Comedies Nominated for Best Picture

Cafe Society
1

Before I start going through the list at the IMDB, I thought I’d see if any Dopers know the answer to this one already:

How many comedies have been nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture?

2

Not sure how many have been nominated, but according to This Site :

3

I’ll knock out an easy one – 1997’s The Full Monty.

I think there’s been more than you think, but the trend in recent years has been sharply away from comedies earning Best Picture nominations.

4

OK, I went through IMDB going back to the 1979 Academy Awards, and here’s the movies nominate for Best Picture that are classified by IMDB as Comedy. Note that movies can be classified as both Comedy AND Drama on IMDB:

Heaven Can Wait (1978)
Tootsie (1982)
*The Big Chill *(1983)
Hannah and Her Sisters (1986)
Moonstruck (1987)
Working Girl (1988)
Ghost (1990)
Forrest Gump (1994 - won Best Picture)
Babe (1995)
Jerry Maguire (1996)
As Good As It Gets (1997)
Life is Beautiful (1997)
Gosford Park (2002)

…

Now, movies like Ghost, Forrest Gump, and Gosford Park definitely seem to fall in a gray area. All have plenty of funny moments, but you don’t leave the theater feeling like you’ve seen a comedy.

I think I could even add in Moulin Rouge, which gave me a heavily comedic feel.

5

Annie Hall won Best Picture. I consider it more a comedy that a drama.

6

What would be the definition of “light” comedy?

Also, As Good as it Gets is as much drama as comedy, wouldn’t you say?

7

Yep, I think it’s both … pretty much a 50-50 blend.

Now, if anyone’s waiting for flicks like American Pie, Joe Dirt or Road Trip to gain Best Picture nominations, well … it’ll be a long wait.

8

Well, this gets tricky, as the definition of “comedy” isn’t always clear. I often see “The Graduate” (which was nominated as Best Picture) called a comedy (the AFI rated it as one of the greatest comedies of all-time), but I never thought of it as a comedy at all.

Moreover, a lot of the musicals that have been nominated as Best Picture qualify as comedies (“Funny Girl,” for instance), but I don’t know if the OP wants to count musicals.

Among the movies nominated for Best Picture that MIGHT fit the OP’s definition:

MAS*H
The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming
The Great Dictator
The Philadelphia Story
Ninotchka
She Done Him Wrong
Auntie Mame
Born Yesterday
Father of the Bride
A Midsummer Night’s Dream

9

Am I the only one who forgets that Shakespeare in Love WON in 1999?

10

:smack:

Good catch.

11

All About Eve was a comedy???

Did I miss something when I watched it? It certainly had its share of irony, but darned if I recall laughing at all.

12

Other comedies (or comedy-drama/comedy-romance hybrids) with Best Picture nods not yet mentioned:

American Graffiti
The Awful Truth
The Bishop’s Wife
Broadcast News
Dr. Strangelove
The Front Page
The Goodbye Girl
Heaven Can Wait (2 versions)*
Here Comes Mr. Jordan
Here Comes the Navy
Hope and Glory
Lady for a Day
Libeled Lady
Miracle on 34th Street
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town
Mister Roberts
The Quiet Man
Roman Holiday
A Room with a View
Ruggles of Red Gap
Skippy
The Smiling Lieutenant
State Fair
The Talk of the Town
The Thin Man
A Thousand Clowns
A Touch of Class*
Of course, there are also what are known as musical comedies. These got Best Picture nods:

Anchors Aweigh
Doctor Dolittle
42nd Street
The Gay Divorcee
Hello, Dolly!
The Love Parade
Mary Poppins
The Music Man
One Hour With You
One Hundred Men and a Girl
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
Top Hat