Comedy: 488

Play It Again, Sam (1972) is a comedic film written and starring Woody Allen. The movie, based on Allen’s play of the same name, takes place in San Francisco and opens with the final scenes of Casablanca featuring legends Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman. Our main character, Allan Felix, is at the theater watching with his mouth agape as he longs to be like Rick. He is haunted by visions of Bogart and memories of his ex-wife Nancy, who constantly belittled him for his sexual inadequacy during their turbulent divorce. Trying to lift his spirits, Allan’s ...

The American sex comedy anthology film, Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex * But Were Afraid to Ask (1972), was directed by Woody Allen. Its inspiration came from David Reuben’s book of the same name published in 1969. As the film opens and closes, a multitude of white rabbits appears behind the credits, accompanied by Cole Porter’s Let’s Misbehave. Overall, the film is made up of seven separate vignettes. 1. Do Aphrodisiacs Work? A ...

Woody Allen’s Bananas (1971) follows the story of Fielding Mellish, a neurotic blue-collar worker. His attempts to impress social activist Nancy lead him to the fictional ‘banana republic’ of San Marcos, which is undergoing a coup d’état led by Gen. Emilio Molina Vargas. Despite his efforts to show compassion for the local people, Mellish becomes entangled in the political turmoil when Vargas orders his own men to kill him as part of a plan to gain financial aid from the U.S. Although Mellish narrowly escapes these assassination attempts, he is eventually captured by the real rebels and declared ...

Kelly’s Heroes (1970), directed by Brian G. Hutton, is a film set during World War II that blends comedy, drama, and a thrilling heist storyline. As the 35th Infantry Division approaches the town of Nancy in early September 1944, they are met with fierce resistance from the enemy. Despite being ordered to hold their position, one of the division’s mechanized reconnaissance platoons finds themselves caught in a thunderstorm and facing friendly fire from their own mortars. In the midst of chaos, Private Kelly takes action and captures Colonel Dankhopf of Wehrmacht Intelligence. In a twist of fate, Kelly ...

Hi, Mom! (1970) is an American black comedy movie written and directed by Brian De Palma. It is also one of Robert De Niro’s early films. Jon Rubin, a veteran who has recently returned from Vietnam and aspires to be a filmmaker, is approached by producer Joe Banner to create an erotic film. Unfortunately, the camera tilts during filming which results in Banner being dissatisfied with the finished product and withdrawing his offer. As a result, Rubin decides to join an experimental acting troupe led by another one of his neighbors. The troupe puts on a production ...

Directed by Woody Allen, Take the Money and Run (1969) is an American mockumentary crime comedy that follows the life of Virgil Starkwell. Parodying the style of prison documentaries, the film uses ‘archival footage’ and ‘interviews’ with people from Virgil’s past. To protect their identities, his parents don Groucho glasses during their interviews, as they are ashamed of their son. As a child, Virgil is constantly targeted by bullies who steal and destroy his glasses. Despite this, he excels on an IQ test in school. However, when he steals a fountain pen, his teacher orders the class to ...

Greetings (1968), an American black comedy film co-written and directed by Brian De Palma. This satirical piece follows the story of three friends: Paul, Lloyd, and Jon. Paul is a shy man looking for love, while Lloyd is a conspiracy enthusiast and Jon dreams of becoming a filmmaker. The movie cleverly mocks topics such as free love, the Kennedy assassination, Vietnam, and amateur filmmaking.

The Witches (1967) is an Italian comedy anthology film produced by Dino De Laurentiis in 1965. Directed by Luchino Visconti, Franco Rossi, Pier Paolo Pasolini, Mauro Bolognini and Vittorio De Sica, it features five humorous tales about witches. This was also the final film to be released during Totò’s lifetime.

Directed by Gordon Douglas, In Like Flint (1967) is an American spy fi comedy film. After witnessing the launch of a new space platform, Z.O.W.I.E. Chief Lloyd C. Cramden and President Trent take a break from their golf game. However, their leisure is cut short by the Fabulous Face organization, who attack Cramden and capture the president. The group’s plan is to control the world with a team of women in charge, starting with taking over a US space facility in the Virgin Islands. To do so, they set up a spa as a front for their activities. Using hair dryers equipped with tape recorders, they aim to brainwash their ...

You’re a Big Boy Now (1966) is an American comedy film written and directed by Francis Ford Coppola, based on David Benedictus’ 1963 novel of the same name. Nineteen-year-old Bernard Chanticleer, known as ‘Big Boy’ to his parents, resides in Great Neck, New York with his overbearing mother and disapproving father, who is the curator of incunabula at the New York Public Library. Employed as a low-level assistant at the library, Bernard’s father decides it’s time for him to move into his own Manhattan apartment. His mother reluctantly ...

What’s Up, Tiger Lily? (1966) is an American comedy film, marking Woody Allen’s first time directing a feature-length film. Using footage from the Japanese spy movie International Secret Police: Key of Keys (1965), Allen dubbed it with entirely new dialogue unrelated to the original plot. Along with adding new scenes, he also reorganized the sequence of existing scenes, creating a condensed version that ran for an hour instead of 93 minutes. The result was a complete transformation of the film’s tone – shifting it from a James ...

Our Man Flint (1966) is a humorous take on the popular James Bond film series. The director behind this spy-fi comedy was Daniel Mann. The protagonist, Derek Flint, is a former member of Z.O.W.I.E., or the Zonal Organization World Intelligence Espionage. He is called back into action when a global organization known as Galaxy, led by three deranged scientists (Doctor Krupov, Doctor Wu, and Doctor Schneider), threatens the world. These scientists are fed up with the state of world governments and demand that all nations surrender to Galaxy. In order to make their point clear, they use their climate-control technology to ...

Get Smart (1965–1970), an American comedy TV series, was created by Mel Brooks and Buck Henry. The show premiered on NBC on September 18, 1965, as a parody of the popular secret agent genre that had been brought to fame by the James Bond films in the early 1960s. Starring Don Adams as agent Maxwell Smart (Agent 86), Barbara Feldon as Agent 99, and Edward Platt as Thaddeus the Chief, the show’s concept was conceived at the ...

The crime comedy anthology film, The World’s Most Beautiful Swindlers (1964), features five segments, each with a unique team of writers, directors, and actors. These four stories of swindling occur in Tokyo – Japan (Les cinq bienfaiteurs de Fumiko), Amsterdam – The Netherlands (La riviere de diamants), Italy (La feuille de route), and Paris – France (L’homme qui vendit la tour Eiffel).

The British comedy film, The Mouse on the Moon (1963), is a sequel to The Mouse That Roared and is based on Leonard Wibberley’s novel of the same name. Directed by Richard Lester, it follows Grand Fenwick’s struggle with a financial crisis caused by their exploding wine export. In order to save the duchy (and finally have modern plumbing for a hot bath), Prime Minister Mountjoy devises a plan to ask the United States for a loan under the guise of funding their mission to the Moon. However, his true intention is to take advantage of the ...

School for Scoundrels (1960) is a British comedy film directed by Robert Hamer. Henry Palfrey, the head of a family firm in London, travels to Yeovil to enroll in the College of Lifemanship, led by Mr. S. Potter. Arriving late, he overhears Potter explaining his focus on the science of ‘being one up on your opponents at all times’ to new students. Palfrey learns this firsthand during an object lesson when he unknowingly loses a name-calling game in an interview with Potter. As they discuss Palfrey’s reasons for enrollment, it becomes clear that a woman is involved. Through a flashback, Palfrey then ...

The Mouse That Roared (1959), a British satirical comedy film, follows the story of the tiny European Duchy of Grand Fenwick. Facing bankruptcy due to competition from an American company, their sole export of Pinot Grand Fenwick wine is no longer profitable. Desperate for a solution, the clever Prime Minister Count Mountjoy hatches a plan: declare war on the United States and then surrender in order to receive aid and rebuild their economy. Though hesitant at first, Duchess Gloriana agrees to the scheme. The mild-mannered game warden Tully Bascomb is chosen as Field Marshal and is assisted by Sergeant Will Buckley on this bold mission. All of this is based on

The American film, Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy (1955) directed by Charles Lamont, tells the story of two Americans stranded in Cairo, Egypt. While there, they overhear a discussion about the mummy Klaris, who guards the Tomb of Princess Ara, and his sacred medallion that reveals the location of her treasure. Along with them, Semu and his followers eavesdrop on this conversation, as does Madame Rontru, a woman hoping to steal the treasure for herself. In an attempt to fulfill their dream to return to America, Abbott and Costello apply for positions to accompany Klaris back home. Tragically, before they can reach ...

Abbott and Costello star in the comedy film, Abbott and Costello Meet the Keystone Kops (1955), directed by Charles Lamont. While watching a silent film called ‘Eliza and the Bloodhounds’ at a nickelodeon, Willie Piper gets kicked out for being too expressive. Outside, his friend Harry Pierce shows him an advertisement in the newspaper seeking investors for a motion picture studio. With exactly $5,000 in cash, they are drawn to the opportunity. However, they soon discover that they have been tricked by con man Joe Gorman into purchasing a deed for the West ...

The British black comedy crime film, The Ladykillers (1955), was directed by Alexander Mackendrick for Ealing Studios. It follows the story of Mrs Wilberforce, a kind and quirky elderly widow who resides in a sinking, crooked home above a railway tunnel in Kings Cross, London. Despite her active imagination and frequent visits to the local police station to report suspicious activity in the neighbourhood, her reports are often dismissed. Things take an interesting turn when she is approached by ‘Professor’ Marcus, a sinister figure seeking to rent rooms in her house. This scene was captured on Argyle Street ...