Quick Change (1990)

The Scene: The Mexican Joust

Why I Love This Scene: This very seldom seen underrated comedy from the early 90s starring and co-directed by Bill Murray is a love-hate letter to New York City. Murray, along with Geena Davis and Randy Quaid, successfully rob a bank and have a dickens of a time trying to escape the island of Manhattan. While on the run, they get lost due to construction work, get robbed of everything other than the millions they stole from the bank by a con artist and almost get shot by Phil Hartman who thinks they are robbing them in Davis’ old apartment. They then fall victims to a cab driver who speaks zero English (Tony Shalhoub), a very strict bus driver who operates like a Nazi and then they manage to rip off the mafia. All done with Murray in his late 80s, early 90s prime. If you haven’t seen this gem, DO IT! The scene I will be highlighting today is probably one of the most bizarre and hysterical scenes in movie history. While lost en route to the airport, Quaid tries to ask a man on a bicycle for directions. The man ignores them and then makes the sign of the cross and takes off on his bike while holding a stick with a dust pan on the end of it. On the other side of the parking lot is another man riding a bike with a dust pan on a stick and they are slowly charging at each other like a knights’ joust. While it needs to be seen to believed, the aftermath is what makes this scene so memorable when we notice that the joust is being witnessed by a few people, including a priest who happens to catch the rolling bicycle from the ‘loser’ who then throws it done in disgust. Then a little kid proceeds to ring the church bells for the fallen. Add to that the Spanish-languaged solemn music playing and the expression of the young widow smoking in sadness makes this one of my favorite scenes of the movie. Absolute lunacy. ENJOY!