A Walker’s Wrant Top Ten List
My dear reader, I hope you are doing wonderful today.
First off, I apologize for the extended absence of the Wrant. I know you missed it, so let’s go ahead and jump into it today. Buckle up, dear reader, because
Walker’s Wrantings Presents:
A Walker’s Wrant Top Ten List:
Top 10 Comedy Movies
Warning - Mild Spoilers
Now, dear reader, today’s list is pretty straightforward. I will be ranking my top ten favorite comedy movies of all time. As you may know, I love comedy. Laughter is my favorite thing about life. The movies on this list have helped shape my sense of humor. A good comedy isn’t just funny however, it should also have the elements of every great movie: a well told story told through characters that we can identify with and care about, who have some growth by the end.
So, let’s hop into this list -
10. Mean Girls
2004
Written by: Tina Fey
Favorite Quote:
Karen - “So, if you're from Africa, why are you white?”
Gretchen - “Oh my God, Karen, you can't just ask people why they're white.”
If you have a co-worker who wears pink on Wednesdays, this movie is the reason. A teen comedy that follows Cady Heron, played by Lindsay Lohan, a transfer student from Africa who has been put into an American high school after years of homeschooling. She quickly learns about the hierarchy of the student body and the queens of the school, known as “the Plastics”. Cady is introduced to the perils of high school life - cliques, bullying, and teenage heartbreak. Mean Girls puts all of the awkward high school drama on display while shining a comedic light on it, making it a perfect coming of age comedy.
9. Spaceballs
1987
Written by: Mel Brooks
Favorite Quote:
Dark Helmet - “Before you die there is something you should know about us, Lone Starr.”
Lone Starr - “What?”
Dark Helmet - “I am your father's brother's nephew's cousin's former roommate.”
Lone Starr - “What's that make us?”
Dark Helmet - “Absolutely nothing! Which is what you are about to become.”
There are so many classic comedies from the amazing mind of Mel Brooks that I could have chosen, but Spaceballs is the crown jewel. This Star Wars parody introduces us to the Planet Spaceball, led by the incompetent President Skroob and his right hand man Dark Helmet. Their plan to steal the atmosphere from planet Druidia is thwarted by the handsome and plucky Lone Starr and his Mawg sidekick barf. Using the magical power of the “Schwartz”, learned from the merchandise pushing Master Yogurt, the unlikely heroes stand against Dark Helmet while constantly breaking the fourth wall and poking fun at the classic movies that inspired Spaceballs.
8. Airplane!
1980
Written by: Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, and Jerry Zucker
Favorite Quote:
[repeated line, to Ted and Elaine]
Rumack - “I just want to tell you both good luck. We're all counting on you.”
Featuring the dry delivery of the incomparable Leslie Nielsen, Airplane! is one of the first disaster spoof films ever made. Wall to wall sight gags and word play make this a face paced, blink and you’ll miss it, comedically dense film. Arguing PA announcers, glue-sniffing air traffic controllers, and co-pilot Kareem Abdul-Jabar denying his identity to a little boy all somehow come together to tie the insanity into one of the best spoof films of all time.
7. Billy Madison
1995
Written by: Tim Herlihy and Adam Sandler
Favorite Quote:
Principal - “Mr. Madison, what you've just said is one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever heard. At no point in your rambling, incoherent response were you even close to anything that could be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this room is now dumber for having listened to it. I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul.”
Adam Sandler plays the titular Billy Madison - the spoiled heir to Madison Hotels, who parties all day with his friends and wastes his life away. His father, tired of Billy’s antics and encouraged by his power hungry Vice President, tells Billy that he must redo his entire schooling, starting with 1st grade all the way through high school, in order to inherit his company. Billy must spend two weeks with each grade, proving to his father that he is worthy to run the company. Featuring Norm MacDonald and Chris Farley, Billy Madison is a perfectly stupid comedy that is one of the defining movies of Sandler’s career.
6. Tommy Boy
1995
Written by: Bonnie Turner and Terry Turner
Favorite Quote:
Richard Hayden - “I need your John Hancock.”
Tommy - “It's HERBIE Hancock.”
David Spade and Chris Farley come together to deliver one of the best “odd-couple” buddy comedies of all time in Tommy Boy. Richard, played by Spade, is the straight-laced assistant to the owner of an Ohio auto parts plant, who suddenly has to babysit the boss’ son Tommy, after his father, “Big Tom” suddenly passes away at his own wedding. Tommy, the bumbling half-wit played by Farley, must go on the road to save the company from falling into the hands of his father’s new bride/widow, while Richard tries to keep him on track. Tommy gets the pair into several jams as they try to save the company, but ultimately the two men are able to come together for the biggest presentation of their lives.
5. This Is Spinal Tap
1984
Written by: Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, Harry Shearer, and Rob Reiner
Favorite Quote:
(referring to the band’s new album cover)
Nigel Tufnel - “It's like, how much more black could this be? And the answer is none. None more black.”
Featuring “One of England’s Loudest Bands”, "This is Spinal Tap" is a rock mockumentary about the fictional band Spinal Tap. The movie dives into the past and present of the band, with in depth interviews led by legendary filmmaker Martin "Marty" Di Bergi, played by Rob Reiner, who has followed the band on their American Tour. From getting lost backstage to having their album cover deemed as “sexist, not sexy”, "This is Spinal Tap” showcases the band's triumphs and, most of all, their failures. With a rocking soundtrack and a multitude of laugh out loud moments, Spinal Tap never disappoints.
4. Hot Rod
2007
Written by: Pam Brady
Favorite Quote:
Dave - “You know, pools are perfect for holding water.”
Hot Rod follows the life of the aspiring Stunt Man, Rod Kimble - a young man trying to follow the footsteps of his late stunt man father. His constant failed stunts do not deter him, even as his crush joins his stunt crew. Rod has a contentious relationship with his step-father, whom he vows to one day beat in a fight. When he finds out his step-father needs a heart transplant, he vows to raise the money with his stunt work, wanting to make sure his step-father is well enough for him to beat him to death. Non-sequiturs and absurdism are delivered expertly by Andy Samberg, Bill Hader, Danny McBride and Will Arnett - a star studded cast that completely commits to the absolute absurdity that is Hot Rod.
3. Office Space
1999
Written by: Mike Judge
Favorite Quote:
Peter Gibbons - “So I was sitting in my cubicle today, and I realized, ever since I started working, every single day of my life has been worse than the day before it. So that means that every single day that you see me, that's on the worst day of my life.”
Dr. Swanson - “What about today? Is today the worst day of your life?”
Peter Gibbons - “Yeah.”
Dr. Swanson - “Wow, that's messed up.”
Ron Livinston plays Peter Gibbons, a programmer who hates his job and yearns to do nothing. While visiting a hypnotherapist, he is put under a trance to relax and forget about his job, but a sudden heart attack kills the therapist before he can snap Peter out. Peter becomes lackadaisical at his job, blowing it off and missing meetings but somehow climbing upward in the company. After learning that his friends at the company are going to be downsized, they come together to create a program that can divert small, unnoticed amounts of money to their bank accounts. Office Space is a timeless classic that highlights the mundanity of the day to day in a large corporation - inane birthday celebrations, joyless rows of cubicles, and overbearing bosses - elements of life that, unfortunately, will always be relevant.
2. Monty Python and the Holy Grail
1975
Written by: Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Eric Idle, Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones, and Michael Palin
Favorite Quote:
King Arthur - “The Lady of the Lake, her arm clad in the purest shimmering samite held aloft Excalibur from the bosom of the water, signifying by divine providence that I, Arthur, was to carry Excalibur. THAT is why I am your king.”
Dennis - “Listen, strange women lyin' in ponds distributin' swords is no basis for a system of government. Supreme executive power derives from a mandate from the masses, not from some farcical aquatic ceremony.”
Written and starred in by the legendary comedy troupe “Monty Python”, Monty Python and the Holy Grail tells the famous story of the legendary King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. Looking to gather Knights for his round table, King Arthur and his lovely squire/coconut clapper Patsy scour the countryside of Britain. They run into a multitude of troubles as they gather the Knights - the dreaded Black Knight, a killer rabbit, and the French. From the opening credits to the final scene, Monty Python and the Holy Grail is a non-stop cabaret of silliness.
1. Dumb and Dumber
1994
Written by: Peter Farrelly, Bobby Farrelly, and Bennett Yellin
Favorite Quote:
Lloyd Christmas - “Hey, guys. Whoa, Big Gulps, huh? Alright! Well, see you later.”
Starring Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels, Dumb and Dumber is the greatest buddy comedy movie of all time. Absolutely ridiculous in the best sense of the word, the movie follows best friends and roommates Lloyd Christmas and Harry Dunne, who are working odd jobs to save money for their dream pet store - “I Got Worms” - a pet store specializing in worm farms. Lloyd, working as a limo driver, picks up a piece of luggage left in an airport terminal by a client, not realizing that he had intercepted a suitcase full of ransom money. Wanting to return the case to the owner, Lloyd and Harry take Harry’s Mutt Cutts van - a dog grooming van decorated like a large Golden Retriever - on a cross country road trip full of hilarious hi-jinks caused by the duo's unrelenting stupidity. Dumb and Dumber is, in my opinion, the Greatest Comedy of All Time.
Walker’s Weekly Wrecommendations
Each week I’m gonna review and recommend random things - TV shows, music, or a restaurant. IDK. Whatever I feel like. This is my blog.
This week's Triple W is for you to watch any movie from this week’s top 10 list that you haven’t seen. I have seen every movie on this list multiple times, and I assure you that you can’t go wrong with any of them.
NEXT WEEK: Walker’s Wranting’s presents TBA - I’m sure I’ll find something to Wrant about.