Ahem.
You kids need to visit the “classics” section of your video store more often.
In the “unintentionally funny” category, it’d be tough to top Plan 9 From Outer Space.
I’m glad someone mentioned Galaxy Quest – that’s one of my top favorites!
I love the Rock Hudson/Doris Day movies. They were hysterical!
Monty Python’s Meaning of Life had me laughing so hard the first time I saw it, that I actually fell off my chair in the theater – which was gross because the theater I saw it in wasn’t all that nice and the floor was beyond disgusting.
It still makes me laugh when I see the Mr Creosote scene.
Other funny faves:
Me, Myself & Irene, Oh Brother Where Art Thou, and Christmas Vacation.
I’m sure there’s more, I just can’t think of them right now…
I concur with many others’ lists, but two of my favorites I didn’t see mentioned are Soap Dish and A Fish Called Wanda.
I must agree with * Holy Grail, Princess Bride, Best in Show*, and * Galaxy Quest*, but want to add one more:
- Being John Malkovich*.
The 7 1/2 floor thing is pure genius. I also enjoyed the randomness of the whole turnpike thing, plus many other laughs. Great movie besides; weird, creepy, * and* funny.
Maybe not quite a 'classic" yet. But up there on my top 5 list of movies, comedy or otherwise.
I tried to come up with my own list, but I couldn’t bring myself to. Everyime I read “the 1980s were the years when the best comedys were made” in the OP, I would just sit and cry softly to myself . . .
The King of Hearts is the funniest movie I’ve ever read with A Beautiful Life a close second.
E (subtitles don’t bother me) d’Mann
Hear, hear! As Sofa King rightly pointed out, there are certain sections of the video stores that are not being visited. Plus, there are scant few stores outside of large cities or perhaps college towns that are stocked with Sullivan’s Travels or The Freshman. Personally, I would rather see The Big Store or Marx Brothers Go West over the vast majority of the comedies listed, but that’s just me.
Didn’t that guy, what’s his name? P.T. something or other say something one time about never underestimating something?
I suppose I read the OP as wanting confirmation there were funny comedies in the 80s, which ought to explain some postings (granted, South Park is 1999, AOD 1993, but I stretched it a little). I’ve never been able to get into the Marx Brothers or Charlie Chaplin. I like what I’ve seen of Billy Wilder (particularly Irma La Douce, The Apartment, Sabrina, and of course Some Like It Hot), and heartily enjoy just about anything with Cary Grant. I think my perception and appreciation of funny was shaped by what my sister and I had immediate access to in the home, which was a lot of gross-out, sexed-up 80s movies on our newfangled cable television, as well as Monty Python and Benny Hill programs from my father. I’m trying to expand my movie horizons, though I don’t get to the video store much these days.
I forgot the Great Dictator. And many of the Our gang shorts…
Specifically irthday Blues (WHO COULD FORGET THAT NOISE THE WEE WAH CAKE MADE?)
By the way Sofa King I noticed Duck soup was mentioned more than once including my mention so Groucho got his dues.
jehovah68 Go west??? Now who is being funny. Sorry but those later films lacked a lot of the punch of their early works.
Sorry, King, perhaps you misunderstood my point. The two which I mentioned are universally placed at the bottom of their work. What I was trying to say is that I would choose their mediocre efforts over the majority of movies listed here.
I got a good mind to join a club and beat you over the head with it. - Rufus T. Firefly
Fletch
Quick Change
Defending Your Life
Swingers
And God Spoke - it is a mockumentary about the making of a Biblical movie, best mock I’ve ever seen, although Best in Show is damn funny. A difficult film to find, but worth the effort.
Hon Mention (that haven’t been mentioned):
Living in Oblivion
Groundhog Day (“It’s Groundhog Day… again.”)
Parenthood Dazed & Confused
Election
American Pie
The scene in Nutty Professor w/ Eddie Murphy at the dinner table when Grandma starts talking about “relations.”
I’m with Sofa King:
Best Comedies coming from the 80’s? Planes, Trains and Automobiles in a Top Ten list?
From the Cretaceous Era:
The Philadelphia Story
Mr. Roberts
The Mouse that Roared
Arsenic and Old Lace
To name but a few…
Steve Martin is, IMHO, the funniest comedian/actor of our time. Some of these have been mentioned, others have not:
Planes, Trains, & Automobiles
Roxanne
Parenthood
Father of the Bride I & II
L.A. Story
Dirty, Rotten Scoundrels
The Man With Two Brains
(there are others–some forgettable, some hilarious)
but one of the funniest movies of all time (I can’t believe it hasn’t been mentioned yet!) has to be The Jerk
For the older movies, I liked Bob Hope in The Paleface. The native American on laughing gas was pretty darn funny.
Well ain’t I the knucklehead.
Point well taken.
He may look like and act like an idiot but don’t let that fool you he really is an idiot
When I started thinking of the funniest films the ones that
jumped out at me- A New Leaf, Harold and Maude, How to
Steal a Million, How to Murder Your Wife, Butch Cassidy,
The Sting- all came from my impressionable years, from
eight to sixteen. Isn’t the real question “Aren’t the movies
of my youth the best ever made?” And the answer is
always yes.
How about Being There? I watched it almost all the way through for the first time last night (missed the first 15 minutes or so) and it was one of the funniest movies I’ve seen in a long time.
It’s now one of my favorite films, I’m surprised I’ve managed to miss it for the last 23 years.
Tangent:
How can All of Me be left off any list of Steve Martin’s best? (I can hardly believe I forgot to list it myself.)
Eve, Sofa, et al:
Maybe not all of us are unfamiliar the “classics.” Maybe we just think they’re overrated. Example: I tried to sit through “Duck Soup”…I fell asleep. Am I supposed to be amused when that ambassador tried to tell Harpo and Chico about their mission and they’re wandering around his office like inattentive 5-year-olds playing pranks? Or when Harpo and Chico casually set that peanut vendor’s hat on fire? I just found them annoying. I know Groucho’s the top banana, and he had a lot of good zingers, but I wouldn’t put it within light years of “Airplane” when you count laughs, and the antics of the others detracted from the movie.
Hooray for the 1970’s and later!
Chaim Mattis Keller
out of a total of 231 votes counted for 141 films
with 4 votes each
Airplane!
Best in Show
South Park
Night at the Opera
with 5 votes
Duck Soup
with 6 votes each
This is Spinal Tap
Planes Trains and Automobiles
Life of Brian
with 8 votes each
Young Frankenstein
Monty Python
And the winner with 10 votes is …
Blazing Saddles