Well-made Comedies
by mlevans | created - 07 Jul 2013 | updated - 07 Jul 2013 | PublicUnlike my earlier ROFLOL list of comedies, these offer more subtle (at times dark) humor and great dialogue. They are in reverse chronological order.
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1. The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004)
R | 119 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
With a plan to exact revenge on a legendary shark that killed his partner, oceanographer Steve Zissou (Bill Murray) rallies a crew that includes his estranged wife, a journalist, and a man who may or may not be his son.
Director: Wes Anderson | Stars: Bill Murray, Owen Wilson, Anjelica Huston, Cate Blanchett
Votes: 211,010 | Gross: $24.01M
I love Anderson. This is a good ewntry in his canon...even if we did have to wait 3 years for it!
2. Eulogy (2004)
R | 91 min | Comedy, Drama
A black comedy that follows three generations of a family, who come together for the funeral of the patriarch - unveiling a litany of family secrets and covert relationships.
Director: Michael Clancy | Stars: Ray Romano, Jesse Bradford, Hank Azaria, Rip Torn
Votes: 9,277 | Gross: $0.07M
Although it has some slapstick moments, this film still have some very clever moments.
3. Garden State (2004)
R | 102 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A quietly troubled young man returns home for his mother's funeral after being estranged from his family for a decade.
Director: Zach Braff | Stars: Zach Braff, Peter Sarsgaard, Natalie Portman, Ian Holm
Votes: 223,223 | Gross: $26.78M
This is a charming film.
4. Tortilla Soup (2001)
PG-13 | 102 min | Comedy, Romance, Drama
A Mexican-American master chef and father to three daughters has lost his taste for food, but not for life.
Director: Maria Ripoll | Stars: Hector Elizondo, Jacqueline Obradors, Tamara Mello, Jude Herrera
Votes: 5,283 | Gross: $4.45M
Largely overlooked, this is very well done with good writing, good character development, etc.
5. Amélie (2001)
R | 122 min | Comedy, Romance
Despite being caught in her imaginative world, Amelie, a young waitress, decides to help people find happiness. Her quest to spread joy leads her on a journey where she finds true love.
Director: Jean-Pierre Jeunet | Stars: Audrey Tautou, Mathieu Kassovitz, Rufus, Lorella Cravotta
Votes: 794,437 | Gross: $33.23M
Another real charmer.
6. The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
R | 110 min | Comedy, Drama
The eccentric members of a dysfunctional family reluctantly gather under the same roof for various reasons.
Director: Wes Anderson | Stars: Gene Hackman, Gwyneth Paltrow, Anjelica Huston, Ben Stiller
Votes: 313,286 | Gross: $52.36M
My favorite film of the 2000s, so far, it has impeccable dialogue, creative approaches to film construction, great character development and some great tearjerking AND guffawing moments.
7. Rushmore (1998)
R | 93 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A teenager at Rushmore Academy falls for a much older teacher and befriends a middle-aged industrialist. Later, he finds out that his love interest and his friend are having an affair, which prompts him to begin a vendetta.
Director: Wes Anderson | Stars: Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, Olivia Williams, Seymour Cassel
Votes: 198,040 | Gross: $17.11M
An early Anderson effort, which is also quite good. I much prefer Bill Murray as an older character than as a young wise guy.
8. Being There (1979)
PG | 130 min | Comedy, Drama
After the death of his employer forces him out of the only home he's ever known, a simpleminded, sheltered gardener becomes an unlikely trusted advisor to a powerful tycoon and an insider in Washington politics.
Director: Hal Ashby | Stars: Peter Sellers, Shirley MacLaine, Melvyn Douglas, Jack Warden
Votes: 77,687 | Gross: $30.18M
Possibly Sellers' best work...and that is truly saying something. Outstanding dialogue.
9. The Odd Couple (1968)
Passed | 105 min | Comedy
A New Yorker newly separated from his wife moves in with his best friend, a divorced sportswriter, but their ideas of housekeeping and lifestyles are as different as night and day.
Director: Gene Saks | Stars: Jack Lemmon, Walter Matthau, John Fiedler, Herb Edelman
Votes: 37,461 | Gross: $44.53M
Although I loved the TV series even more, it's hard to beat these two.
10. Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
PG | 95 min | Comedy, War
An unhinged American general orders a bombing attack on the Soviet Union, triggering a path to nuclear holocaust that a war room full of politicians and generals frantically tries to stop.
Director: Stanley Kubrick | Stars: Peter Sellers, George C. Scott, Sterling Hayden, Keenan Wynn
Votes: 518,446 | Gross: $0.28M
If Being There isn't Sellers' top effort, this is. If this list were in order by merit, this one might be at the top of the list. a true classic.
11. The Pink Panther (1963)
Approved | 115 min | Comedy, Crime, Romance
The bumbling Inspector Clouseau travels to Rome to catch a notorious jewel thief known as "The Phantom" before he conducts his most daring heist yet: a princess' priceless diamond with one slight imperfection, known as "The Pink Panther".
Director: Blake Edwards | Stars: David Niven, Peter Sellers, Robert Wagner, Capucine
Votes: 56,689 | Gross: $10.88M
The role for which Sellers will always be remewmbered, this initial PP film was quite different from the more farcical followups. He, Niven, a young Robert Wagner & sexkittens Claudia Cardinale and Capucine make this a quite sophisticated, witty & sexy film.
12. Some Like It Hot (1959)
Passed | 121 min | Comedy, Music, Romance
After two male musicians witness a mob hit, they flee the state in an all-female band disguised as women, but further complications set in.
Director: Billy Wilder | Stars: Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis, Jack Lemmon, George Raft
Votes: 283,622 | Gross: $25.00M
Yes, within a somewhat limited parameter, Marilyn could indeed act! a real classic.
13. Arsenic and Old Lace (1944)
Not Rated | 118 min | Comedy, Crime, Thriller
A Brooklyn writer of books on the futility of marriage risks his reputation after he decides to tie the knot. Things get even more complicated when he learns on his wedding day that his beloved maiden aunts are habitual murderers.
Director: Frank Capra | Stars: Cary Grant, Priscilla Lane, Raymond Massey, Jack Carson
Votes: 74,987
My favorite Cary Grant film, this one is extremely clever, fast-moving and hilarious.
14. Ninotchka (1939)
Not Rated | 110 min | Comedy, Romance
A stern Soviet woman sent to Paris to supervise the sale of jewels seized from Russian nobles finds herself attracted to a man who represents everything she is supposed to detest.
Director: Ernst Lubitsch | Stars: Greta Garbo, Melvyn Douglas, Ina Claire, Bela Lugosi
Votes: 22,903 | Gross: $1.19M
What a pitty Garbo wasn't given a chance to do more comedy. She had a very deft touch and was still at her alluring best in 1939. Great dialogue, great supporting cast. One of the best films of Hollywood's greatest year.
15. My Man Godfrey (1936)
Approved | 94 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A scatterbrained socialite hires a vagrant as a family butler - but there's more to Godfrey than meets the eye.
Director: Gregory La Cava | Stars: William Powell, Carole Lombard, Alice Brady, Gail Patrick
Votes: 26,461
William Powell was great. I nearly added The Thin Man...but I still don't consider it a comedy -- despite some fine comedic moments.
16. It Happened One Night (1934)
Passed | 105 min | Comedy, Romance
A rogue reporter trailing a runaway heiress for a big story joins her on a bus heading from Florida to New York and they end up stuck with each other when the bus leaves them behind at one of the stops along the way.
Director: Frank Capra | Stars: Clark Gable, Claudette Colbert, Walter Connolly, Roscoe Karns
Votes: 112,311 | Gross: $4.36M
One of the top "screwball" comedies of the 1930s, this onew was a classic.
17. The Old Dark House (1932)
Passed | 72 min | Adventure, Comedy, Drama
Seeking shelter from a storm, five travelers are in for a bizarre and terrifying night when they stumble upon the Femm family estate.
Director: James Whale | Stars: Boris Karloff, Melvyn Douglas, Charles Laughton, Gloria Stuart
Votes: 13,106 | Gross: $0.03M
If The Thin Man wasn't a comedy, this one wasn't either...yet it sort of WAS. If you've seen it, you will know what I mean. I would call it a comedy of manners. It was a strange mixture of elements, but it worked brilliantly and led to some unforgettable characters and great dialogue.
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