Honorable Mention: Hot Shots
This movie is limited to an honorable mention because while I did love it as a kid, I watched it again a few years back and was heartbroken to see that it wasn't funny anymore but just...stupid. That said, I just can't deny how many laughs it got out of me until I was 20. Perhaps the over-saturation of parody movies over the last decade ruined Hot Shots for me, or maybe it was always this stupid and I didn't realize it.
#7: Men In Black
Oh, the days prior to Men In Black II. The first MIB had great characters, wonderfully humorous jokes and a fairly short runtime so the film didn't overstay its welcome. Tommy Lee Jones and Will Smith play so well off of each other in this one and Vincent D'Onofrio is such an entertaining villain to watch.
#6: Ernest Goes To Jail
I'm pretty sure my brother still has the VHS of this kicking around. This was easily my favorite of the Ernest films and one of my overall favorites as a kid. It turns out that there's a guy in a local jail who looks exactly like Ernest (Jim Varney). While visiting the jail as part of his jury duty, the lookalike knocks out Ernest and trades their wardrobes so that now Ernest is the one on death row. It's been a while since I've seen this movie, so it'd be interesting to see if it still holds up after all these years.
#5: Ace Ventura - The Series
I couldn't decide which one I like more. This was the movie that introduced me to Jim Carrey and with the hi jinx that the first film had as well as a successful amount of laughs, it was no surprise that a sequel came along that kept the laughs rolling. I think my favorite part is when Ace is inspecting the Miami Dolphins player's rings the most difficult ways imaginable while Aerosmith's "Line Up" plays along. The cartoon series that followed wasn't too bad either.
#4: National Lampoon's Animal House
Any list about best comedies ever made needs to have this film on it. There's so many things that I love about this movie. The hazing rituals, Donald Sutherland getting baked with his students, John Belushi's overall presence, accidentally killing one of the faculty member's horses (no word of a lie, I almost pissed my pants I was laughing so hard), the list goes on. Considered by many to be the greatest education-themed comedy ever made.
#3: The Blues Brothers
Hey everyone! A move based on an SNL skit that doesn't suck ass! Quite possibly the greatest musical ever made, this vulgar comedy is a tale of holy redemption as Jake & Elwood Blues (John Belushi & Dan Aykroyd) are on a mission from God to prevent their old orphanage from being closed down. As you watch this movie, I want you to keep in mind that all the carnage shown starts by running a yellow light. Can't help but wonder how many drivers behaved more on the road after seeing this movie.
#2: The Grumpy Old Men Series
This series steals the #2 spot from The Blues Brothers only by having a sequel that holds up to the first one. My parents/grandparents may know the legendary pairing of Jack Lemon & Walter Matthau from The Odd Couple, but I know their chemistry from these films. These two play off each other so well that they were cast in other films as similar characters in Out To Sea and it renewed interest in their past pairing, giving us The Odd Couple II. The inclusion of Burgess Meridith as Jack Lemon's dad just adds comedic gold that is already running rampant in this series.
#1: Ghostbusters
Do I really have to explain this? I've said it time and time again, but Ghostbusters is the perfect comedy. It's played for laughs, but there's still elements of action, romance and horror within. This movie is a mixed bag of genres and Goddamn, do I love this movie. The writing is sharp, the movie is brilliantly casted, the actors play so well off of each other & even though this movie came out 26 years ago, I still laugh my ass off every time I watch this movie. This movie is a must watch on any occasion. Halloween? Christmas? Whacking Day? Watch Ghostbusters.
I was never a fan of the Hot Shot movies. I thought the first was fairly stupid, and never even made it through the second. Men in Black to this day remains one of my all-time favorite movies. The sequel sucked big time, but even then it still had a couple redeeming factors. Think I'll go watch them right now actually...
ReplyDeleteAll Ernest movie rock, though Scared Stupid at Saves Christmas are my favorites, with Goes to Jail in a very close second.
And I've never seen any o the others, except Ghostbusters but enough has been said on that throughout net that nothing I can say will add anything of value beyond 'it rocks hard' lol.