List of Crap #110: Top 50 Comedy Films Countdown 2: The Legend of Curly's Gold

[linszoid]

I've been meaning to watch Gremlins 2 again.

[PsychoGoatee]

One of my favs, love Gremlins 2! And excellent write-up, it is a fun phenomenon, the sequel that ups the funny. Gremlins 1 also rules. And for Evil Dead, I find Army of Darkness even funnier/less tense compared to Evil Dead II.

Gremlins 2 may very well be the only film featuring music by Slayer on this list.

[linszoid]

One of my favs, love Gremlins 2! And excellent write-up, it is a fun phenomenon, the sequel that ups the funny. Gremlins 1 also rules. And for Evil Dead, I find Army of Darkness even funnier/less tense compared to Evil Dead II.

Gremlins 2 may very well be the only film featuring music by Slayer on this list.

Love Army of Darkness. I should have included it on my list but I went for the more pure comedy route. AoD is kind of Comedy/Horror/Adventure/Action

[Pastor of Muppets]

Note to Retro: this is not an error.  On the list, you ranked three movies that were 26 points with two votes in the reverse order.  This means 48 and 46 switched places.  Meanwhile, #47 stays as is.

Oh yeah you're right.  Since they were all tied at 26 points and 2 lists, they had to be ranked in order by which had the highest positioning.  After I had everything scored, I sorted by points.  Since these were all the same value, Excel fell back to sorting alphabetically.  I just copied the first 50 items from that sorted list, then went to sort the ties manually.  This one slipped past me.

[Johnny Unusual]

I suspected it was something like that.  No worries.  I checked the rest of the list, too and there are no other mistakes like that.

[George-2.0]

I don't mind mild criticisim but be nice.

Okay, I'll be nice.... until, as a wise man once said, it's time to not be nice. Like, if Jackass makes the list, then all bets are off   

So far nuthin from me. Though I did like the Naked Gun series back in the day. (haven't seen them, or the other 2 on the list, in a long, long time)

[Edward J Grug III]

Gremlins 2 is very fun, but it's not a great movie. For the *most* part I had to consider it a great movie and not just funny for it to make my list.

[Pastor of Muppets]

I saw Gremlins 2 in the theater way back in the day.  I loved the part where the film cuts out to the scene where the gremlins appear to be interrupting the screening of the film itself.  Then the theater manager finds Hulk Hogan in the audience, and he comes out and scares the gremlins off.  The home video version had a different version of that scene, with gremlins flipping through channels.

That electric gremlin was pretty scary though.  It's hard to deal with a monster that dangerous.

I don't think I ever saw the original Gremlins in its entirety until 2004 when I rented it from Netflix.

[Johnny Unusual]

I'm just a regular fellow! - and I want you to step right up and call me 'Speedy'!
#47
The Freshman



26 Points, 2 of 16 Lists, Top vote: #2 George 2.0

Harold Lamb is a sweet-hearted but niave young man on his way to college.  He has big plans to become the big man on campus via imitating a film character but finds it a lot more difficult than he anticipated.  Unfortunately for him, he's actually the school joke, a fact that he is blissfully unaware of.  When he learns the truth, he becomes determined to win the school football game and learns that his greatest strength lies in being true to himself.

The Freshman is a wonderful silent era comedy and one that is helped by the humanity of the main character.  The film wouldn't work nearly as well if the character weren't so darn easy to root for, despite his flaws.  Lamb's desire to be recognized and love through trying to emulate a film star is a very relatable premise and the final game is a perfect capper to the film.  Lloyd fills the character and the screen with exhuberence and optimism, it's hard not to be drawn into Lamb's quest for popularity and learning what it really means to be a big man.

George 2.0

Arguably Lloyd’s funniest picture and my personal favorite. It’s loaded with laughs, and Jobyna Ralston and Harold have such great chemistry together. I’d easily rank it as one of the greatest comedies of all time – Essential Lloyd, it is also quintessential Lloyd. It draws on sympathy as likable Lloyd is mocked by the campus hot shots as he tries so hard to fit in. Joby convinces him to be himself and tells him that she believes in him. That’s all you the setup you need to send us into the final act and the hilarious big football game where the kid who never says die, gets his chance to shine.

I like that this film isn’t one gag after another. It’s very funny, but it takes time to set up and tell a story. I think Harold might very well have influenced Keaton in this regard. Buster’s Steamboat Bill Jr. especially uses the model established by The Freshman. Set up the story, the relationships first, and then deliver the knock out ending.

Notable scene

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/RkEfd3ZER8A" target="_blank" class="new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/RkEfd3ZER8A</a>

If you liked this, check out... Safety Last

Considered one of the great silent comedies, this is my favourite Lloyd film.  There are wonderful gags throughout, but it's really all set up for a fantastic finally, wherein Lloyd's character must reluctantly work his way up an entire building by himself while his friend, who was supposed to do the deed, is chased by a cop.  Each new level brings up another new ridiculous challenge for our hero, include the iconic and thrilling clock scene.

Trivia Harold Lloyd was 31 when he shot this movie. He had always wanted to make a football movie but never had the opportunity. When this film was in development, he thought it would be a bad idea to have him in it, because he was too old.

[Russoguru]

Yeah, but did it have a Komodo Dragon on a treadmill?

[Johnny Unusual]

A laugh can be a very powerful thing. Why, sometimes in life, it's the only weapon we have.
#46
Who Framed Roger Rabbit



26 Points, 2 of 16 Lists, Top vote: #1 Pak-Man

Roger Rabbit is one of the biggest stars of the silver screen.  He's also a cartoon character, in a world where cartoon characters can interact with flesh and blood ones. When Detective Eddy Valiant reveals to him that his wife has been playing patty cake with another cartoon producer Marvin Acme, he flips out and disappears.  The next morning, Acme is found dead and Roger is the prime suspect.  However, Roger shows up in Valiant's apartment, insisting that he prove his innocence.  Valiant reluctantly agrees and soon finds himself crossing paths with the intimidating Judge Doom, the only man who knows how to kill cartoons.

Pak-Man:

Cartoon humor is my favorite kind of humor, and this movie celebrates it in a way that speaks to me on a profound level. Its central theme- that a sense of humor is probably the most important thing to carry with you into any battle- is a message that I took to heart and that wisdom has carried me through the best and worst times of my life.

Notable scene

<a href="https://www.youtube.com/v/MzxZ8qtdun0" target="_blank" class="new_win">https://www.youtube.com/v/MzxZ8qtdun0</a>

If you liked this, check out... Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid

If you are looking for a double bill of noir comedy, you could watch Roger Rabbit and Steve Martin and Carl Reiner's Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid. It's a comedy in which Martin plays a detective, but the catch is the film is intercut with scenes of classic noir.  It's a pretty delightful romp.

Trivia This movie marked the only time cartoon characters from Walt Disney and Warner Brothers appeared together on-screen.

[George-2.0]

I think it was 10 years ago, when I strolled into Barnes and Noble during a sale and found a single copy of the Harold Lloyd box-set at 50% off. I stared at that thing, wandered around the store with it in my hand – I only knew Lloyd from clips of him climbing a building and hanging from a clock - “did I want to buy this set without knowing if I'd actually like the content?” In the end I said “why the hell not”, especially at that price. Took it home, popped it on and had a whale of a time. Love Harold's brand of humor.

If you liked this, check out... Safety Last

Harold's work is usually broken into 2 categories. The gag comedies, like Safety Last and the character comedies (The Freshman). I think if you liked Freshman, another character comedy, like the Kid Brother would be something folks might enjoy too. But yeah, you gotta see Safety Last just for that amazing climb

Yeah, but did it have a Komodo Dragon on a treadmill?

I liked that Freshman too

[Russoguru]

I have to say I was never that big a fan of Roger Rabbit. That movie at least for myself anyway was scarcely better than something like "Cool World".

[CJones]

Trivia This movie marked the only time cartoon characters from Walt Disney and Warner Brothers appeared together on-screen.

Not only that, but both studios insisted on equal recognition. Which is why we got the Daffy vs Donald and Bugs Bunny vs Micky Mouse scenes.

Woody Woodpecker was also there. Nobody cared. At least Betty Boop had some lines.

[linszoid]

A laugh can be a very powerful thing. Why, sometimes in life, it's the only weapon we have.

I think that's actually a really good quote.

Also I'm surprised my 25th place vote actually made the difference of a movie making a list.