Top 10 Comedies On HBO Max In 2022
News - 12th Feb 2024
1. Best in Show
Christopher Guest's unique style of mockumentary lies in the dedication of his cast. Best in Show is home to the most hilarious group of actors in any of his films. Parker Posey, Michael Hitchcock and Hamilton Swan as Meg Swan and Hamilton Swan project their neuroses on their Weimaraners. Eugene Levy's Gerry Fleck, played by Catherine O'Hara, is outmatched by Cookie, his wife--the secret weapon in most Guest films. Harlan Pepper is a Southern gentleman who has no self-awareness but can name every kind of nuts. It is difficult to not laugh at his absurdities the more he talks. It might not be difficult to find the absurdity in something like the world dog shows, but there is no mocking tone to it, just the quirks and human nature. Jane Lynch, Bob Balaban and Jennifer Coolidge's deadpan delivery, along with Fred Willard, who is a sports announcer and has no knowledge of the subject they are discussing, elevate the medium and add a surprising dimension to their characters. A group of top performers creates a musical symphony.
2. The Great Dictator
Charlie Chaplin's first "talkie", a satirical comedy that he directed, produced, scored and starred in, was a biting satire. It featured a fascist despot with a striking resemblance and persecuted Jewish barber. This film proved that good satire can be very powerful. It was released while the United States was still at peace with Germany. This caused a greater public reaction and condemned the Nazis, Mussolini, antisemitism, fascism, and Mussolini. Chaplin later said that the film was impossible to make a year later due to the horrific events in the German concentration camps. Chaplin chose to play both the oppressed and the tyrant, which was a brilliant choice. It also highlights the terrifying but unavoidable fact that all of us contain some of each character. This film is timely for our time and worth catching up on.
3. Coming to America
This movie would be one of the most memorable comedies ever made if it only contained the barbershop scenes in My-T-Sharp. Eddie Murphy and Arsenio hall teamed up to create a classic. Murphy plays the role of Prince Akeem, a fictional African country of Zamunda. He travels to America to escape his arranged marriage to find true love (in Queens). Akeem is able to see all the great things about black America. But the clever satirical twist? The black preacher (via Hall, the legendary Reverend Brown), club scene, barbershop, hip hop culture and Soul Glo are all there. The Coming to America experience is elevated to a new level with cameos by actors such as Cuba Gooding Jr. Samuel L. Jackson, Louie Anderson and Murphy's Trading Places stars Don Ameche, Ralph Bellamy, and Louie Anderson. This story about a prince who just wants to be loved and laughs is an excellent tribute to New York City.
4. The Philadelphia Story
Can you believe that Katharine Hepburn was once known as "box office poison" in Hollywood? After a string of failures, this Broadway adaptation was an opportunity to get her career back on the right track. Her portrayal of Tracy Lord, the icy heiress, in this "remarriage comedy" is an act of genius. Cary Grant plays her ex-ex, and she is a great foil. Ruth Hussey and Jimmy Stewart round out the cast of reporters disguised in not-so-clever ways. The movie is an absolute delight and the script is brilliant.
5. Caddyshack
The poster on the left shows four faces. All of them are equally important to Caddyshack’s continued popularity. Caddyshack boasts one of the most memorable comedy casts in history. You have an all-time great comedy when you add in the sharp script by Doug Kenney, National Lampoon founder, and the amiably shaggy direction of Harold Ramis.
6. Friday
Straight Outta Compton sees Ice Cube end his Friday writing with completeness. He had started the week before by declaring that he would now write a screenplay. Then a week later, he sits at his kitchen table and writes, saying "There." We accept the fact that Ice Cube was once a writer and then went on to make the movie. He wrote Friday with finality, as if he had just started writing a screenplay a week before, then he sat down at his kitchen table and said, "There." Friday's movie will feature Ice Cube as Craig, a young man from South Central Los Angeles whose best friend Smokey (Chris Tucker), implicates him in a $200 loan to Big Worm (Faizon love). This is just one of many problems Craig faces throughout the day. Deebo (Tony Lister Jr.), a neighborhood bully, is the most prominent. He'll steal a man’s bike and wait for him to return to get a punch so that he lifts the man a few feet. Smokey says it like that. Craig responds laughingly, "You're lying," but Smokey's story is later proven to be true in spirit when Craig brains Deebo using a brick, instead of shooting Deebo by gun. This was until then the only option. Despite being introduced in the first act, the gun didn't fire. Even if you think something like this is important, there are chances that Friday will be the last time you notice it.
7. National Lampoon Vacation
This movie is the ultimate family road trip movie and Chevy Chase plays Clark Griswold, a selfish, obsessive but generally well-meaning suburban father. It is a great way to showcase Chase's inherent smugness. All of his greatest movies have Chase playing a charismatic asshole. Vacation features a stellar cast including Beverly D'Angelo and Imogene Cocoa. He is also working with Harold Ramis, a comedy legend, on what may be John Hughes' most funny script. Griswold is a smart parody of the boomer mentality and it has only grown more so in the years since the film was released.
8. Sally and Harry: When Harry Met Sally
The most loved romantic comedy of the decade is Harry (Billy Crystal) and Sally (Meg Ryan), their 12-year journey to being a couple. Nora Ephron wrote a solid script that reflects the surprising chemistry between the leads. Each new generation of lovers sees the diner scene and each woman laughs, while another man sits still, wondering what's so funny.
9. Borat: Cultural Learnings of America to Make Kazakhstan Benefit
Given the Sacha Baron Cohen films that followed, it's easy for people to ignore or underestimate Borat or Borat: Cultural Learnings of America, Make Benefit Glorious National of Kazakhstan. Bruno and The Dictator were able to soften Cohen's original statement but Cohen's faux-documentary on an awkward Eurasian traveler is still quite brilliant. It was a comedy with wide distribution that clearly and critically examined the average American attitude toward foreigners. Borat may say things that seem naive but they are still honest products of his fictitious upbringing. Borat, the character, is not a charlatan. The "real" people that he meets in America can't claim the same. Last but not least: This film is, along with Anchorman the loudest that I have ever seen an audience laugh in multiplex theaters.
10. Bottle Rocket
Bottle Rocket introduced us to Wes Anderson's unique world and the charm of the Wilson brothers. Anderson's original short, "Blood Rocket", was shot four years prior. The film is about two friends who plan a series Texas heists. Owen Wilson, the co-writer of Anderson's Dignan, was the proto- Anderson protagonist. He had visions of greatness and little common sense or self-awareness. Many adults who have forgotten how to grow up are either resentful in their adolescent behaviour or have a bad sense of humor. But Dignan has a certain boyish charm that allows him to continue his wild scheming. In 1996, Dignan's original humor and stylistic quirks felt so familiar. The music, a mix of Mark Mothersbaugh's score and classic rock (this was Rolling Stones and Love), set the tone for all Wes Anderson films.