More thinkin' on that '100 Best Comedies' list...

by Nathaniel R

Since I haven't been able to stop thinking about the BBC top 100 comedies list (previously discussed) the only way to exorcize it is to make my own. These are presented in rough order and extremely subject to change since I basically made the list in 30 minutes and argued with myself about whether or not certain films (not on this) were comedies or not and whether or not one should list as "funniest" or "best" which are two very different things, even with comedies...

In short: "What'cha think of this?" said the man (c'est moi, Nathaniel) who is still mostly flat on his back with intense back pain and thinking about happier times when laughing didn't hurt so much. Watching a comedy right now would be dangerous so it's better to merely think about them.

NATHANIEL'S LIST
(please to share some of your favorites in the comments...) 

1. Singin' in the Rain (1952)
   
   
2. Tootsie (1982)
3. Manhattan (1979)
4. Meet Me in St Louis (1944)
   
   
5. It Happened One Night (1934)
6. Some Like It Hot (1959)
7. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)
8. The Awful Truth (1937)
   
   
   
   
9. My Man Godfrey (1936)
10. Annie Hall (1977)
11. Mean Girls (2004)
    
    
12. I ♥︎ Huckabees (2004)
13. Mary Poppins (1964)
14. Waiting for Guffman (1997)
15. Playtime (1967)
    
    
    
    
16. The Parent Trap (1961)
17. Trouble in Paradise (1932)
18. The General (1926)
19. Paper Moon (1973)
    
    
20. Victor/Victoria (1982)
21. Addams Family Values (1993)
22. Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (1988)
23. Bringing Up Baby (1938)
24. The Women (1939)
25. Clueless (1995)
26. Easter Parade (1948)
27. What's Up Doc? (1972)
    
    
    
    
28. Pee Wee's Big Adventure (1985)
29. Moonstruck (1987)
30. Little Shop of Horrors (1986)
31. The Miracle of Morgan's Creek (1944)
32. Bullets Over Broadway (1994)
33. Sherlock Jr (1924)
    
    
34. The Court Jester (1956)
35. Young Frankenstein (1974)
36. When Harry Met Sally (1989)
37. Heathers (1989)
38. My Best Friend's Wedding (1997)
39. Ball of Fire (1941)
40. Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)
41. Raising Arizona (1987)
42. 9 to 5 (1980)
    
    
    
    
43. Toy Story (1995)
44. Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2001)
45. Grease (1978)
46. Tangerine (2015)
47. The Lady Eve (1941)
48. Bridesmaids (2011)
49. The Birdcage (1996)
50. Nothing Sacred (1937)
    
    
    
    
51. Election (1999)
52. The Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert (1994)
53. Babe (1995)
54. Flirting With Disaster (1996)
55. Beetlejuice (1988)
56. The King of Comedy (1983)
57. Death Becomes Her (1992)
58. The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
59. Shakespeare in Love (1998)
60. His Girl Friday (1940)
    
    
    
    
61. Stage Door (1937)
62. Inside Out (2015)
63. Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967)
64. Silent Movie (1976)
65. Arsenic and Old Lace (1944)
66. Airplane! (1980)
67. Strictly Ballroom (1992)
    
    
    
    
68. Freaky Friday (2003)
69. Sleeper (1973)
70. Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)
71. Born Yesterday (1950)
72. Sabrina (1954)
73. Citizen Ruth (1996)
74. The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)
75. The Muppet Movie (1979)
76. Dr Strangelove, Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
77. The Princess Bride (1987)
    
    
    
    
78. White Christmas (1954)
79. To Be or Not To Be (1942)
80. Frances Ha (2012)
81. Ninotchka (1939)
82. This is Spinal Tap (1984)
83. The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeousie (1972)
84. The 40 Year Old Virgin (2005)
85. Wallace & Gromit and the Curse of the Were-Rabbit (2005)
86. Married to the Mob (1988)
87. Funny Girl (1968)
88. 8 Women (2002)
    
    
    
    
89. Best in Show (2000)
90. Much Ado About Nothing (1993)
91. American Hustle (2013)
92. Chicken Run (2000)
93. Fantastic Mr Fox (2009)
94. Burn After Reading  (2008)
95. Wet Hot American Summer (2001)
96. Home for the Holidays (1995)
    
    
    
    
97. Auntie Mame (1958)
98. On the Town (1949)
99. Big Business (1988)
100. Wild Tales (2014)

Comments

[Tom Ford]

Much better! And feel better.

[Jaragon]

Good list- I would include " Abott and Costello Meet Frankenstein"- feel better soon

[huh]

oh man, I abhor I Heart Huckabees!

Off the very top of my head, although comedy is subjective, the below omissions are unforgivable. There are others that come to mind that are seriously questionable but I thought I'd just stick to three.

Galaxy Quest
The Truman Show
The Incredibles

[Dg]

YES to Auntie Mame and Death becomes her !

[huh]

Oh, and also Big with Tom Hanks. Too much fun to leave off!

[JS]

A beautiful better list. Well done.

[Joey]

Wow. I really needed this.

Thank you for:
Death Becomes Her
Victor/Victoria
Freaky Friday
Best in Show
Pee Wee's Big Adventure

[Chris P.]

I was surprised not a single critic mentioned "The Russians are coming, the Russians are coming" in the BBC poll, and now that it doesn't appear on your top 100 either, Can I ask: have you not seen it, or do you not like it (enough)?

[NATHANIEL R]

Chris -- i have not seen it. i really need to do better about filling in my gaps.

[Samuel]

Nathaniel, a great list. Watch The More The Merrier(1943). A George Stevens with Jean Arthur, Joel McCrea and Supporting Actor Oscar for Charles Coburn. You will add to your list.

[Dave S.]

This is an extremely solid list, especially the mentions for "Stage Door", "Morgan's Creek", and "Court Jester". Have never thought of "Meet me In St. Louis" as a comedy, though. (Maybe according to Golden Globes rules...)

[cal roth]

Where's Chaplin?

[/3rtful]

Hav Plenty (1998)
Secrets & Lies (1996)
Kika (1994)
Bebe's Kids (1992)
Boomerang (1992)
House Party (1990)
Harlem Nights (1989)
I'm Gonna Git You Sucka (1988)
School Daze (1988)
Jumpin' Jack Flash (1986)

[Gizmo]

I think best comedies are the ones you nearly wet yourself at so...
Outrageous fortune, the heat , trading places, overboard ( goldie asking for lemon alone deserves a spot), stepbrothers , a fish called wanda

[T-Bone]

Saw singing in the rain as #1 and couldn't agree more. Thank you!

[Travis]

Clue!

[Pete]

There should have been room for The More the Merrier and Harvey.

[Matt]

The Man who came to Dinner (1942)- Monty Woolley and Bette Davis ; has to be in the top 10 of any Comedy list.

Also add The Grass is Greener (1960)- Cary Grant, Deborah Kerr, Robert Mitchum and Jean Simmons somewhere in the top 50.

[Jonathan]

"Mon Oncle" and "Trafic" over "Playtime" for me.

[eurocheese]

This list made me smile.

[NewMoonSon]

My Dynamic Dozen:

Tootsie
What's Up, Doc?
Victor/Victoria
Serial Mom
She's Gotta Have It
Let's Do It Again
Private Benjamin
Moonstruck
Working Girl
Chicken Run
Election
The First Wives Club

[joel6]

First of all sorry to hear you’re still having so much trouble with your back! Hope you’re on the mend. Love your list though not every film on it.

This was tough, as you said should it be funniest or best-both so subjective-and I decided to just go with what I held in the deepest affection and tried to put them in some sort of order-also terribly subjective and sure to be disagreed with. I have only one silent on my list which I guess is a failing but though I’ve tried many of the Keatons, Lloyds, Chaplins, Arbuckles and Normands it’s just not the sort of comedy I truly enjoy.

Some others that I love such as Stage Door, Holiday and Mary Poppins I don’t see as comedies but more comedy/dramas or musicals.

However my number one agrees with the BBC list, I think it’s the smartest but also the silliest best performed comedy there is.

Some Like It Hot (1959)
The Mating Season (1951)
It Started with Eve (1941)
We’re No Angels (1955)
What’s Up Doc? (1972)
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)
The Court Jester(1955)
Auntie Mame(1958)
Crossing Delancey (1988)
My Favorite Year (1982)
To Be or Not to Be (1942)
To Be or Not to Be (1983)
Pocketful of Miracles (1961)
I Married a Witch (1942)
Bringing Up Baby (1938)
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986)
The Solid Gold Cadillac (1956)
The Trouble with Angels (1966)
White Christmas (1954)
Barefoot in the Park (1967)
Wonder Boys (2000)
My Cousin Vinny (1992)
Ruthless People (1986)
His Girl Friday (1940)
The Great Race (1965)
Galaxy Quest (1999)
Dear Heart (1964)
Adventures in Babysitting (1987)
Baby Boom (1987)
9 to 5 (1980)
The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer (1947)
Back to School (1986)
Heaven Can Wait (1943)
What a Way to Go! (1964)
Seems Like Old Times (1980)
The Pleasure of His Company (1961)
Love Actually (2003)
It Should Happen to You (1954)
Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994)
Back to the Future (1985)
Cold Comfort Farm (1995)
Tootsie (1982)
When Harry Met Sally (1989)
Little Miss Sunshine (2006)
It Happened One Night (1934)
Arsenic and Old Lace (1944)
Animal House (1978)
Modern Times (1936)
Airplane! (1980)
Big (1988)
Clue (1985)
Outrageous Fortune (1987)
The Daytrippers (1996)
Come September (1961)
American Dreamer (1984)
The Assassination Bureau (1969)
Pillow Talk (1959)
Silver Streak (1976)
Bullets Over Broadway (1994)
Foul Play (1978)
Bells are Ringing (1960)
All of Me (1984)
The Lady Eve (1941)
Paradise for Three (1938)
The Time of Their Lives (1946)
Saved! (2004)
The Women (1939)
Monkey Business (1952)
Fargo (1996)
Election (1999)
Everybody Does It (1949)
Blast from the Past (1999)
Groundhog Day (1993)
The Princess Bride (1987)
The Philadelphia Story (1940)
Death at a Funeral (2007)
The Birdcage (1996)
Sullivan’s Travels (1941)
Design for Living (1933)
The Awful Truth (1937)
Midnight Run (1988)
The Pink Panther (1963)
Working Girl (1988)
The Apartment (1960)
8 Women (2002)
Repo Man (1984)
Topper (1937)
My Man Godfrey (1936)
Clueless (1995)
In Bruges (2008)
Road Trip (2000)
Singin’ in the Rain (1952)
Miranda (1984)
Blithe Spirit (1945)
Mean Girls (2004)
Raising Arizona (1987)
Office Space (1999)
M*A*S*H (1970)
The Naked Gun (1988)
Trading Places (1983)

[Mike Troutman]

Would've found room for High Fidelity, Rushmore, Groundhog Day, In the loop, Knocked up, and of course blazing saddles and lebowski, but overall a better list than most.

[NATHANIEL R]

Joel - love the list. still need to see some of your favorites.

[Cesar Gaytan]

What i understand for "Best Comedies" is films in wich you laugh in most part of the movie and the tone is constant, not like drama/comedies in wich the serious and funny moments could feel apart one to another (a la Moulin Rouge!, Birdman etc.)

Consider that i can only count 30 films, the first 8 are my favorites by country in order of preference, the rest is totally random. As aditional note, excepting no. 2 animated films are considering that the language wich i hear it was latin spanish because the acting voice in México where i from is too good that turns a funny film into hilarious.

My list:
1. Bienvenido-Welcome (Gabriel Retes, 1994)
2. South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (Trey Parker, 1999)
3. Miracolo A Milano (Vittorio Da Sica, 1951)
4. Crimen Ferpecto (Alex de la Iglesia, 2004)
5. Le Dîner de Cons (Francis Veber, 1998)
6. Chicken Run (Peter Lord, Nick Park, 2000)
7. Ko To Tamo Peva (Slobodan Sijan, 1980)
8. A Canção de Lisboa (José Cottinelli Telmo, 1933)
9. Bullets Over Broadway (Woody Allen, 1994)
10. Death Becomes Her (Robert Zemeckis, 1992)
11. Matando Cabos (Alejandro Lozano, 2004)
12. Best in Show (Christopher Guest, 2000)
13. Tootsie (Sydney Pollack, 1982)
14. Delicatessen (Marc Caro, Jean-Pierre Jeunet, 1991)
15. Back to the Future (Robert Zemeckis, 1985)
16. Megamind (Tom McGrath, 2010)
17. Muertos de Risa (Alex de la Iglesia, 1999)
18. This Is Spinal Tap (Rob Reiner, 1984)
19. Election (Alexander Payne, 1999)
20. La Ley de Herodes (Luis Estrada, 1999)
21. Napoleon Dynamite (Jared Hess, 2004)
22. Who Framed Roger Rabbit (Robert Zemeckis, 1988)
23. Adiós Mundo Cruel (Jack Zagha Kababie, 2010)
24. Young Frankenstein (Mel Brooks, 1974)
25. Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit (Steve Box, Nick Park, 2005)
26. Singin´ in the Rain (Stanley Donen, Gene Kelly, 1952)
27. Mujeres al Borde de Un Ataque de Nervios (Pedro Almodóvar)
28. Small Time Crooks (Woody Allen, 2000)
29. Sólo Con Tu Pareja (Alfonso Cuarón, 1991)
30. Alice in Wonderland (Geronimi, Jackson, Luske, 1951)

[NATHANIEL R]

Cal - i'm not a Chaplin guy. Love Buster Keaton though.

[Gwen]

Very good list.
I'd put, respectively,
Dinner At Eight (1933)
Pillow Talk (1959)
I Married A Witch (1942)
Sullivan's Travels (1941)
Calamity Jane (1953) and
Seven Brides For Seven Brothers (1954)
in the place of
Waiting For Guffman (1997), The Court Jester (1956), Shakespeare In Love (1998), Inside Out (2015), Burn After Reading (2008) and American Hustle (2013).
And I prefer the original The Birdcage (1978).
More movie lists, please.

[cal roth]

My top ten

1 - Hatari!, Hawks
2 - The Gold Rush, Chaplin
3 - The Lady Eve, Sturges
4 - Bluebeard's Eighth Wife, Lubitsch
5 - Some Like it Hot, Wilder
6 - Moonstruck, Jewison
7- Toni Erdmann, Ade
8 - The Philadelphia Story, Cukor
9 - Manhattan Murder Mystery, Allen
10 - Le Million, Clair

Nathaniel, I've noticed you're not a Doris Day person either.

[NATHANIEL R]

Gwen & Cal -- ooh some good ones there (Le Million and Pillow Talk ) . See i knew I'd forget things.

[cal roth]

And Jerry Lewis (I forgot him myself!)

[James from Ames]

God bless you for that Fuckabees gif. Naomi was a treasure in this. I still occasionally pull up her "Amish bag lady" commercials and giggle.

[Sonja]

Nice list, Nat.
I'd add The Party (1968), Overboard (1987), Roxanne(1987) and Sister Act (1992) in my list.

[Jimmy]

I didn't go over this in great detail. But I think Mel Brooks is being egregiously overlooked....the producers, young Frankenstein, blazing saddles. Love the word "egregiously" - Julie Andrews said it at a pres conference when victor / Victoria did not get many tony nominations. And what about the three stooges????

[Guestguestguest]

Is "The Purple Rose of Cairo" not a comedy? My list would include (off the top of my head, and excluding dramedies and musicals): Ruggles of Red Gap, The Great Dictator, The Purple Rose of Cairo, O Brother Where Art Thou, Synecdoche NY, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Birdman, The Gold Rush, The General, It Happened One Night, Sullivan's Travels, Groundhog Day

[Johnny]

The universal snubbing of Four Lions (2004) round here is brutal.

[KJ]

I'd add Mean Girls and Shaun of the Dead

[Suzanne]

Pee Wee, Moonstruck, My Best Friend's Wedding, American Hustle, and The Grand Budapest Hotel were all top 10 choices for me that were conspicuously absent from the (very very masculine) BBC List. I think Clueless would be my #1.

[Me34]

Have you seen "Bring It On"? Seeing that you have some very recent comedies in your list ("Mean Girls" and "I ♥︎ Huckabees" even really high), I'd recommend it.

[NATHANIEL R]

Me34 - ARGH. i forgot Bring It On. It should definitely be on this list. I'm so proud of having it in my top ten in its original year