We all have those days where we need to escape reality and get away from our busy and hectic lives. One of the ways that many people do that is by reading a book or by watching a good movie. One of the best kinds of movies to watch when you are having a bad time is a comedy movie. This kind of movie is the one that will make us laugh when we want to cry, and can help us to just unwind after a stressful day.
The following is a list of some of the most well known and loved comedy movies that are guaranteed to lighten even your darkest moods. This list of the top 25 funniest movies ever made ranks movies based on their comedic level, acting, script, direction and popularity. Take a look at these 25 movies and give us your opinions on why these movies should or should not be on the list. We welcome all comments and suggestions, please comment intelligently. If you think another comedy movie belongs on this list, please list the movie and give a reason to support your claim.
25 Films That Will Lighten Your Day:
1. Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964) - is the story of General Jack Ripper, who after going mad, decides to use his forces to bomb the USSR, who he thinks are contaminating the “precious bodily fluids” of the American People. It takes the work of both the Soviet and American leaders to try and divert this crisis and there is only one man that Gen. Ripper will talk too. If he can't stop him, the Soviets say they have a “doomsday device” that they will trigger when they are attacked, that will destroy the world and all life on the planet!
2. Modern Times (1936) - is the last 'silent' film by Charlie Chaplin. It has sound effects but it's not a “talkie” like the other movies being made at the time. It shows Chaplin going against “modern times” and the “machine age”. He is hooked up to one of these new feeding machines and then suffers from a nervous breakdown. After he is himself again, he is arrested when he is found running with a red flag that he was trying to return to someone. While being arrested, he meets a girl who was arrested for stealing bread, and the movie shows the two of them in a series of mishaps having to do with this “modern time” that they must learn to live in.
3. Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975) - is the story of King Arther and some of his knights trying to find the Holy Grail that is located in Castle Arrrghhh because God, who seemed to be grumpy, told them that they should. On their journey, the stories of the different knights and how they got their names (ie Sir Lancelot the Brave and Sir Robin the Not-Quite-As-Brave as Sir Lancelot). Almost all of the knights die along the way, in tragic, yet ridiculous ways. In the end, they find the Castle, but run across some French men who, earlier in the movie taunt them and they won't let them in the Castle where the Grail is at.
4. The Sting (1973) - is the story of how small-time thief, Johnny Hooker steals from a big-time crime boss and gets his partner and mentor, Luther, killed. After the death of his partner, Hooker finds one of the former partners contacts to help him even the score with the crime boss who took his partner away from him. In order to get back at the murdering crime boss, they must focus on their long term plan of taking away an obscene amount of money from him, while at the same time avoiding death and other thieves who want in on the action.
5. A Christmas Story (1983) - is the story of a small boy, Ralphie, who tries to convince his parents, his teachers, and Santa that a Red Ryder BB gun is the perfect gift for the 1940's child. The nine year old, must deal with his little brother, a school bully and the constant response of “you'll shoot your eye out” while trying to convince his folk to get him the BB gun for Christmas. After he finally confront the school bully, and beats him up, he is worried that he will never get what he wants for Christmas. But he may have given up on his goal a little to early.
6. Bringing Up Baby (1938) - is the story of an heiress who decides she wants the attention of a handsome paleontologist and who uses her pet leopard, Baby, to get his attention. The two have a series of misadventures together that include a yuppie stealing a priceless bone and burying it, a jealous finance, and a rich and disapproving aunt. On top of all of that, they must deal with a case of mistaken identity and a vicious leopard that is not the beloved, Baby.
7. Young Frankenstein (1974) - is the story of the grandson of Dr. Victor Frankinstein, who is a very famous ad brilliant brain surgeon, and how, after he inherits his grandfathers castle, he repeats his grandfathers experiments and creates a “monster”. He does so with the help of the sexy lab assistant, Inga and the grandson of Igor, Igor. After a while, things get pretty silly and a series of misadventures occur when the new creation escapes the castle.
8. The Great Dictator (1940) - is the satire of Hitler's take over of Germany. When a man, who was in the armed services during the first World War, starts up his old barber shop in a Jewish ghetto, he gets into trouble and then is bailed out by his old friend who helps him get his memory back. When a dictator, who look a lot like the barber, tries to take over the world and the barber and other Jews are trying to escape, he gets mistaken for the leader, and has an opportunity to change the history of his country. Millions of people await what this man has to say because of a case of mistaken identity. What will he do?
9. The Gold Rush (1925) - is the story of a lone prospector who travels up to Alaska during the gold rush, but on his way to finding riches, finds the amazing, Georgia. The movie is about him trying to win her heart by using his special charm. He leaves his mark wherever he goes, and in an up roaring comedy changes the lives of all the people that he meets.
10. The Court Jester (1956) – is the story of a lowly valet who masquerades as a king's court jester in order to over throw him because he is not the rightful King of England. In the process, he falls for the King's daughter which makes the effort even more complex and leads to several funny situations.
11. A Fish Called Wanda (1988) - is the story of an attractive American woman, Wanda, who brings her lover, Otto, to England in order to pair up with George and Ken to steal $20 million worth of diamonds. She and Otto then try to double-cross George and get all of the diamonds for themselves, but then discover that right before he is put in jail, he moved all of the diamonds to a new hiding spot. In order to find the new location, Wanda attempts to use her powers of seduction to try and get George attorney to tell her where they are now located and that's when the hilarity really begins.
12. Kung Fu Hustle (2004) - is the story of a wannabe Kung Fu master/gangster, who desires to be a member of the notorious “Axe Gang” that controls the area of the Chinese town where the movie takes place. After this Wannabe gangster, Sing, and a friend of his try and fail to pull a fast one on a barber, the “Axe Gang” gets involved, and the small part of town that they don't already control is put in their path. Sing, in the end, must decide if he is going to join the gang that he wanted to be a part of or to save the neighborhood that he has always been a part of.
13. Life of Brian (1979) - is the story of Brian, who was born in “the stable next door”to the one that the Savior was born in and who later joins an Anti-Roman political group and is mistaken for the Messiah. After no one believes he is not the Messiah, he reluctantly acts as one in this satire of past Biblical and religious movies. A series of hysterical misadventures leads to his eventual arrest and possible crucification.
14. Borat (2006) - is the story of the 6th most famous man in Kazakhstan, who is also a leading reporter that is sent on assignment from his government to learn about American culture. While staying in NY, he discovers Baywatch and Pam Anderson while taking a class on American humor. He decides that he is going to travel across the continental US in order to find her and try to get her to become his bride and go back to his home country with him. Along the way, he meets a colorful group of Americans, with whom he has hilarious encounters, and who show him the different aspects of culture in America.
15. This is Spinal Tap (1984) - is a satire of the Rock N Roll scene that takes the form of a documentary of a faux rock band. Spinal Tap is said to be the loudest rock band in the world and the movie focuses around their attempt at a comeback. The cameras follow the group as they tour around and head toward a crisis and the infamous affair connected with the 18-inch tall Stone Henge prop.
16. The Big Lebowski (1998) - is the story of “The Dude” Lebowski, who is essentially an amazing slacker, who is mistaken for a a millionaire Jeffrey Lebowski whose wife owes some bad people a lot of money. After “The Dude's” apartment is broken into and his rug is peed on by the gangsters who have made the mistake in identifying their target, “The Dude” sets out to the other Lebowski's home in order to get some retributions for his ruined rug. He is then coerced into helping the other Lebowski get his wife back, who was just kidnapped by the men she owed the large amount of money to. In this case of mistaken identity hilarity ensues while “The Dude” tries to save the other man's wife.
17. Ghost Busters (1984) - is the story of three men who lose the nice jobs at Columbia University and in order to pay the bills, buy an old fire station and start to use their individual skills to rid NY of the supernatural entities that haunt it. Along the way, they discover that the object of affection of one of the “Ghostbusters” is in danger when a demon called Zuul appears in her apartment. They then discover that the appearance of the Zuul means that an ancient Sumerian God is going to come come back. The Ghostbusters must save the Big Apple from the evil entity!
18. The Blues Brothers (1980) - is the story of how Jake and Elwood Blues try and save the only home that they have ever known from being repossessed by the bank due to the fact that the nuns who own it cannot pay the property taxes on it. The Blue's brother's arrange to get their old band back together to raise the money by playing a gig. Along the way, they seem to make more enemies than friends on their eleven day journey to save their old home. In this series of hilarious misadventures they end up actually get to play their gig, but will they be able to pay the taxes in time?
19. Animal House (1978) - is the story of how the Dean of Faber College attempts to get all of the members of one of the fraternities, Delta House kicked off the campus. The Dean tries to use the other fraternity on campus, which happens to be made up of snobby rich boys, in order to fulfill his goal. In this movie, both houses use a series of hysterical practical jokes in order to achieve their opposite goals. It all leads up to the dramatic Homecoming Parade that would never be forgotten.
20. Airplane (1980) - is a spoof of airplane disaster movies in which the crew and many passengers become fatally ill due to a virus spread through the food given on the flight. Hope is almost lost when Ted Striker, and ex-war pilot, is discovered to be one of the only passengers that is not ill and the only one that can land the plane safely. The characters are an assortment of odd people who tend to take every statement literally. All of the odd-ball jokes make this one of the most ridiculous and funny movies ever made.
21. The General (1926) - is the story of how Johnny Gray from the South must save his beloved train, “the General” that was taken by the enemy Union soldiers. On board was Johnny's only other love Annabell Lee, together they must recapture the train and stop the Union soldiers from following through with their plan to use the train to bring more troops and supplies down to destroy the Confederate Army.
22. Ferris Beuller’s Day Off (1986) - is the funny story of the most popular guy in schools “day off'. Ferris decides that he is not going to go to school, pretend to be sick, and convinces his best friend and girl friend to spend the day with him just “doing whatever [they] want”. They decide to leave their suburban neighborhood and head into the big city where they visit famous landmarks, sing in a parade and spend the day avoiding the Vice Principle of the school who is determined to catch them in the act of ditching school.
23. Shaun of the Dead (2004) - is the story of a man who is having a bad time in his life who gets dumped by his girlfriend and on the same day that he vows to turn his life around and win her back, a zombie apocalypse occurs. In order to prove he is not just a slacker and in order to save the woman he loves, Shaun decides to take on the Zombies and try and save everyone he can by taking them to the safest place he knows, the Winchester.
24. Blazing Saddles (1974) - is a movie set in the old racist west in a town that has just been given a new Sheriff who is Black. This shocks the townspeople, and there is a lot of talk about killing the man. The townspeople are unaware of the fact that the reason that they have this new Sheriff is to bring ruin to their town because it is the way of the progress of the railroad tracks that are being built. The Sheriff ends up helping the town to not be taken over and destroyed and becomes a beloved figure in the ultimate Western spoof.
25. Tropic Thunder (2008) - is the story about several actors who are filming a movie about soldiers in Vietnam. These actors are thrown in the middle of a real-life situation, that causes them to be attacked by drug dealers of the foreign country that they are shooting the film in. Now, they must be the soldiers that they were pretending to be. When one of their fellow actors, whose career is on the decline, is kidnapped, the others are forced to try and rescue him, but is there a chance that he won't want to be rescued?
