The 50 Funniest Movies of All Time

40. Fast Times at Ridgemont High

A look at the lives of a broad cross section of students at your typical high school in the early 80s. Read: Sex, drugs, and rock and roll. The movie that gave us the greatest topless scene of all time, the incomparable Jeff Spiccoli and featuring an all time great comedic villain in Ray Walston’s Mr Hand.

39. This is Spinal Tap

Directed by Rob Reiner, This is Spinal Tap is a 1984 mockumentary about the fictional rock band Spinal Tap. A look into the “illustrious” backstage lifestyle of a stereotypical heavy metal band, this film was truly groundbreaking. Much of the movie’s dialogue was ad-libbed – they basically just filmed for hours upon hours every day and used the best footage. The “film crew” in the movie is following them as they promote their album “Smell the Glove”.

38. American Pie

I hold this movie in high regard because right from the start you scan this group of friends and you immediately start to identify members of your own group with the group on screen. Every modern American group of male buddies has some combination of a dopey screw up, a jock, a scholar, a ne’er do well, and well.. a Kevin.

37. Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby

Directed by Adam McKay, starring Will Ferrell – rest assured this is not the last time you’ll see this tandem on this list. Off the heels of Old School, Anchorman, and a hell of a Wedding Crashers cameo, Talladega Nights was Ferrell’s take on the world of NASCAR and the american south. His two sons stole every scene they were in, and Ferrell’s pre-Step Brothers on-screen chemistry with John C. Reilly was forged.

36. Kingpin

Probably the most underrated of The Farrelly Brothers filmography, the story of a one-handed ex-bowler and his Amish prodigy is still funny after all these years. It holds the honor of being a movie I saw three times in three days, and was more funny with each viewing. Here’s the catch- not only did we get Woody Harrelson and Randy Quaid, but also my personal fave- Bill Murray. I was bowled over by this comedy gem. (sorry)

35. A Christmas Story

Not just a humorous take on the holiday, also a heaping slice of Americana. With scenes and lines that have worked their way deep into pop culture, such as the triple dog dare, or you’ll shoot your eye out, there’s no doubt that the biggest gift under this Christmas tree was for us.

34. Scrooged   

One thing we know: every few years Hollywood recycles Dickens’ ‘A Christmas Carol’ in some form or another. Those versions tend to stick to the script, take themselves ultra-serious, and bring nothing new to the table.  Enter the Richard Donner directed 1988 comedy starring Bill Murray, and all bets are off. It centers around TV executive Frank Cross, who has spent his entire life alienating himself from friends and family in order to focus on his corporate ladder climb. On Christmas Eve, hours before his network is to air a live broadcast of (yes, you guessed it) A Christmas Carol, he is visited by the usual ghosts of Christmas, just not any ghosts Charles Dickens would approve of. The movie could have been run of the mill, but Murray leading the cast (including Nancy Allen, Bobcat Goldthwait, and Carol Kane) makes it a holiday classic.

33. Beverly Hills Cop  

Classic “fish out of water” story starring Eddie Murphy as Axel Foley, a reckless Detroit detective that travels to Beverly Hills to solve the murder of his shady friend. He teams up with two straight-laced police officers (Judge Reinhold & John Ashton) and hilarity ensues! I always wanted to try the “banana in the tailpipe” trick.

32. Ferris Bueller’s Day Off

What if youth was NOT wasted on the young? Ferris Bueller shows us all in this ode to Carpe Diem! Who wouldnt want a day like this? Along the way there’s tons of comedy at the expense of the high school experience, which is something we can all relate to.

31. Old School

It’s amazing to me that this movie currently has a rating of 7.1/10 on IMDB. What could disappoint you about this movie? What did you go into this film looking for that it didn’t provide? A philosophic commentary on the human condition? Please. This is one of the few movies I’ve ever comfortably given a 10/10. It’s hard to identify a movie from the last 10 years that is quoted more than Old School.

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