Funniest screenplays ever

[KSRBEvans]

The Writers Guild of America has released its top 100 funniest screenplays list (http://www.wga.org/content/default.aspx?id=5949). Its top 10:


10. Animal House

9. Monty Python and the Holy Grail

8. Blazing Saddles

7. Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb

6. Young Frankenstein

5. Tootsie

4. Airplane!

3. Groundhog Day

2. Some Like it Hot

1. Annie Hall

Most recent: Bridesmaids (#11), 2011

Oldest: The Gold Rush (#94), 1926

Thoughts?

[blueboss]

The Big Lebowski
A Fish Called Wanda

I guess i should have read the list first, anyway these two are way funnier than Annie


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[CitizenBBN]

Annie Hall, really? I know it's very well thought of as a comedy, but in truth I never thought a lot of Woody Allen's humor. It's OK, it's not hysterical. Reminds me a lot of the difference between the more Midwestern Stooges and the imminently New York Marx Brothers.

Part of it is separating "funniest film" from "funniest screenplay", b/c how it is acted is a huge factor beyond the writing.

For example they have Caddyshack #25. IMO that movie is way higher than #25 as funniest film, but really the writing/screenplay should probably be a lot lower. It was the ad-libbed bits by Murray and the fabulous work of Dangerfield, Chase and Ted Knight along with Murray that makes it so great. If you just read the script and got 4 different guys that film doesn't work. In fact much of it was written specifically for those guys as a chance for them to do what they do best. The scene with Murray and Chase was written on orders from the studio b/c they wanted a scene with the two of them in it, it was the only scene they were in together.

Big at #44 is appalling, it should be #144 or worse, and it is ahead of the likes of MASH?

[Doc]

Annie Hall, really? I know it's very well thought of as a comedy, but in truth I never thought a lot of Woody Allen's humor. It's OK, it's not hysterical. Reminds me a lot of the difference between the more Midwestern Stooges and the imminently New York Marx Brothers.

Part of it is separating "funniest film" from "funniest screenplay", b/c how it is acted is a huge factor beyond the writing.

For example they have Caddyshack #25. IMO that movie is way higher than #25 as funniest film, but really the writing/screenplay should probably be a lot lower. It was the ad-libbed bits by Murray and the fabulous work of Dangerfield, Chase and Ted Knight along with Murray that makes it so great. If you just read the script and got 4 different guys that film doesn't work. In fact much of it was written specifically for those guys as a chance for them to do what they do best. The scene with Murray and Chase was written on orders from the studio b/c they wanted a scene with the two of them in it, it was the only scene they were in together.

Big at #44 is appalling, it should be #144 or worse, and it is ahead of the likes of MASH?

My thought as well... Annie Hall???

Other rxn, Groundhog day at #3. An OK movie at best.

Glad to see Spinal Tap at #11. I figured it would not have been that high but glad it was. One of my favorites. I'd have it top 10 and dump Groundhog Day. However number eleven seems appropriate because its one higher than 10 (LOL)

#22, the Princess Bride. Not sure I see that as "funny". Its a great movie but not sure I'd call it funny.

#27, the Graduate. See the Princess Bride.

#36, Planes, Trains and Automobiles-way too low. One of the great comedy films.

#45, Vacation is too low

and NO UNCLE BUCK.... come on.

[Darrell KSR]

Annie Hall? Indefensible.

Caddyshack may have been improved by the actors, but it's pretty dang strong. I'd have a hard time downgrading it much from exceptional.

Vacation is top 10, IMHO. Stellar.

Groundhog Day was enjoyable. A million movies are enjoyable. Too high.

Always a matter if taste on these, but Animal House and Blazing Saddles could've been top two and I wouldn't have complained.

Mostly in the ballpark.

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[KSRBEvans]

Some of those movies it's hard for me to think of as comedy. For example, I don't sit down in the evening and think, "I want to watch a movie that'll make me laugh--let's watch 'Fargo'." To me it's a drama with some darkly humorous moments.

Also, it's hard to judge screenplays where there's a lot of improvisation. I'm thinking about Spinal Tap and Caddyshack as mentioned above, and others like 40 Y/O Virgin.

I can't believe they've got Shakespeare In Love (#101) and Sideways (#91) in there. 2 of the most overrated movies ever, IMHO.

OTOH, I'm glad to see some love for Midnight Run (#47) and It Happened One Night (#48--a forgotten great that started the romantic comedy genre).

[CitizenBBN]

I mentioned Caddyshack b/c I watched a show on the making of that movie, and it was more of a blender than a screenplay. It wasn't some brilliant work written up and then performed.

In fact the studio was deeply worried about it. The original story focused on the caddy/girl love story thing, a coming of age comedy. But then they got Chase and Dangerfield and Knight and Murray and they ended up with a film that had no common threat at all, just a lot of funny moments like kentucky Fried Movie. In fact it was the gopher that they then put at the forefront as a thread that could weave through the movie. That wasn't in the original script, it was a decision to try to give it some flow.

It ended up one of the funniest movies ever, but is that a credit to the screenplay? IMO no, b/c the original screeenplay got chopped up and basically discarded. In fact one of the producers was so upset over the changes he quit the film.

There's always some changes and such, but Caddyshack was just a mish-mash, and a lot of improv that wasn't in any script. The entire Murray scene with the flowers was made up by him on the spot when he saw them. So was the scene with him and Chase, they just winged it, and obviously all of Dangerfield's one liners was just him being him.

Also with BEvans that some of those aren't comedies to me. I like The Princess Bride, but is it a comedy? It's cute, but a comedy?

I was pleased to see Bringing up Baby on the list, very high. VERY funny movie. As well as His Girl Friday. Those are two classic Cary Grant films that are well written and brilliantly performed.