Posted on 10/10/2008 7:07:10 AM PDT by Toadman
Hi fellow Freepers. I did a search and did not find this topic. If you know of a previous post, please redirect.
I've been hogging our Netflix (history, documentary, military genres) and realize the wife and kids need some levity.
Would you all take the time and give me an opinion of what you consider to be the best funny movies you've seen. I'm talking from the silent era of Charlie Chaplin up to the most present ala American Carol.
It doesn't matter if it's dark humor to vulgar humor to Walt Disney. Thanks for your input!
Would you like some Elderberry Wine?
I remember seeing the original "Producers" when I was 12 and, as cliched as this sounds, I literally fell out of my chair laughing.
BTW: Porky's was based on a real "gentleman's club" that existed in Hialeah back in the 1950s/early 60s, whose owner was a portly redneck nicknamed "Porky." My friend Rich's father used to hang out there.
My favorite aspect of Galaxy Quest was how well Tim Allen got the (real life) Shatner down.
Young Frankenstein, The Inspector General (Danny Kaye)
Excellent movie! Great for the whole family!
I haven’t seen “Ruthless People” since it was in the theatres. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve met several people similar to DeVito’s character.
“Caddyshack”, “Team America: World Police”, “Fletch”
Most people today are shocked to learn that back then Hialeah was almost all redneck.
Loved all of them. Thats why I said can’t even begin to list them.
Airplane
Young Frankenstein
Blazing Saddles
Princess Bride
Tremors
and one nobody's mentioned but it kills me:
Big Trouble In Little China
I search to see if anyone else thought of One, Two, Three. No one else mentioned it.
That means you and I are the only ones whith the utmost in great comedic taste.
One, Two, Three. Great movie!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One,_Two,_Three
Some films that may make you laugh (or not)
It’s A Mad Mad Mad Mad World (I actually got to see this about a decade ago and it’s there that you really this really is a big film with wide shots and a lot of action scene stunts).
The Party (with Peter Sellars). It kind of peters out before the end (no pun intended). A slow burn but entertaining.
Monkey Business (Marx Brothers). It isn’t trapped with the same romance/big show/big race of some of the other films. The Marx Brothers getting to do what they do best.
Hellzapoppin (Olsen & Johnson). Okay, this one DOES have the romance with a big show in it, and the leads make fun of that. About as close as Hollywood ever got to making a live action version of those old Warner Brothers’ cartoons (lots of sight gags), from Universal (1942?) only recently released to home video.
I’d recommend some silent films but a bad (modern recorded) silent score can really bring down the whole film. I like Buster Keaton’s The General (Civil War plot). I liked the live score I saw a band play with his film College (with the Big Game romance plot)
For adults (subtitled, some violence) I recommend Álex de la Iglesia, Muertos de risa (1999) ... aka Dying of Laughter. Not a classic on the scale of those comedies of old but it is a “recent” film that doesn’t repeat the same old plot. A comedy pair who didn’t get along privately.
Animal House is great but everyone of a certain age has probably seen it. Unlike the immitators, it’s played straight and dignified. These people didn’t STAY in that mindset, it was a phase, the folly of youth.
There is a higher power than that.
You'll have to watch The President's Analyst to find out (and yes, that is another recommended comedy, it's actually pretty biting even today). A smarter version of what Mike Meyers was swiping for Austin Powers.
The ORIGINAL Bedazzled with Peter Cook and Dudley Moore (and Raquel Welch).
Which storyline? The DVD was recut, there was that much extra footage.
Didn’t pan out to what it could have been. I think it was at that point that Will Farrell went into self-parody.
Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgandy
My son loooooves that movie. It is really funny.
My favorite is National Lampoon’s Vacation. The 1st one. Oh and Office Space.
You missed Gods Must Be Crazy 3 (unofficial title), it was called Crazy Safari, has the SAME bushman, and in one scene he is filled with the fighting spirit of Bruce Lee (also seen on screen) when a Chinese wizard casts a spell. And yes, I laughed.
Now you’ve got me mulling over what are some of the funniest Hong Kong comedies (including action comedies) of the past 25 years. For awhile, they were the only films making me laugh out loud in the theater (including some of Jackie Chan’s, NOT his US junk, I’m talking about films that never made it here outside of Chinese theaters and revival screenings).
I love Dr. Strangelove but wouldn’t call it one of the funniest movies ever made.
Stanley Kubrick cut the pie fight ending because he thought it ended on the wrong note (the guys were supposed to be showing the absurdity of war but they were smiling too much in the shots in the war room).
Speaking of Alan Arkin, Mother Night is a dark comedy adapted from Kurt Vonnogut’s book of the same name. A lot of people I normally don’t like but it was a good movie.
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