100 Best Comedy Movies - Contributors Lists - M-N

Discover our contributors’ favourite comedy movies, including Stephen Merchant and Jackie Mason’s top tens

As chosen by:

Linked title denotes top 100 placing

Caroline Mabey

Caroline Mabey is a stand-up comedian and regular MC of various 99 Club gigs in London. She has taken three shows to the Edinburgh Fringe: ‘Caroline Mabey’s Go Go Go Coffee Show!’, ‘Eat Your Friends’ and ‘Caroline Mabey’s One Minute Silence’. See Caroline Mabey live.

1. There’s Something About Mary (Bobby and Peter Farrelly, 1998)
2. Chuck & Buck (Miguel Arteta, 2000)
3. The Big Lebowski (Joel and Ethan Coen, 1998)
4. The King of Comedy (Martin Scorsese, 1982)
5. Johnny Suede (Tom DiCillo, 1991)
6. The Philadelphia Story (George Cukor, 1940)
7. Bugsy Malone (Alan Parker, 1976)
8. The Happiness of the Katakuris (Takashi Miike, 2001)
9. Four Lions (Christopher Morris, 2010)
10. Trading Places (John Landis, 1983)

‘There’s Something About Mary’ is my top choice because the casting is brilliant, with loads of wonderfully bonkers cameos, and Matt Dillon is a revelation. The hit rate of gags is super high and for a ‘gross-out’ movie it has an amazing warmth to it. Any film that has Jonathan Richman singing up a tree gets my vote.

Jackie Mason

Jackie Mason is a true comedy legend. In Comedy Central’s 2005 poll he was ranked the 63rd best stand-up of all time and, at age 75, is still gigging. He was the first person ever to win an Emmy for a guest role, playing Rabbi Hyman Krustofski in ‘The Simpsons’, and has starred in ‘The Jerk’ and ‘Caddyshack II’, which suspiciously make up two of his top ten…

1. The Jerk (Carl Reiner, 1979)
2. Caddyshack II (Allan Arkush, 1988)
3. His Girl Friday (Howard Hawks, 1940)
4. Arsenic And Old Lace (Frank Capra, 1944)
5. It Happened One Night (Frank Capra, 1934)
6. Foul Play (Colin Higgins, 1978)
7. The Marrying Man (Jerry Rees, 1991)
8. The Odd Couple (Gene Saks, 1968)
9. Avanti! (Billy Wilder, 1972)
10. My favorite wife (Garson Kanin, 1940)

Chris Martin

Steve Ullathorne

Chris Martin (no, not that one), is a stand-up comedian and actor. He hosts a monthly podcast with Carl Donnelly which was recently named one of the Top 10 Comedy Podcasts by The Guardian.

Hangover is number 1 as it highlights and exaggerates the fun you can have with your male friends. Also Galifinakis is Hilarious and Bradley Cooper is fiiiiiit.

Dominic Maxwell

Dominic Maxwell is the comedy critic for The Times.

Chris McCausland

Chris McCausland is a circuit regular stand-up who has appeared on ‘Miranda Hart’s Unwrapped’ and ITV4’s ‘Stand Up Hero’. He’s the only professional comic in the UK who is blind. See Chris McCausland live.

1. Planes, Trains & Automobiles (John Hughes, 1987)
2. See No Evil, Hear No Evil (Arthur Hiller, 1989)
3. Brewster’s Millions (Walter Hill, 1985)
4. My Cousin Vinny (Jonathan Lynn, 1992)
5. The Hard Way (John Badham, 1991)
6. Scrooged (Richard Donner, 1988)
7. Frequently Asked Questions about Time Travel (Gareth Carrivik, 2009)
8. 8 Heads in a Duffle Bag (Tom Schulman, 1997)
9. Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure (Stephen Herek, 1989)
10. UHF (Jay Levey, 1989)

‘Those aren't pillows!’ What else can be said about ‘Planes, Trains and Automobiles’ apart from that it’s a work of genius. The comic scenarios are second to none, John Candy and Steve Martin merge two of the greatest comic performances in film history with an emotional depth often missing from out-and-out comedies. It’s a rollercoaster ride of belly laughs and sentimentality that ultimately leaves you with sore sides and a warm glow inside. Basically, if you haven't seen this film, where the hell have you been?

Andrew McClelland

Andrew McClelland is an Australian stand-up comedian who has performed at 12 consecutive Melbourne International Comedy Festivals and is a four-time veteran of the Edinburgh Fringe.

1. Monty Python's Life of Brian (Terry Jones, 1979)
2. The Blues Brothers (John Landis, 1980)
3. To Be or Not to Be (Ernst Lubitsch, 1942)
4. The Life Aquatic with Steve Zizzou (Wes Anderson, 2004)
5. Love and Death (Woody Allen, 1975)
6. The Castle (Rob Sitch, 1997)
7. Anchorman (Adam McKay, 2004)
8. Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (Jay Roach, 1997)
9. The Ladykillers (Alexander Mackendrick, 1955)
10. The Road to Morocco (David Butler, 1942)

‘Life of Brian’ does more to deflate religion than Dawkins and Hitchens combined, but it’s also making fun of politics and really of anyone who thinks too much of the rightness of their thinking. It just may save the world yet.

Cal McCrystal

Cal Mcrystal studied clowning with Philippe Gaulier and has appeared with Peepolykus, the Mighty Boosh, Spymonkey and Cirque du Soleil.

1. Galaxy Quest (Dean Parisot, 1999)
2. Airplane! (Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, Jerry Zucker, 1980)
3. Le Diner de Cons (Francis Veber, 1998)
4. Tootsie (Sydney Pollack, 1982)
5. The Party (Blake Edwards, 1968)
6. High Anxiety (Mel Brooks, 1977)
7. It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (Stanley Kramer, 1963)
8. Bullets Over Broadway (Woody Allen, 1994)
9. Borat (Larry Charles, 2006)
10. La Cage Aux Folles (Edouard Molinaro, 1978)

It was agony compiling this. So many others I wanted to include. ‘Galaxy Quest’ is simply the most touching and funny comedy of recent times.

Erich McElroy

Originally from Seattle, Erich McElroy is now a regular on the British comedy circuit. See Erich McElroy live.

Which ‘Police Academy’? All of them. Even if they did get crap it was genius crap. But nothing is funnier than a man going into a woodchipper.

Stephen Merchant

Stephen Merchant rose to fame when he co-wrote ‘The Office’ with Ricky Gervais. He has worked as an actor, notably in the Farrelly Brothers’ ‘Hall Pass’, and is currently developing a new sitcom, ‘Life’s Too Short’, for HBO.

1. Chickens Come Home (James W. Horne, 1931)
2. Play It Again, Sam (Woody Allen, 1972)
3. Swingers (Doug Liman, 1996)
4. Monkey Business (Norman Z MacLeod, 1931)
5. Groundhog Day (Harold Ramis, 1993)
6. Road To Utopia (Hal Walker, 1946)
7. Team America:World Police (Trey Parker, 2004)
8. The Thin Man (W. S. Van Dyke, 1934)
9. The King of Comedy (Martin Scorsese, 1982)
10. Anchorman (Adam McKay, 2004)

‘Chickens Come Home’ is the definitive Laurel and Hardy short from 1931. Olly is a manure dealer running for mayor who is blackmailed by a woman from his past, Stan is his aide trying to cover things up. Sublime. And ‘Road to Utopia’ is Hope and Crosby at their most winning. Full of in-jokes and surreal asides, it's a postmodern comedy made before postmodern comedy was invented.

Misery Bear

Misery Bear is the saddest, loneliest, most suicidal teddy bear in the whole world. He’s also the star of a series of BBC short films at bbc.co.uk/comedy

‘Caddyshack’ has got Chevy Chase, Rodney Dangerfield and Bill Murray in it. There’s a gopher who looks a bit like me. You see a lady’s boobs. What’s not to like? Oh, and it ends with the line, ‘Hey everybody, we’re all gonna get laid.’ It hasn’t happened to me yet but it gives me hope.

Diane Morgan

Diane is a stand-up comic and half of sketch duo ‘Two Episodes of MASH’ with Joe Wilkinson. They are currently recording a series for Radio 2. See Diane Morgan live.

1. Nuts in May (Mike Leigh, 1976)
2. Grey Gardens (Ellen Hovde, Albert and David Maysles, 1975)
3. The Return of The Pink Panther (Blake Edwards, 1975)
4. Play It Again, Sam (Woody Allen, 1972)
5. Withnail & I (Bruce Robinson, 1987)
6. Annie Hall (Woody Allen, 1977)
7. Dr Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (Stanley Kubrick, 1964)
8. Submarine (Richard Ayoade, 2010)
9. The Sunshine Boys (Herbert Ross, 1975)
10. A Town Called Panic (Stephane Aubier, Vincent Patar)

Ed Morrish

Ed Morrish has produced more than 100 entertainment shows for BBC Radio including ‘The Now Show’ and ‘The News Quiz’.

1. Duck Soup (Leo McCarey, 1933)
2. Dodgeball (Rawson Marshall Thurber, 2004)
3. The Naked Gun (David Zucker, 1988)
4. Airplane! (Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, Jerry Zucker, 1980)
5. Hannah & Her Sisters (Woody Allen, 1986)
6. Jay & Silent Bob Strike Back (Kevin Smith, 2001)
7. The Man in the White Suit (Mackendrick, 1951)
8. Idiocracy (Mike Judge, 2006)
9. The Plank (Eric Sykes, 1967)
10. Monty Python's Life of Brian (Terry Jones, 1979)

James Mullinger

James Mullinger began his stand-up career in 2005 and reached the final of Jimmy Carr’s Comedy Idol competition. He has performed twice at the Just For Laughs comedy festival in Montreal and has written articles about comedy for GQ, Men’s Health, Manzine and The Radio Times. See James Mullinger live.

I tried to be honest here and pick the films I think are the funniest. Not the wittiest, or most clever or most profound. The films that quite simply made me laugh like a drain. You will not find ‘This Is Spinal Tap’ on my list. It is genius but I don’t actually laugh at it. ‘Bad News’ makes me laugh every time I see it but ‘Spinal Tap’ makes me marvel as how clever it is without actually laughing.

Trevor Neal

Trevor Neal is one half of comedy duo Trevor & Simon, along with Simon Hickson. They’re best known for their contributions to ‘Going Live!’ and ‘Live & Kicking’ throughout the ’80s and ’90s. They produce a regular podcast.

1. The Jerk (Carl Reiner, 1979)
2. Pee Wee’s Big Adventure (Tim Burton, 1985)
3. Groundhog Day (Harold Ramis, 1993)
4. Three Amigos! (John Landis, 1986)
5. Monty Python's Life of Brian (Terry Jones, 1979)
6. Elf (Jon Favreau, 2003)
7. Kingpin (Bobby and Peter Farrelly, 1996)
8. Anchorman (Adam McKay, 2004)
9. The School of Rock (Richard Linklater, 2003)
10. Liar Liar (Tom Shadyac, 1997)

‘The Jerk’ wins because it has the most repeated lines and routines that still make me laugh – particularly the ‘and that’s all I need’ routine, ‘he hates these cans’, Opti-Grab, the Thermos song, Shithead, ‘be somebody!’, Iron Balls McGinty, ‘you’re a genuinely dirty person’ etc.

Kim Noble

Kim Noble is an artist, comedian and filmmaker. Together with Stuart Silver as duo ‘Noble and Silver’, he won the Perrier Best Newcomer Award in 2000. His last piece, Kim Noble Will Die – a dark, multimedia suicide note – won huge acclaim and played multiple runs at the Edinburgh Fringe and Soho Theatre.

‘The Rebel’ is the Tony Hancock film where he plays an office clerk turned artistic genius, not the 2007 Vietnamese martial arts film. I don’t think that’s funny at all. Both lead actors in ‘The Rebel’ committed suicide, which also isn’t that funny. And ‘Brazil’ is a beautiful, moving, wonderful film... not laugh a minute but sometimes you don’t want to laugh every minute.

Mickey Noonan

Mickey Noonan is a freelance comedy writer.

Ben Norris

Ben Norris has been on the stand-up circuit since 1993 and has appeared on ‘Never Mind the Buzzcocks’, ‘They Think It’s All Over’ and ‘Mock the Week’.

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