The sight gags are all there, there's silliness to spare and there's not a ZAZ (Zucker, Abrahams, Zucker - the creators of "Airplane!") member in sight.

Yep, "The Big Bus" was the predecessor to the long and luxuriant line of disaster spoofs you see lining the video shelves today. And to tell the truth, as a groundbreaker in this field, this movie is pretty funny.

Bologna is a down-and-out bus driver who is given one shot at redemption by being picked to man the Cyclops, the biggest single bus ever created, driving it coast to coast.

His old girlfriend (Channing) is a kind of bus stewardess on board and an old driving buddy (Beck) is also by his side. But so are a load of passengers as diverse as your average "Airport" or "Poseidon Adventure" movie, not to mention an inept terrorist (Margolin) trying to sabotage the bus at every turn while whining to his brother, "Why did YOU get the iron lung?".

It's that kind of movie.

You'll have a lot of fun picking out every star you can imagine from the '70s here, as well as discovering the jibes at every major convention of disaster movies, even the digs at the huge Cyclops bus itself ("The coyote is on backwards." Never mind, you'll see.)

Definitely a funny and fun movie. Get on this "Bus".

Ten stars for being one of the first on this bandwagon, as well as for some big laughs. And if you have a co-pilot for a huge bus, make sure he stays conscious.

Obviously, with all the disaster films of the early '70s, someone had to make a spoof. And they did just that with "The Big Bus". It portrays the world's first nuclear-powered bus driving nonstop from New York to Denver. Naturally, the oil industry is worried that this novelty will ruin their business, and they seek to destroy it. That's the main plot, but the movie is mostly an excuse to have a bunch of silly things happen, as the more famous disaster spoof ("Airplane!") would do four years later.

Another aspect is of course the cast. Joseph Bologna and Stockard Channing get top billing as driver Dan Torrance and inventor Kitty Baxter, but there's even more. John Beck plays narcoleptic co-driver Shoulders O'Brien; Harold Gould plays Kitty's father who gets injured in an explosion; Jose Ferrer plays the diabolical Ironman, who seeks to blow up the bus; Ned Beatty plays Shorty Scotty, guiding the bus along its journey; Rene Auberjonois plays an awkward priest; Ruth Gordon plays an old woman; Sally Kellerman and Richard Mulligan play a couple who may or may not be getting a divorce; Lynn Redgrave plays a woman who has nothing to do but come onto men; and Larry Hagman plays the parking lot doctor.

Like I said, the whole thing was meant to be goofy, and it does not disappoint. Whether it's Shoulders falling asleep at inconvenient times, a truck full of hicks crashing into the bus and getting stuck, or some of the one-liners, the whole thing is a laugh riot.

By the way, although Richard Mulligan and Larry Hagman didn't share any scenes in this movie, this was the second time that they co-starred: Richard Mulligan once guest-starred on "I Dream of Jeannie". This was also the second time that Ruth Gordon co-starred with an "I Dream of Jeannie" cast member: Emmaline Henry (who played Amanda Bellows on "IDOJ") appeared in "Rosemary's Baby".

Well...

This is a stupid film. I admit it. The acting is very broad, the script is dopey as can be and every element of the film says "DUMB" but it all works because the film never takes itself seriously and makes no pretense. Yes, it is meant to be stupid! I mean, just think about the plot--an air or sea disaster movie that instead occurs on a bus! And, this is no ordinary bus, but seems about 25,000 square feet (minimum) inside--complete with a huge lounge, seating for a huge number of passengers and even a bowling alley!! Plus, you add other plot ideas like a co-driver named "Shoulders" because he keeps driving over the shoulders of the road, a bomb planted aboard and the bus is actually NUCLEAR-POWERED!!! This movie is pure escapist fun. If you want something deep or really enjoy the films or Fellini or Truffaut and hate anything else, then this movie is not for you. If you like pure dopiness and could use a laugh, then this film is exactly what you need.