Comedy is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. These films are designed to entertain the audience through amusement, and most often work by exaggerating characteristics of real life for humorous effect. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (the black comedy being an exception). Comedy, unlike other film genres, puts much more focus on individual stars, with many former stand-up comics transitioning to the film industry due to their popularity. While many comic films are lighthearted stories with no intent other than to amuse, others contain political or social commentary. With that being said I'm going to bring My Top 10 Comedy Movies of All-Time. You can see my other list here. These movies are ranked 11-20 so when you see number 5 it is actually number 15. So without further ado...
10 (20). Caddyshack
The cast tin the film is amazing and it is one of the most quotable comedies of all-time. An elite country club has to deal with a brash new member and a gopher intent on destroying their beloved golf course. Caddyshack has a rating of 76% on rottentomatoes.com.
9. (19) Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
This film is flat out hilarious and it introduced us to magnificently talented Sasha Baron Cohen and it has a lot of memorable quotes and scenes. Journalist Borat Sagdiyev (played by Sasha Baron Choen) leaves his native Kazakhstan to travel to America to make a documentary. As he zigzags across the nation, Borat meets real people in real situations with hysterical consequences. His backward behavior generates strong reactions around him, exposing prejudices and hypocrisies in American culture. In some cases, Borat's interview subjects embrace his outrageous views on race and sex by agreeing with him, while others attempt to offer a patriotic lesson in Western values. Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay and it has a rating of 91% on rottentomatoes.com.
8. (18) Annie Hall
This is considered not only one of the greatest romacne films of all-time but one of the greatest films of all-time. Comedian Alvy Singer (played by Woody Allen) examines the rise and fall of his relationship with struggling nightclub singer Annie Hall (played by Diane Keaton). Speaking directly to the audience in front of a bare background, Singer reflects briefly on his childhood and his early adult years before settling in to tell the story of how he and Annie met, fell in love, and struggled with the obstacles of modern romance, mixing surreal fantasy sequences with small moments of emotional drama. Annie Hall was nominated for 5 Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress and Best Original screenplay while wining 4 (Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress and Best Original Screenplay) and it has a rating of 98% on rottentomatoes.com.
7. (17) American Pie
I love this film and I absolutely love the entire franchise. a group of friends at the end of their senior year make a pact to lose their virginity by prom night. In their outrageous attempts to fulfill this mission, they come to some surprising, hilarious and often touching realizations about themselves, their friendships, their notions of love, romance and their relations with the opposite sex. American Pie has a rating of 61% on rottentomatoes.com.
6. (16) National Lampoon's Vacation
This film has shaped and has been a huge influence on a lot of the comedies we see today. Clark Griswold (played by Chevy Chase), an ad exec who becomes consumed with taking his family cross-country to Wally World, a California amusement park. Less a vacation than a descent into a peculiarly American kind of hell, the Griswolds suffer through an endless series of catastrophes, culminating in a run-in with the law. National Lampoon's Vacation has a rating of 95% on rottentomatoes.com.
5. (15) Old School
This film has a lot of memorable gut-busting moments and it has some very memorable quotes. A trio of twenty something buddies tries to recapture the outrageous, irrepressible fun of their college years by starting their own off-campus frat house. Mitch (played by Luke Wilson), Frank (played by Will Ferrell) and Beanie (played by Vince Vaughn) have all reached a crossroads in their lives. They can choose to be responsible adults, with wives, families and steady jobs--or they can postpone adulthood in favor of the reckless abandon of frat house living with all the fun and none of the education. No contest. Old School has a rating of 60% on rottentomatoes.com.
4. (14) Ghostbusters
This movie is absolutely hilarious and it is easily one of the greatest comedies of all-time. When their government grants run out, the former three go into business as The Ghostbusters. Armed with electronic paraphernalia, the team is spectacularly successful, ridding The Big Apple of dozens of ghoulies, ghosties and long-legged beasties. Tight-lipped bureaucrat Walter Peck (played by William Atherton) regards the Ghostbusters as a bunch of charlatans, but is forced to eat his words when New York is besieged by an army of unfriendly spirits, conjured up by a long-dead Babylonian demon and "channelled" through beautiful cellist Dana Barrett (played by Sigourney Weaver) and nerdish Louis Tully (played by Rick Moranis). The climax is a glorious sendup of every Godzilla movie ever made-and we daresay it cost more than a year's worth of Japanese monster flicks combined. Who'd ever dream that the chubby, cheery Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man would turn out to be the most malevolent threat ever faced by New York City? Ghostbusters was nominated for two Academy Awards including Best Original Song and Best Visual Effects and it has a rating of 97% on rottentomatoes.com.
3. (13) Young Frankenstein
In this spoof of Mary Shelley's gothic tale, the grandson of Victor Frankenstein (played by Gene Wilder), a neurosurgeon, has spent his life living down the legend of his grandfather, even changing the pronunciation of his name. When he discovers his grandfather's diary, he begins to feel differently, and returns to the family castle to satisfy his curiosity by replicating his ancestor's experiments. In the process, he creates one very unique monster. Young Frankenstein was nominated for two Academy Awards including Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Sound and it has a rating of 94% on rottentomatoes.com.
2. (12) Spaceballs
Lone Starr (played by Bill Pullman) and his half-man, half-dog co-pilot, Barf the Mawg (played by John Candy), are content to scour the galaxy living the easy life. But they reluctantly come to the rescue when Druish Princess Vespa (played by Daphne Zuniga) is threatened by the evil Lord Dark Helmet (played by Rick Moranis), who wants to steal all of the air from her planet, Druidia. Trapped on a harsh desert world with Vespa and her robot chaperone, Dot Matrix (voice of Joan Rivers), Lone Starr and Barf are helpless to prevent Helmet from kidnapping the girl. But assistance arrives in the form of Yogurt (played by Mel Brooks), a wizard who turns Lone Starr on to a mysterious power known as The Schwartz. Catching up with Helmet just as he's transforming his spaceship into a giant vacuum cleaner in orbit around Druidia, the reluctant heroes stage a dramatic showdown. Spaceballs has a rating of 54% on rottentomatoes.com.
1. (11) Hot Shots: Part Deux
This film was one of the last that Charlie Sheen had made while he was in the prime of his movie career. Topper Harley (played by Charlie Sheen), who has retreated to a Buddhist monastery after being dumped by Ramada Rodham Hayman (played by Valerie Golino). In this far-off retreat, the monks have "taken a vow of celibacy, just like their fathers and their fathers before them." But Topper bulks up and goes back into action when his superior officer, Colonel Denton Walters (played by Richard Crenna) is captured by a Saddam Hussein look-alike, missing somewhere between "Iraq and a Hard Place." Topper charges into Iraq (after barreling through a Beverly Hills barbecue) along with sexy CIA operative Michelle Rodham Huddleston (played by Brenda Bakke) in tow, his guns ablazing. Hot Shots! Part Deux has a rating of 59% on rottentomatoes.com.
So ladies and gentlemen what are some of your favorite comedies of all-time and what do you think of my list? Let me know in the comments section below and let your voice be heard.
Jonah Sparks
10 (20). Caddyshack
The cast tin the film is amazing and it is one of the most quotable comedies of all-time. An elite country club has to deal with a brash new member and a gopher intent on destroying their beloved golf course. Caddyshack has a rating of 76% on rottentomatoes.com.
9. (19) Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
This film is flat out hilarious and it introduced us to magnificently talented Sasha Baron Cohen and it has a lot of memorable quotes and scenes. Journalist Borat Sagdiyev (played by Sasha Baron Choen) leaves his native Kazakhstan to travel to America to make a documentary. As he zigzags across the nation, Borat meets real people in real situations with hysterical consequences. His backward behavior generates strong reactions around him, exposing prejudices and hypocrisies in American culture. In some cases, Borat's interview subjects embrace his outrageous views on race and sex by agreeing with him, while others attempt to offer a patriotic lesson in Western values. Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay and it has a rating of 91% on rottentomatoes.com.
8. (18) Annie Hall
This is considered not only one of the greatest romacne films of all-time but one of the greatest films of all-time. Comedian Alvy Singer (played by Woody Allen) examines the rise and fall of his relationship with struggling nightclub singer Annie Hall (played by Diane Keaton). Speaking directly to the audience in front of a bare background, Singer reflects briefly on his childhood and his early adult years before settling in to tell the story of how he and Annie met, fell in love, and struggled with the obstacles of modern romance, mixing surreal fantasy sequences with small moments of emotional drama. Annie Hall was nominated for 5 Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress and Best Original screenplay while wining 4 (Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress and Best Original Screenplay) and it has a rating of 98% on rottentomatoes.com.
7. (17) American Pie
I love this film and I absolutely love the entire franchise. a group of friends at the end of their senior year make a pact to lose their virginity by prom night. In their outrageous attempts to fulfill this mission, they come to some surprising, hilarious and often touching realizations about themselves, their friendships, their notions of love, romance and their relations with the opposite sex. American Pie has a rating of 61% on rottentomatoes.com.
This film has shaped and has been a huge influence on a lot of the comedies we see today. Clark Griswold (played by Chevy Chase), an ad exec who becomes consumed with taking his family cross-country to Wally World, a California amusement park. Less a vacation than a descent into a peculiarly American kind of hell, the Griswolds suffer through an endless series of catastrophes, culminating in a run-in with the law. National Lampoon's Vacation has a rating of 95% on rottentomatoes.com.
5. (15) Old School
This film has a lot of memorable gut-busting moments and it has some very memorable quotes. A trio of twenty something buddies tries to recapture the outrageous, irrepressible fun of their college years by starting their own off-campus frat house. Mitch (played by Luke Wilson), Frank (played by Will Ferrell) and Beanie (played by Vince Vaughn) have all reached a crossroads in their lives. They can choose to be responsible adults, with wives, families and steady jobs--or they can postpone adulthood in favor of the reckless abandon of frat house living with all the fun and none of the education. No contest. Old School has a rating of 60% on rottentomatoes.com.
4. (14) Ghostbusters
This movie is absolutely hilarious and it is easily one of the greatest comedies of all-time. When their government grants run out, the former three go into business as The Ghostbusters. Armed with electronic paraphernalia, the team is spectacularly successful, ridding The Big Apple of dozens of ghoulies, ghosties and long-legged beasties. Tight-lipped bureaucrat Walter Peck (played by William Atherton) regards the Ghostbusters as a bunch of charlatans, but is forced to eat his words when New York is besieged by an army of unfriendly spirits, conjured up by a long-dead Babylonian demon and "channelled" through beautiful cellist Dana Barrett (played by Sigourney Weaver) and nerdish Louis Tully (played by Rick Moranis). The climax is a glorious sendup of every Godzilla movie ever made-and we daresay it cost more than a year's worth of Japanese monster flicks combined. Who'd ever dream that the chubby, cheery Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man would turn out to be the most malevolent threat ever faced by New York City? Ghostbusters was nominated for two Academy Awards including Best Original Song and Best Visual Effects and it has a rating of 97% on rottentomatoes.com.
3. (13) Young Frankenstein
In this spoof of Mary Shelley's gothic tale, the grandson of Victor Frankenstein (played by Gene Wilder), a neurosurgeon, has spent his life living down the legend of his grandfather, even changing the pronunciation of his name. When he discovers his grandfather's diary, he begins to feel differently, and returns to the family castle to satisfy his curiosity by replicating his ancestor's experiments. In the process, he creates one very unique monster. Young Frankenstein was nominated for two Academy Awards including Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Sound and it has a rating of 94% on rottentomatoes.com.
2. (12) Spaceballs
Lone Starr (played by Bill Pullman) and his half-man, half-dog co-pilot, Barf the Mawg (played by John Candy), are content to scour the galaxy living the easy life. But they reluctantly come to the rescue when Druish Princess Vespa (played by Daphne Zuniga) is threatened by the evil Lord Dark Helmet (played by Rick Moranis), who wants to steal all of the air from her planet, Druidia. Trapped on a harsh desert world with Vespa and her robot chaperone, Dot Matrix (voice of Joan Rivers), Lone Starr and Barf are helpless to prevent Helmet from kidnapping the girl. But assistance arrives in the form of Yogurt (played by Mel Brooks), a wizard who turns Lone Starr on to a mysterious power known as The Schwartz. Catching up with Helmet just as he's transforming his spaceship into a giant vacuum cleaner in orbit around Druidia, the reluctant heroes stage a dramatic showdown. Spaceballs has a rating of 54% on rottentomatoes.com.
1. (11) Hot Shots: Part Deux
This film was one of the last that Charlie Sheen had made while he was in the prime of his movie career. Topper Harley (played by Charlie Sheen), who has retreated to a Buddhist monastery after being dumped by Ramada Rodham Hayman (played by Valerie Golino). In this far-off retreat, the monks have "taken a vow of celibacy, just like their fathers and their fathers before them." But Topper bulks up and goes back into action when his superior officer, Colonel Denton Walters (played by Richard Crenna) is captured by a Saddam Hussein look-alike, missing somewhere between "Iraq and a Hard Place." Topper charges into Iraq (after barreling through a Beverly Hills barbecue) along with sexy CIA operative Michelle Rodham Huddleston (played by Brenda Bakke) in tow, his guns ablazing. Hot Shots! Part Deux has a rating of 59% on rottentomatoes.com.
So ladies and gentlemen what are some of your favorite comedies of all-time and what do you think of my list? Let me know in the comments section below and let your voice be heard.
Jonah Sparks
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