Comedyas a genre has been tinkered with time and time again by filmmakers with its long-ranging breadth and scope which can often be satirical. While some relaxed and happy-go-lucky comedy films are just meant for a light watch, some comedy flicks carry a deeper connotation that can be felt long after the watch.Several such comedy movieshave been made in the past that have skillfully echoed different groups and issues of our times. Humor as a tool adds the much-needed subtle nuts and bolts to a movie laden with weighty matters.
Here are ten comedy films that conveyed much more than the laughs they portrayed on screen.
10The Truman Show
The Truman Showis one such comedy movie that undertook a multidimensional storytelling approach, combining science fiction, privacy, surveillance, and psychology. Following the story of Truman Burbank, the film portrays a crew picturing his progression in life through the lens of a TV show, but unknown to him. Though a comedy film, it touches upon several grave issues prevalent in society even today. In an era of social media and digital interactions, the thin line between reality and the internet can often become difficult to distinguish.
The force of the media also has an important place in the film’s plot, where it shows how reality television and other shows can capture audiences in an extended trance, whereas what’s shown is often fictional.The Truman Show, starring Jim Carreyand several other supporting actors, remains an important film to this date. It earned several nominations at the Golden Globes and Oscars after its release in 1998 and was also a box-office success.
Related:The Truman Show: 10 Easter Eggs That Hinted at the Movie’s Ending
9Borat! Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan
Sacha Baron Cohen steals the show with his leading role in the mockumentary comedy filmBorat! Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan. Depicting the story of a journalist from Kazakhstan, Borat Sagdiyev, the film shows his journey and interactions across the United States of America. Along with receiving huge commercial success, the film was praised by critics for its humorous takes on ignorance of American culture and the mindless antics performed by the lead character.
Serving as an astute satire under the guise of a comedy film,Boratimpressed audienceswith its deft handling of sharp social commentary through a documentary format. The unique feature of the film lay in the fact that most of the scenes were not scripted, except for a few with major actors like Pamela Anderson. The film was surrounded by controversy upon its release but remained an important movie in Cohen’s filmography.
8The Dictator
Continuing his spree of satirical comedy films, Sacha Baron Cohen again made a splash withThe Dictator, directed by Larry Charles. Charles had also collaborated with Cohen earlier in Borat and Bruno. The fictional country of Wadiya is drawn in the film, with Cohen playing the ruthless and ignorant dictator of the Republic, General Aladeen. Although having several problematic characteristics, the General is found to go through new life-changing experiences after being kidnapped in New York City.
The film brushes through international relations and politics using satire and comedy as a catalyst. The filmmakers actively touch upon antisemitism, sexism, and absurdity to add an extra layer of idiocy to the character’s behavior. WhileThe Dictatorconveys the serious implications of a country ruled by a dictator, it also gains high traces of an hilarious flick.
7The Interview
The Interviewcould be counted as one of the most courageous films in recent times, with its story revolving around the proposed assassination of the Supreme Leader of North Korea, Kim Jong Un. Seth Rogen, who also starred in the film with James Franco, developed The Interview’s story along with Dan Sterling and Evan Goldberg in the 2000s. While the hilarious antics of the two leading characters of the 2014 film succeeded in creating a comical film, themovie also painted the grim scenario in North Koreawith several predicaments.
Although the movie was made as a satire of real-life situations with an alternate ending, it also succeeded in gaining popularity as an easy comedy thriller. Various developments occurred before the film’s release, with an online hacker group perceived to be from North Korea attacking the movie’s distributors, Sony. Theaters across the US refrained from releasingThe Interview, and it eventually went for a limited release and digital rentals.
6Office Space
A cult classic,Office Spacedid not become a big commercial hit on its release but continues to be a subject of memes, discussions, and general pop culture. It handles the evergreen issue of office culture, work-life balance, and unpredictable bosses. The lead character, Peter Gibbons, lives a frustrating life as a programmer in a software company with an unreasonable boss and predictable colleagues. His personal life doesn’t feature on the bright side either. What follows is a humorous take on the employees taking matters into their own hands and standing up for themselves.
The film’s writer and director, Mike Judge, based it on his animated show, Milton. The series was inspired by his own experiences living in Silicon Valley and working in a job he wasn’t interested in.Office Spaceeventually became quite the sleeper hit amongst the masses, though it couldn’t crack the numbers successfully.
5Idiocracy
Another comedy film directed and written by Mike Judge,Idiocracy, is an interesting take on the future of America through the story of the two characters, Joe and Rita, who unknowingly survive for several hundred years in a hibernation experiment. In the process, they wake up several hundred years into the future only to find a country filled with dull-witted people and dystopian surroundings. Their experiences follow it in interacting with the people of the future and getting involved with bigshot government officials.
Though a science-fiction comedy, the film, in fact, dwells on a satirical take on the present conditions of the country.Idiocracyhas several instances in its scenes, which indicates a probable growing effect of consumerism, capitalism and the despotic effects of evolving technology. Ethan Cohen co-wrote the film’s screenplay with Mike Judge, while the movie had Luke Wilson, Maya Rudolph and Dax Shephard in the lead roles.
4Sorry To Bother You
Sorry To Bother Youis a dark comedy film written and directed by Boots Riley, which reflected on the growing consciousness of toxic workers' productivity and illegal practices resorted to by the powerful corporations of the world. By waving across the graveprobabilities of an increasingly capitalistic world, the film’s plot shows the main character Cassius Green, who initially struggles with being broke. After taking up a job as a telemarketer, he eventually enters the dangerous territory of getting mixed up with eerily wealthy organizations. The film’s theme largely reflects on the everyday occurrences of workers' rights and protests being held against mega-corporations of the world. The movie succeeds in initiating a sense of discomfort and awareness of the world’s current problems, which are very much non-fictional.
3Monty Python’s Life of Brian
Written by the British comedy group Monty Python and directed by one of its members, Terry Jones,Monty Python’s Life of Brianreceived huge criticism and backlash from religious groups when it was released, considering the sensitive topics it tried to play around with. But the film has emerged as one of the most popular comedy films of all time, as its skilled storytelling of a man mistaken for Jesus emerged as a witty and satirical take on biblical stories. While the film’s plot can also be perceived as a take on organized religion’s unreliable aspects and dogmatism, its take on political activism also stands out as a major detail. The film has become a regular feature of popular culture over the years with its celebrated scenes and dialogues. An interesting piece of trivia is that Beatles member George Harrison had stepped in as the producer of the movie after the initial producers backed out due to the film’s controversial plot.
Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Seth Rogen in the leading roles,50/50is an interesting comedy-drama film of 2011 unfolding the lives of two friends that cope with different intricacies of life whenone of them is detected with cancer. The characters in the movie have their own battles to fight, while their camaraderie and support for each other during the period of grief stand out as the main attribute of the film. Serving as a contrasting version of toxic masculinity, the relationship of the two main characters hands viewers with a lasting impression. The heartwarming tone accompanying the movie is an added bonus.
Related:Best Joseph Gordon-Levitt Movies, Ranked
1Don’t Look Up
Don’t Look Upis a multi-starrer comedy film which sojourns two American scientists discovering an apocalyptic comet set to collide with Earth in a few months. What follows is their meeting with top leaders of the country, who portray an unheeding attitude towards their concerns. The government officials set out to use the opportunity of the upcoming disaster for their own gains as the film moves through the representation of scientists in the country, the media handling of such matters, and the sheer comedic absurdity of groups who deny scientific temperament. Although,Don’t Look Upwas met with mixed responses from critics on its release, the film is considered to be one of themost poignant disaster films.
