In The Pursuit Of Laughter: My Comedy Canon
A list of comedy films that made me laugh, and that I would happily watch again. I'll be constantly adding to this, and possibly removing some if they don't hold up well on a second viewing. There are obviously a lot of great, well-known films missing, as well as a general dearth of anything made before 1970, but oh well, I'll get there eventually. Also, I really need to start watching more foreign comedies. Comedy is pretty subjective so there's no point complaining if you see something you hate (trust me, there are a lot of 'bad' films on here). Make a recommendation if you want though. In rough alphabetical order.
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- DirectorGil JungerStarsHeath LedgerJulia StilesJoseph Gordon-LevittA high-school boy, Cameron, cannot date Bianca until her anti-social older sister, Kat, has a boyfriend. So, Cameron pays a mysterious boy, Patrick, to charm Kat.
- DirectorsCameron CairnesColin CairnesStarsOliver AcklandPaul BlackwellWard EveraardtReg and Lindsay run an organic fertiliser business. They need a fresh supply of their "secret ingredient" to process through the meat grinder. Reg comes across two guys and a girl with a broken-down vehicle on their way to a music festival.
- DirectorsClyde GeronimiHamilton LuskeWolfgang ReithermanStarsRod TaylorBetty Lou GersonJ. Pat O'MalleyWhen a litter of Dalmatian puppies are abducted by the minions of Cruella De Vil, the owners must find them before she uses them for a diabolical fashion statement.
- DirectorsPhil LordChristopher MillerStarsJonah HillChanning TatumIce CubeA pair of underachieving cops are sent back to a local high school to blend in and bring down a synthetic drug ring.
- DirectorsPhil LordChristopher MillerStarsChanning TatumJonah HillIce CubeAfter making their way through high school (twice), big changes are in store for officers Schmidt and Jenko when they go deep undercover at a local college.
- DirectorRuben FleischerStarsJesse EisenbergDanny McBrideNick SwardsonTwo fledgling criminals kidnap a pizza delivery guy, strap a bomb to his chest, and inform him that he has mere hours to rob a bank or else...
- DirectorJudd ApatowStarsSteve CarellCatherine KeenerPaul RuddGoaded by his buddies, a nerdy guy who's never "done the deed" only finds the pressure mounting when he meets a single mother.
- DirectorWalter HillStarsNick NolteEddie MurphyAnnette O'TooleA hard-nosed cop reluctantly teams up with a wise-cracking criminal temporarily paroled to him in order to track down a killer.
- DirectorJonathan LevineStarsJoseph Gordon-LevittSeth RogenAnna KendrickInspired by a true story, a comedy centered on a 27-year-old guy who learns of his cancer diagnosis and his subsequent struggle to beat the disease.
- DirectorPeter SegalStarsAdam SandlerDrew BarrymoreRob SchneiderHenry Roth is a man afraid of commitment until he meets the beautiful Lucy. They hit it off and Henry think he's finally found the girl of his dreams until discovering she has short-term memory loss and forgets him the next day.
- DirectorMarc WebbStarsZooey DeschanelJoseph Gordon-LevittGeoffrey ArendAfter being dumped by the girl he believes to be his soulmate, hopeless romantic Tom Hansen reflects on their relationship to try and figure out where things went wrong and how he can win her back.
- DirectorRoger CormanStarsDick MillerBarboura MorrisAntony CarboneA dimwitted busboy at a beatnik cafe passes off a cat he accidentally killed and covered in plaster as a sculpture, prompting a demand for more art that compels him to commit murders.
- DirectorsJohn LasseterAndrew StantonStarsKevin SpaceyDave FoleyJulia Louis-DreyfusA misfit ant, looking for "warriors" to save his colony from greedy grasshoppers, recruits a group of bugs that turn out to be an inept circus troupe.
- DirectorBob ClarkStarsPeter BillingsleyMelinda DillonDarren McGavinIn the 1940s, a young boy named Ralphie Parker attempts to convince his parents, teacher, and Santa Claus that a Red Ryder Range 200 Shot BB gun really is the perfect Christmas gift.
- DirectorBob ClarkStarsCharles GrodinKieran CulkinMary SteenburgenIn this sequel to A Christmas Story (1983), it is now summer in the Parker family and the usual number of events is happening in their separate lives.
- DirectorSam WoodStarsGroucho MarxChico MarxHarpo MarxA veterinarian posing as a doctor teams with a singer and his friends as they struggle to save an upstate New York sanitarium with the help of a misfit racehorse.
- DirectorJohn WatersStarsTracey UllmanChris IsaakSelma BlairAn uptight, middle-aged, repressed woman turns into a sex addict after getting hit on the head, and she then falls into an underground subculture of sex addicts in suburban Baltimore.
- DirectorsCrispian MillsChris HopewellStarsSimon PeggPaul FreemanAmara KaranA crime novelist whose research on Victorian serial killers has turned him into a paranoid wreck must confront his worst fears when a film executive takes a sudden interest in his movie script.
- DirectorWoody AllenStarsWoody AllenMia FarrowJosé FerrerIn the early 20th century, wacky inventor Andrew Hobbs and his wife Adrian invite two other couples for a weekend party at their romantic summer house in the countryside in this paean to Ingmar Bergman's Smiles of a Summer Night.
- DirectorChristopher GuestStarsChristopher GuestEugene LevyMichael McKeanMockumentary captures the reunion of 1960s folk trio the Folksmen as they prepare for a show at The Town Hall to memorialize a recently deceased concert promoter.
- DirectorJohn FortenberryStarsChris KattanWill FerrellRaquel GardnerTwo dim-witted brothers dream of owning their own dance club or at least getting into the coolest and most exclusive club in town, The Roxbury.
- DirectorGillies MacKinnonStarsSteve MartinGabriel ByrneLaura LinneyHis life was emotionally closed off from the world, until an orphaned baby showed up at his house.
- DirectorsChris WeitzPaul WeitzStarsHugh GrantNicholas HoultToni ColletteWill, who attends single parent meetings to woo women, meets Marcus, a troubled 12-year-old boy. As they become friends, Will learns to be responsible while he helps Marcus with his studies.
- DirectorAlexander PayneStarsJack NicholsonHope DavisDermot MulroneyNewly retired from the insurance industry, Omaha native Warren Schmidt embarks on an RV journey to his estranged daughter Jeannie's wedding in Denver Colorado, only to discover more about himself and life than he ever expected.
- DirectorSteve PinkStarsJustin LongJonah HillBlake LivelyA high school slacker who's rejected by every school he applies to opts to create his own institution of higher learning, the South Harmon Institute of Technology, on a rundown piece of property near his hometown.
