The Movie Forums Top 100 Comedies Countdown

Had different films from Will Ferrell and National Lampoon on my list. So yeah, no vote for Stepbrothers (which was alright, but a clear step down from my pick) or Christmas Vacation (which was fine, particularly with its mix of comedy and sentimentality).

Mel Brooks Takes:
Young Frankenstein (probably the best I've seen from him)
Blazing Saddles (audacious mix of highbrow and lowbrow humor)
Spaceballs (uneven at places, but funny more often than not)
Robin Hood: Men in Tights (uneven at places, but some funny spots. Poor Tracey Ullman)
Dracula: Dead and Loving It (Leslie Nielsen feels like a dead man walking in this bad spoof of the Dracula franchise)
Life Stinks (And so does the film)

As a kid, National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation was pretty much required holiday viewing - alongside the first two Die Hard movies - and as an adult I have rarely let a Christmas go by without watching Cousin Eddie empty his shitter into the storm drain. While I admit that it's questionable what I'd feel about this movie without the nostalgia, there was simply no way it was going to miss my ballot. I had it at number 23.



I have avoided Step Brothers because I can't stand Will Ferrell.

My Ballot:
23. National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (#79)
25. Knick Knack (One Pointer)

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No votes today but both these films and comedians have my blessing. Stranger Than Fiction and Anchorman are currently my highest ranked comedies starring Ferrell.

Recently re-watched Christmas Vacation and National Lampoon’s Vacation.
Christmas Vacation is more fun, has aged a little better, and is just more of a feelgood classic. Didn't have enough time to re-watch Fletch or Spies Like Us but I might have another Chevy Chase on my ballot.....??

Seen 14/22
Ballot 2/25

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Nailed it. Agree 100%

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Haven’t seen either of these in over a decade, but did enjoy them at the time. Step Brothers is certainly icnonic of its era, where Will Ferrell was the king of comedy. There’s a few scenes that I still remember that being a smile to my face.

Can’t say I really remember anything from Christmas Vacation but I wouldn’t mind revisiting this one when the season comes.

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Okay, well here's a bit of fun. Anyway, Step Brothers was probably the very very very last film I ever expected appearing here at this moment, but it gives me hope that a few 21st Century picks have snuck in through the back door - because there's a couple I'm really rooting for. Step Brothers I don't hate at all, but I did not know it was so highly regarded, as I thought it was just another Will Ferrell/John C. Reilly team-up that had the duo mugging and acting stupid (after Holmes & Watson please, please no more - even the trailer for that film was terrible - were those really the best moments?) I will rewatch Step Brothers, just because I need that moment to go, "Oh yeah - this. I should keep this film in my mind and not forget it this time."

Christmas Vacation is a bit more predictable. You know, when this first came out, as a second sequel in the never ending Vacation franchise, it felt a little off - it didn't have the writing the first two had (the first being especially decent) - and everything else felt a little cheaper, and a little less. But I'll be damned if it didn't become a Christmas favourite in the household - and now it gets trotted out every Christmas like it's a classic. I've seen it many times - many more times than any other of the Vacation films. If you'd told me that would happen when it first came out, I'd tell you that was crazy. But it happened. There's a kind of Christmas good will added to this chapter that keeps it nice, and the humour isn't terrible - it's one everyone can like, and most members of my family really do.

So, seen both - voted for neither.

Seen 15/22

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This, all through.

I came to see Step Brothers for the first time about a year or two ago, and I wasn't a huge fan. Laughed at some bits, but overall, was disappointed. I did appreciate the fact that the end...



I thought that was nice. As for the journey to get there? Meh...


I've seen Christmas Vacation a bunch of times and, although I enjoy some bits and pieces, I've never understood the general love that people have for it. I find it to be just ok.

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Still blank on my side...

Seen: 13/22

I might be the only MoFo who actually likes Will Ferrell, but I've not seen Step Brothers.

Christmas Vacation is something I watch every other Christmas season because...well it's a Christmas movie.

I like Will Ferrell on SNL but not a big fan of his movies. Stepbrothers seemed to stand the test of time among fans and is still talked about to this day. So I gave it a shot a couple months ago and couldn’t get past ten minutes. It was ungodly.

Christmas Vacation made my list. Easily the best, most quotable and rewatchable of the Vacation movies. Watching Christmas movies as a kid it felt like a modern classic while stuff like A Christmas Story and Rudolph were more wistful and nostalgic. And on a personal note, coming from a big Italian family it’s very relatable in terms of a bunch of relatives showing up during the holidays and destroying your house.

“Barking for the Yak woman” alone makes it worthy of the list.

Despite my avatar, I'm also completely surprised at how much support Men in Tights has gotten in the thread haha.

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I don't hate him. I like him in Elf, Old School, Anchorman to a lesser extent. He was great in Zoolander. I do think that the man-child schtick gets a bit boring after a while, but I think those are solid comedies, and he does a solid job in them.

You're the man! I do have one of his movies on my ballot and considered several more.

Will Ferrell is pretty good, depending on the role. Megamind was a perfect role for him, he rocked in Elf, and he had funny moments in Superstar, but that;s about it so far.

Step Brothers I haven’t seen either.

Yet another one of those maybe not universally acclaimed but certainly universally enjoyed comedies, which is often in television and talked about together with the likes of Wayne’s World, Austin Powers and the director’s own Anchorman…

I don’t really have an interest to be honest. I doubt I will like it. I tried with Anchorman once and never finished it. I’ve seen McKay’s recent ones and hated one more than the other.

As for Christmas Vacation, I like the original more, but there’s certainly some fun gags in here and the Christmas vibe helps to make this a decent enough family movie during the holidays. But no votes for it.

I like Will Ferrell a lot. I think he is a genuinely good actor and I enjoy several of his films.

Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy and Wedding Crashers must be on the countdown ahead, very possibly Elf, and a lessening chance for Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby or Old School as well. Three or four is what I expect from him in the hundred when all is said and done.

Besdies Step Brothers the other Ferrell movie that I had on my short list was Stranger Than Fiction, which I love, but realize it had less than no shot of making the collective list. It is certainly not up there with his most popular titles and broader humor.

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"Film is a disease. When it infects your bloodstream it takes over as the number one hormone. It bosses the enzymes, directs the pineal gland, plays Iago to your psyche. As with heroin, the antidote to Film is more Film." - Frank Capra

Step-Brothers:
I mostly missed all of the Will Ferrell-leading comedies. Actually, I have missed all of the Will Ferrell-leading comedies. My main exposure to him was apparently the Austin Powers movies and Zoolander. And my co-workers in the early 00's showing me the SNL skit for cowbell (with Christopher Walken) and his W impression - neither of which were offputting, but at the same time, I didn't really have the strong desire to go seek out those type of comedies. Still don't.

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation - I've already commented on before. The one subgenre of comedy that gives the sense it's going to have a presence that didn't cross my mind as coming are the winter holiday comedies. I think the only one I have left as an adult that gets common rotation is The Hudsucker Proxy (appropriately by two Jewish brothers and set at New Year's instead of Christmas). I considered that one for my ballot, but did not make it. That said, even with my non-laughing experience with NLCV that last time I saw it, I'd still be more likely to put it on if the only options were that or Home Alone (and something had to be turned on).

Seen: 17/22

Step Brothers feels more awkward to me than anything, but that doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it. There were moments of hilarity, but the story was a little predictable. 69/100.

Seen 14/22

I like Will Ferrell and Chevy Chase a lot on screen, but they both seem like total aholes off screen.