One of the most repeated phrases when talking about comedies here on The Legionnaire is how difficult it is to do them justice, particularly from a Catholic perspective.  Yet, while watching Hot Shots! (1991) for the first time in many years, I was delighted to see St. Pope John Paul the Great (Gene Greytak) depicted.  The film is a spoof of the slew of 1980s military flicks primarily focusing on American aviation, the main send-up being that of Top Gun (1986).  With that in mind, you might be wondering how a Catholic saint could find his way into such a farce like Hot Shots!  The answer to that question is difficult to explain, though it is worth noting that the late prelate was at the height of his popularity at the time of the film’s premier, having survived assassination and helped bring about the end of the Cold War, not to mention his incredible work as a religious leader.  His appearance, in a boxing ring no less (though no fighting), is part of the random humor you will see if you watch it.  It is also a fleeting moment, though there are other moments that I will touch on that, surprisingly (or not depending on your beliefs), reveal God at work.

When Lieutenant Commander Leland “Buzz” Harley (Bill Irwin) loses control of his fighter at the beginning of Hot Shots! and ejects, this leaves Lieutenant Dominic “Mailman” Farnham (Ryan Stiles) to crash land with the plane.  Miraculously, Lieutenant Farnham survives, for which he thanks God . . . only to be mistaken for a deer and shot dead.  This is a nightmare from which Lieutenant Sean “Topper” Harley (Charlie Sheen) awakens in the next scene.  He is in a teepee, having come to live with native peoples after being discharged from the Navy for being too much of the title kind of pilot.  This is about to change when Lieutenant Commander James “Eyewitness” Block (Kevin Dunn) comes to offer Lieutenant Harley a chance to return to active service.  Oh, in case you are wondering, Lieutenant Harley’s father is the person at the controls in the beginning.  He died of a separate, tragic accident.  Still, he had a reputation for showing off that stuck with his son, hence the tension.  Lieutenant Harley agrees to come back because of the importance of the proposed mission, and he is told that he is needed for it.  On the way to the base, he sees Ramada Thompson (Valeria Golino) riding a horse alongside the road, and is taken by her beauty and other farcical stunts she performs because, you know, comedy.  She also happens to be the psychiatrist for the military, and somebody that he must see in order to be cleared to fly.  Though he is interested in her, her initial reaction is guarded.  Besides, there is a history between her and Lieutenant Kent “Pirate” Gregory (Cary Elwes).  Lieutenant Gregory is already predisposed to not liking Lieutenant Harley.  Lieutenant Gregory’s father was Lieutenant Farnham, and the son blames Lieutenant Harley for dad’s death.  Thus, when Lieutenant Harley goes after Ramada, Lieutenant Gregory is prepared to fight . . . as is the rest of the bar in which this confrontation is about to take place.  Ramada eases the situation by saying she will talk to Lieutenant Gregory later, and then proceeds to go back to her place with Lieutenant Harley.  They are meant to be doing the kinds of things that I typically warn people to avoid on film for purity reasons, but it is presented as him making various foods on her stomach, like bacon and eggs.  Again, comedy.  Their activities, though, make him late for a training exercise the next day.  Because Lieutenant Gregory is the only one who does not like Lieutenant Harley, the latter’s wingmen attempt to cover for him.  The primary person to do so is Lieutenant Jim “Wash Out” Pfaffenbach (Jon Cryer).  He is about to do what his call sign suggests, mainly because he is wall-eyed, but jumps into the cockpit in Lieutenant Harley’s jet to make it look like the absent pilot is in the air.  As a result of the hilarity of sending a visually impaired man up in a fighter, he crashes into the plane of Lieutenant (Junior Grade) Pete “Dead Meat” Thompson (William O’Leary).  It is not the midair collision that kills Lieutenant Thompson (also, note the call sign), but the various blows to the head he receives from the ridiculous medical treatment administered.  The pain of seeing this causes Lieutenant Harley to convince himself that he should resign after all.  It is Ramada who changes his mind.  Had she not done so, he would have likely have gotten a talk from Lieutenant Commander Block, who also has ulterior motives for this mission.  He is in league with a company that wants to get a government contract to develop a new fighter for the military, and believes Lieutenant Harley and their aged jets will demonstrate this need.  What Lieutenant Commander Block does not want, though, is for anyone to get hurt.  This begins to happen during the course of the actual mission, which changes his mind about the entire situation.  Despite having his controls compromised, Lieutenant Harley gets a pep talk about his dad and is able to complete the objectives on his own.  As the aircraft carrier, the S.S. Essess (hilarious), triumphantly docks, he mistakes the embrace he sees between Lieutenant Gregory and Ramada as romantic and takes off in his fighter.  Upon getting back to his teepee, remembering the AA batteries requested of him by Owatonna (Rino Thunder), he is delighted to find Ramada there waiting for him.

Just to drive home the humor in Hot Shots!, interspersed with the end credits are recipes and suggestions for things you can do after the movie.  Helpful, no?  Anyway, I could make a mountain out of the mole hill with the scene that has St. Pope John Paul the Great in it, or when characters turn to God just before they die.  I could not get much out of them, though, because they are not meant to be taken seriously.  Instead, I will focus on Lieutenant Thompson, specifically his nickname.  That title is given to him for comedic effect.  In the lead up to his fateful flight, he is met on the tarmac by his wife, Mary Thompson (Heidi Swedberg).  As they walk to his fighter, they discuss how great their life is together.  Along their path, a black cat crosses in front of them, he diverts under a ladder, and she breaks a mirror in her purse.  You get it, right?  All things that supposedly portend bad luck are seen.  Another word for these things is superstitions, and they go against Catholic teaching.  Just because these random things happen does not mean some terrible occurrence will befall you.  God knows the time and place of your demise, and I promise you that it will happen no matter how many cats of any color you encounter, or ladders you duck underneath.  Belief in such things also unintentionally contravenes God’s power.  Go out and break a mirror some time.  While it is statistically unlikely, you could next play the lottery and win.  Further, people who do construction work routinely destroy mirrors when demolishing homes.  Are all of them “unlucky.”  If you accidentally, or even purposely, perform one of these clichéd acts that supposedly bodes ill, it is important to remember that God’s love is more powerful.  It will be there for you no matter what happens next.

I had forgotten most of Hot Shots! and found that I enjoyed it more than I anticipated.  I expected it to be full of outdated humor that we look back at and wonder how we ever laughed at it.  There were a few jokes in it that had me genuinely laughing.  There are some adult situations in it, but nothing over the top.  I say watch it without reservation.