It’s April Fools’ Day, so it’s best not to risk leaving the house in case you fall victim to some horrible prank. The safest option is just to stay inside and feast on some of these hilarious, silly, completely insane comedy films that will fill your day with laughter.
- Duck Soup (1933)
The Marx Brothers’ finest work has to be one of the weirdest, most ridiculous comedies ever made. With Groucho and Chico Marx’s rapid-fire wit delivering wicked puns and double entendre, and mute Harpo’s unmatched physical comedy, you’ll be breathless with laughter. The story, a tale of political intrigue between two fictional countries named Freedonia and Sylvania, is essentially inconsequential. What really matters is the unbridled anarchy of the film, which pokes fun at anything and everything without ever letting up.
- Some Like It Hot (1959)
Jack Lemmon, Tony Curtis and Marilyn Monroe star in this cross-dressing farce. Lemmon and Curtis play Jerry and Joe respectively, or Daphne and Josephine as they don some dresses and join an all female band to escape some mobsters who want to rub them out. Of course, they can’t resist the allure of the stunning Sugar “Kane” Kowalczyk (Monroe), and a wealthy gentleman can’t resist the charming “Daphne.” Giving new meaning to the word “hijinks,” Some Like it Hot is a sexy and uproariously funny comedy classic.
- Flying High! (1980)
Known to viewers outside of Australia and New Zealand as Airplane!, this satirical take on disaster films is as irreverent, vulgar and silly and they come. Overcoming his fear of flying due to wartime trauma, Ted Striker (Robert Hays) boards a plane trying to win back his flight attendant girlfriend Elaine (Julie Hagerty). Inevitably, food poisoning strikes down many passengers as well as the pilot, and it’s up to Ted, Elaine and Dr. Rumack (Leslie Nielsen) to save the day. It’s impossible to sum up the incredible barrage of jokes that make this film so great. Just see it.
- The Big Lebowski (1998)
The Big Lebowski is one of the most iconic cult comedies of all time. Jeff Daniels stars as Jeffrey “The Dude” Lebowski, who “fucking hates The Eagles,” and whose interests include bowling, marijuana, and White Russians. After some hired goons wrongfully beat him and urinate on his rug, The Dude finds himself heading down a rabbit hole of deceitful, shady, and just plain absurd characters. A wonderful supporting cast includes the likes of John Goodman, Steve Buscemi, and a perfectly cast Julianne Moore. This is filmmaking duo Joel and Ethan Coen in their prime, and a movie like no other.
- In the Loop (2009)
In the Loop is a darkly hilarious take on contemporary Anglo-American politics. The predecessor to the outrageous TV political satire The Thick of It, this film creates high comedy out of bumbling incompetence, questionable morals, and poor anger management. Peter Capaldi is a revelation in the role of The Prime Minister's Director of Communications, Malcolm Tucker, which he also played in the TV series, always finding inventive ways to swear at and threaten his underlings. With an unbelievably great trans-Atlantic cast, this is one to see over and over again.
