BBC's List of 100 Greatest Comedies (1 Viewer)

[TJPC]

I can't understand "Pulp Fiction" at all. A friend I didn't want to offend kept raving about it and lent me his copy. I didn't know what was going on. Graphic violence from very unappealing people takes place between events that have characters die, then are seen alive again?

I knew I'd be quizzed, so I watched the entire thing, but I was only able to watch 20 minutes at a time over several days. I've never wanted to put myself through watching it again.

 

[MrChris58]

The BBC asked 253 film critics – 118 women and 135 men – from 52 countries and six continents a simple question: “What do you think are the 10 best comedies of all time?” Films from any country, and made anytime since cinema was invented, were eligible, and there was no fixed definition of what makes a movie a comedy.

1. Some Like It Hot (Billy Wilder, 1959)
2. Dr. Strangelove (Stanley Kubrick, 1964)
3. Annie Hall (Woody Allen, 1977)
4. Groundhog Day (Harold Ramis, 1993)
5. Duck Soup (Leo McCarey, 1933)
6. Life of Brian (Terry Jones, 1979)
7. Airplane! (Jim Abrahams, David & Jerry Zucker, 1980)
8. Playtime (Jacques Tati, 1967)
9. This Is Spinal Tap (Rob Reiner, 1984)
10. The General (Clyde Bruckman and Buster Keaton, 1926)
11. The Big Lebowski (Joel and Ethan Coen, 1998)
12. Modern Times (Charlie Chaplin, 1936)
13. To Be or Not To Be (Ernst Lubitsch, 1942)
14. His Girl Friday (Howard Hawks, 1940)
15. Monty Python and the Holy Grail (Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones, 1975)
16. The Great Dictator (Charlie Chaplin, 1940)
17. Bringing Up Baby (Howard Hawks, 1938)
18. Sherlock Jr (Buster Keaton, 1924)
19. The Lady Eve (Preston Sturges, 1941)
20. Blazing Saddles (Mel Brooks, 1974)
21. City Lights (Charlie Chaplin, 1931)
22. Young Frankenstein (Mel Brooks, 1974)
23. The Party (Blake Edwards, 1968)
24. Withnail and I (Bruce Robinson, 1987)
25. The Gold Rush (Charlie Chaplin, 1925)
26. Mon Oncle (Jacques Tati, 1958)
27. The Apartment (Billy Wilder, 1960)
28. It Happened One Night (Frank Capra, 1934)
29. When Harry Met Sally… (Rob Reiner, 1989)
30. Monsieur Hulot’s Holiday (Jacques Tati, 1953)
31. Tootsie (Sydney Pollack, 1982)
32. Raising Arizona (Joel and Ethan Coen, 1987)
33. Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (Adam McKay, 2004)
34. Clueless (Amy Heckerling, 1995)
35. Singin’ in the Rain (Stanley Donen, Gene Kelly, 1952)
36. A Fish Called Wanda (Charles Crichton, John Cleese, 1988)
37. Sullivan’s Travels (Preston Sturges, 1941)
38. The Philadelphia Story (George Cukor, 1940)
39. A Night at the Opera (Sam Wood, Edmund Goulding, 1935)
40. The Producers (Mel Brooks, 1967)
41. Borat: Cultural Learnings … (Larry Charles, 2006)
42. The Awful Truth (Leo McCarey, 1937)
43. M*A*S*H (Robert Altman, 1970)
44. Bridesmaids (Paul Feig, 2011)
45. Big Deal on Madonna Street (Mario Monicelli, 1958)
46. Pulp Fiction (Quentin Tarantino, 1994)
47. Animal House (John Landis, 1978)
48. Trouble in Paradise (Ernst Lubitsch, 1932)
49. The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie (Luis Bunuel, 1972)
50. Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (Pedro Almodovar, 1988)
51. Seven Chances (Buster Keaton, 1925)
52. My Man Godfrey (Gregory La Cava, 1936)
53. The Blues Brothers (John Landis, 1980)
54. Harold and Maude (Hal Ashby, 1971)
55. Best in Show (Christopher Guest, 2000)
56. Broadcast News (James L Brooks, 1987)
57. Mean Girls (Mark Waters, 2004)
58. Zelig (Woody Allen, 1983)
59. Toni Erdmann (Maren Ade, 2016)
60. Shaun of the Dead (Edgar Wright, 2004)
61. Team America: World Police (Trey Parker, 2004)
62. What We Do in the Shadows (Jemaine Clement, Taika Waititi, 2014)
63. Arsenic and Old Lace (Frank Capra, 1944)
64. Step Brothers (Adam McKay, 2008)
65. Caddyshack (Harold Ramis, 1980)
66. Hot Fuzz (Edgar Wright, 2007)
67. Sons of the Desert (William A Seiter, 1933)
68. Ninotchka (Ernst Lubitsch, 1939)
69. Love and Death (Woody Allen, 1975)
70. In the Loop (Armando Iannucci, 2009)
71. The Royal Tenenbaums (Wes Anderson, 2001)
72. The Naked Gun (David Zucker, 1988)
73. The Nutty Professor (Jerry Lewis, 1963)
74. Trading Places (John Landis, 1983)
75. The Palm Beach Story (Preston Sturges, 1942)
76. Design for Living (Ernst Lubitsch, 1933)
77. Divorce Italian Style (Pietro Germi, 1961)
78. The Princess Bride (Rob Reiner, 1987)
79. The Dinner Game (Francis Veber, 1998)
80. Office Space (Mike Judge, 1999)
81. There’s Something About Mary (Bobby Farrelly, Peter Farrelly, 1998)
82. Top Secret! (Jim Abrahams, David & Jerry Zucker, 1984)
83. Safety Last! (Fred C Newmeyer and Sam Taylor, 1923)
84. Waiting for Guffman (Christopher Guest, 1996)
85. Amarcord (Federico Fellini, 1973)
86. Kind Hearts and Coronets (Robert Hamer, 1949)
87. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (Howard Hawks, 1953)
88. Zoolander (Ben Stiller, 2001)
89. Daisies (Vera Chytilová, 1966)
90. A New Leaf (Elaine May, 1971)
91. What’s Up, Doc? (Peter Bogdanovich, 1972)
92. The Exterminating Angel (Luis Buñuel, 1962)
93. South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (Trey Parker, 1999)
94. Rushmore (Wes Anderson, 1998)
95. Ghostbusters (Ivan Reitman, 1984)
96. Born Yesterday (George Cukor, 1950)
97. The Music Box (James Parrott, 1932)
98. The Hangover (Todd Phillips, 2009)
99. The Jerk (Carl Reiner, 1979)
100. (tie) The King of Comedy (Martin Scorsese, 1982)
101. (tied for 100) The Ladies Man (Jerry Lewis, 1961)

Key:
1920s
1930s
1940s
1950s
1960s
1970s
1980s
1990s
2000s
2010s

How many have you seen? What should have made the list? What shouldn't have?

Thanks for sharing the list. I have seen at least 30 of these films. Now I know what to put on my bucket list!

 

[Blimpoy06]

Nothing by Blake Edwards. I would thought at least one of the Pink Panther films or The Party.

 

[Vic Pardo]

Nothing by Blake Edwards. I would thought at least one of the Pink Panther films or The Party.

The Party is on the list at #23.

I'm surprised that the list has no W.C. Fields movies. He's my all-time favorite comic actor and I would include at least half-a-dozen of his films, including YOU CAN'T CHEAT AN HONEST MAN, THE BANK DICK, and NEVER GIVE A SUCKER AN EVEN BREAK.

No Bob Hope comedies either. ROAD TO UTOPIA and CASANOVA'S BIG NIGHT are among the Hope comedies I'd include.

Also stunned at the omission of IT'S A MAD, MAD, MAD, MAD WORLD.

Also, no Hong Kong comedies. Sammo Hung's MILLIONAIRES' EXPRESS, one of my favorites, was inspired by IT'S A MAD, MAD, MAD, MAD WORLD. Or something by Jackie Chan? I'm thinking of MIRACLES (aka MR. CANTON AND LADY ROSE), a remake of Frank Capra's POCKETFUL OF MIRACLES.

I counted 69 films that I've seen on the list, but very few from the last 25 years.

 

[B-ROLL]

The BBC asked 253 film critics – 118 women and 135 men – from 52 countries and six continents a simple question: “What do you think are the 10 best comedies of all time?” Films from any country, and made anytime since cinema was invented, were eligible, and there was no fixed definition of what makes a movie a comedy.

1. Some Like It Hot (Billy Wilder, 1959)
2. Dr. Strangelove (Stanley Kubrick, 1964)
3. Annie Hall (Woody Allen, 1977)
4. Groundhog Day (Harold Ramis, 1993)
5. Duck Soup (Leo McCarey, 1933)
6. Life of Brian (Terry Jones, 1979)
7. Airplane! (Jim Abrahams, David & Jerry Zucker, 1980)
8. Playtime (Jacques Tati, 1967)
9. This Is Spinal Tap (Rob Reiner, 1984)
10. The General (Clyde Bruckman and Buster Keaton, 1926)
11. The Big Lebowski (Joel and Ethan Coen, 1998)
12. Modern Times (Charlie Chaplin, 1936)
13. To Be or Not To Be (Ernst Lubitsch, 1942)
14. His Girl Friday (Howard Hawks, 1940)
15. Monty Python and the Holy Grail (Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones, 1975)
16. The Great Dictator (Charlie Chaplin, 1940)
17. Bringing Up Baby (Howard Hawks, 1938)
18. Sherlock Jr (Buster Keaton, 1924)
19. The Lady Eve (Preston Sturges, 1941)
20. Blazing Saddles (Mel Brooks, 1974)
21. City Lights (Charlie Chaplin, 1931)
22. Young Frankenstein (Mel Brooks, 1974)
23. The Party (Blake Edwards, 1968)
24. Withnail and I (Bruce Robinson, 1987)
25. The Gold Rush (Charlie Chaplin, 1925)
26. Mon Oncle (Jacques Tati, 1958)
27. The Apartment (Billy Wilder, 1960)
28. It Happened One Night (Frank Capra, 1934)
29. When Harry Met Sally… (Rob Reiner, 1989)
30. Monsieur Hulot’s Holiday (Jacques Tati, 1953)
31. Tootsie (Sydney Pollack, 1982)
32. Raising Arizona (Joel and Ethan Coen, 1987)
33. Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (Adam McKay, 2004)
34. Clueless (Amy Heckerling, 1995)
35. Singin’ in the Rain (Stanley Donen, Gene Kelly, 1952)
36. A Fish Called Wanda (Charles Crichton, John Cleese, 1988)
37. Sullivan’s Travels (Preston Sturges, 1941)
38. The Philadelphia Story (George Cukor, 1940)
39. A Night at the Opera (Sam Wood, Edmund Goulding, 1935)
40. The Producers (Mel Brooks, 1967)
41. Borat: Cultural Learnings … (Larry Charles, 2006)
42. The Awful Truth (Leo McCarey, 1937)
43. M*A*S*H (Robert Altman, 1970)
44. Bridesmaids (Paul Feig, 2011)
45. Big Deal on Madonna Street (Mario Monicelli, 1958)
46. Pulp Fiction (Quentin Tarantino, 1994)
47. Animal House (John Landis, 1978)
48. Trouble in Paradise (Ernst Lubitsch, 1932)
49. The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie (Luis Bunuel, 1972)
50. Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (Pedro Almodovar, 1988)
51. Seven Chances (Buster Keaton, 1925)
52. My Man Godfrey (Gregory La Cava, 1936)
53. The Blues Brothers (John Landis, 1980)
54. Harold and Maude (Hal Ashby, 1971)
55. Best in Show (Christopher Guest, 2000)
56. Broadcast News (James L Brooks, 1987)
57. Mean Girls (Mark Waters, 2004)
58. Zelig (Woody Allen, 1983)
59. Toni Erdmann (Maren Ade, 2016)
60. Shaun of the Dead (Edgar Wright, 2004)
61. Team America: World Police (Trey Parker, 2004)
62. What We Do in the Shadows (Jemaine Clement, Taika Waititi, 2014)
63. Arsenic and Old Lace (Frank Capra, 1944)
64. Step Brothers (Adam McKay, 2008)
65. Caddyshack (Harold Ramis, 1980)
66. Hot Fuzz (Edgar Wright, 2007)
67. Sons of the Desert (William A Seiter, 1933)
68. Ninotchka (Ernst Lubitsch, 1939)
69. Love and Death (Woody Allen, 1975)
70. In the Loop (Armando Iannucci, 2009)
71. The Royal Tenenbaums (Wes Anderson, 2001)
72. The Naked Gun (David Zucker, 1988)
73. The Nutty Professor (Jerry Lewis, 1963)
74. Trading Places (John Landis, 1983)
75. The Palm Beach Story (Preston Sturges, 1942)
76. Design for Living (Ernst Lubitsch, 1933)
77. Divorce Italian Style (Pietro Germi, 1961)
78. The Princess Bride (Rob Reiner, 1987)
79. The Dinner Game (Francis Veber, 1998)
80. Office Space (Mike Judge, 1999)
81. There’s Something About Mary (Bobby Farrelly, Peter Farrelly, 1998)
82. Top Secret! (Jim Abrahams, David & Jerry Zucker, 1984)
83. Safety Last! (Fred C Newmeyer and Sam Taylor, 1923)
84. Waiting for Guffman (Christopher Guest, 1996)
85. Amarcord (Federico Fellini, 1973)
86. Kind Hearts and Coronets (Robert Hamer, 1949)
87. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (Howard Hawks, 1953)
88. Zoolander (Ben Stiller, 2001)
89. Daisies (Vera Chytilová, 1966)
90. A New Leaf (Elaine May, 1971)
91. What’s Up, Doc? (Peter Bogdanovich, 1972)
92. The Exterminating Angel (Luis Buñuel, 1962)
93. South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (Trey Parker, 1999)
94. Rushmore (Wes Anderson, 1998)
95. Ghostbusters (Ivan Reitman, 1984)
96. Born Yesterday (George Cukor, 1950)
97. The Music Box (James Parrott, 1932)
98. The Hangover (Todd Phillips, 2009)
99. The Jerk (Carl Reiner, 1979)
100. (tie) The King of Comedy (Martin Scorsese, 1982)
101. (tied for 100) The Ladies Man (Jerry Lewis, 1961)

Key:
1920s
1930s
1940s
1950s
1960s
1970s
1980s
1990s
2000s
2010s

How many have you seen? What should have made the list? What shouldn't have?

22 movies on the list I haven't seen but I have about 10 of them on bluray but haven't watched

Some on the list I would agree with but to quote # 41 (which I fast forwarded through about a third of the end of it ...) the some of the others "Not so much "

 

[Blimpoy06]

The Party is on the list at #23.

My bad. Looked at it twice and still missed it. Thanks!

 

[gfrancis0]

I think I have seen about half of them, too lazy to get an accurate count lol. This list could obviously be debated forever, but most of my "greatests" are on the list. I agree that Pulp Fiction is NOT a comedy, not even close. Just because there is some dark humor in a movie doesn't make it a comedy, but it is still an absolutely awesome movie. If Pulp Fiction is a comedy then so is Snatch, which is actually even more of a comedy if you ask me. Zoolander, Step Brothers and Anchorman on the list without including Dumb and Dumber, really? They are all pretty equal in their low brow comedic appeal. Glad to see Borat, Best in Show and Spinal Tap, the mockumentary style can be very funny when done well. Tootsie on the list but not Mrs, Doubtfire?
Now as for exclusions, I also agree that Mad Mad Mad Mad World should definitely be on the list. Is there one Jim Carrey (comedic genius in my book) movie on the list? Me Myself and Irene, Liar Liar and Ace Ventura were all hilarious, even during multiple viewings. Which brings me to Napolean Dynamite, the only movie I can think of that is completely stupid the first time you watch it and an absolute laugh riot from the second viewing on, it should be on the list just for that reason lol. I would suggest that the best comedies should continue to be funny time every time you watch them. I also think that at least one of the Grumpy Old Men movies should be included. My two dark horses are Big Trouble (2002), which is a great ensemble crime comedy, and Go (1999), because of its unique style in telling of a very funny story from different points of view.

 

[gfrancis0]

I also agree that the omission of Ferris Bueller, Natl Lampoon Vacation, Risky Business and Planes Trains and Automobiles is VERY wrong if they are going to include Clueless, Step Brothers, Anchorman and Zoolander.

 

[gfrancis0]

Oh yeah, one more, BASKetball is not flawless by any means, but it gets my vote for funniest "men's comedy", especially for anyone who is a pro sports fan.

 

[gfrancis0]

I just noticed that Stripes is not on the list!!!

 

[cadavra]

The Party is on the list at #23.

I'm surprised that the list has no W.C. Fields movies. He's my all-time favorite comic actor and I would include at least half-a-dozen of his films, including YOU CAN'T CHEAT AN HONEST MAN, THE BANK DICK, and NEVER GIVE A SUCKER AN EVEN BREAK.

No Bob Hope comedies either. ROAD TO UTOPIA and CASANOVA'S BIG NIGHT are among the Hope comedies I'd include.

Also stunned at the omission of IT'S A MAD, MAD, MAD, MAD WORLD.

Also, no Hong Kong comedies. Sammo Hung's MILLIONAIRES' EXPRESS, one of my favorites, was inspired by IT'S A MAD, MAD, MAD, MAD WORLD. Or something by Jackie Chan? I'm thinking of MIRACLES (aka MR. CANTON AND LADY ROSE), a remake of Frank Capra's POCKETFUL OF MIRACLES.

I counted 69 films that I've seen on the list, but very few from the last 25 years.

And yet somehow they found room for three Will Ferrell films! This list is garbage.

Mike S.

 

[Mike Frezon]

I just noticed that Stripes is not on the list!!!

Good catch, Greg! Another Harold Ramis classic. It should be on the list (if for no other reason, than) for Ramis' reaction shots to John Candy's "story" during the group's first sit-down with Sergeant Hulka!

 

[sleroi]

I would call Pulp Fiction more of a comedy than Mrs. Doubtfire. I didn't laugh once, and I thought including a vibrator joke in a family movie was in pretty bad taste. It was a drama about divorce, and not a very good one at that.

Now pulp fiction, the whole Bruce Willis episode, from the absurd Christopher Walken speech to the gimp; Harvey Keitel's whole bit, including an insert shot of his list with "no head" written down. There was more than a little dark humor. This was a comedy with some great dramatic moments mixed in.

 

[Robert Crawford]

And yet somehow they found room for three Will Ferrell films! This list is garbage.

Mike S.

Why don't you tell us how you really feel about this list.