 10 on 80's Reborn, in fact), and The Naked Gun was also a solid slice of hilarity. How does Top Secret fair when compared to such gems? Read on to find out…

You just have to love the wacky minds behind Jim Abrahams and the Zucker brothers, for each of their zany comedies relentlessly throws jokes of all types at the audience: slapstick, word play, blatant and subtle… you'll find it all. Even if only half the jokes actually succeeded, so many are sent our way that we're in for a fun ride. Luckily, this trio has a far higher success rating than 50%, leading the way for truly gut-busting affairs.

Which leads us to Top Secret, a film that deftly parodies spy movies and those pesky musicals that plagued us throughout the 60's and 70's. Can it hope to rise to the level of their previous classic, Airplane? In the end, not quite, but that doesn't mean this movie is a comedy failure by any means. Quite the opposite, Top Secret is in the top tier of comedy, and if you're a fan of the Zucker/Abrahams style you'll find this an essential addition to your collection.

Nick Rivers (Val Kilmer) is an American rock singer along the lines of Elvis Presley and the Beach Boys, and it should come as no surprise that throughout the movie he'll have the opportunity to lampoon some of their greatest hits. At any rate, the East German command is in a predicament. They are currently in the process of developing a devastating weapon that would allow them to conquer the world, but they need public attention focused elsewhere. That's where Nick comes in.

Asked to play behind the Iron Curtain, Nick arrives in the Communist country and happens to meet up with a pretty member of the resistance, Hillary Flammond (Lucy Gutteridge). When he becomes inadvertently mixed up in the rebellion, suddenly he must not only protect his own life by evading the authorities, he must also team up with the rebels to thwart the Communists' plans at world domination.

Although the young Val Kilmer was no Leslie Nielsen, he managed to successfully capture the essence of a shallow rock singer quite well. I won't say that another actor couldn't have been a better lead choice in the end, but at the same time Kilmer handled it so well that I don't have to worry about debating such matters. Suffice it to say he, and all the secondary actors, were able to mesh with their zany roles and create a seriously funny film.

Choosing highlights from Top Secret would be difficult, for like any Zucker/Abrahams comedy there are just too many hilarious scenes to keep count of. For example, in one scene Nick has been imprisoned, but before he is to be executed he is forced to play the concert so the world doesn't notice or object to his execution. During the final song, armed with the foreknowledge of his impending fate Nick repeatedly attempts to commit suicide in a subtle manner that flows with the song he's singing. Like most amusing scenes, words cannot do it justice – you have to be there.

You'll also find that Zucker/Abrahams have continued their fine tradition of including a ton of background humor that might be easy to miss if you're not paying attention. One example of this is a scene where Nick and Hillary are sitting on a park bench having a discussion. Whereas the scene focuses on the two stars, in the background is a huge statue of a pigeon and as the conversation continues you'll notice three humans land on the statue, urinate, and then flap their arms and fly off once again. Anyone familiar with city parks and pigeons will catch the absurdity of that scene.

Of course Top Secret is a bit dated since East Germany and the Iron Curtain no longer exists. But putting that aside, every joke but one should be instantly recognizable to today's audiences. The one joke that some might not fully understand is where a German vehicle ever so slightly dings the rear bumper of a Pinto, causing an explosion. (Due to the Pinto's craftsmanship in the 80's, they were susceptible to exploding if rear-ended with enough force.)

If you enjoyed the other Zucker/Abrahams classics, or love comedies that are chock full of jokes both slapstick and intelligent, I highly recommend Top Secret. It's not quite to the same level as Airplane, but it's thoroughly entertaining nonetheless.

Movie rating: 8 stars

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