The Funniest American Comedies

My Cousin Vinny
      1992 | USA | Laughs: N/A (Light-Hearted) | imdb: 7.6
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Four stars. An excellent, fun, even funny movie, but not the kind that has you in stitches. A New York lawyer (Joe Pesci) travels to Alabama with his fiancee to defend his nephew and another youngster, who have been falsely accused of murdering a grocery store clerk. It's always pleasant to see justice triumph—hopefully, it doesn't only happen in the movies. (Last viewed: August 2010)

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The Big Lebowski
      1998 | USA | Laughs: N/A (Light-Hearted) | imdb: 8.1
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A Los Angeles "unemployed long-hair cool dude" gets embroiled in a kidnapping story involving the wife of a millionaire who shares his last name, Lebowski. He gets the well-intentioned but ineffective help of his bowling buddy. Fun but not laugh-out-loud. (Last viewed: Dec 1998 October 2010)

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Dance of the Vampires (a.k.a The Fearless Vampire Killers)
      1967 | USA | Laughs: N/A (Light-Hearted) | imdb: 7.2
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Four stars. An eccentric professor travels to Transylvania to research vampires in company of his young assistant (Roman Polanski), who falls in love with the innkeeper's daughter (Sharon Tate) shortly before "his Excellency", the head vampire of the local castle, plunges his fangs into her neck. Every detail about the Eastern European inn and castle feels real. A beautiful movie that has stuck in my mind since I first saw it as a kid. (Last viewed: Mar 1982 September 2010)

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The Princess Bride
      1987 | USA | Laughs: N/A (Light-Hearted) | imdb: 8.1
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I waited 25 years to watch The Princess Bride, certain that with such a title, this had to be a "girly movie". Ironically, in the opening scene, that is the very fear of the present-era kid whose grandpa offers to read him the story. Cringe no more, this is no romantic fairy tale, but an adventure comedy loaded with humor if not hard laughs and with with interesting character—except for the pricess, of course. A sweet and entertaining film for a rainy Sunday afternoon. (Last viewed: March 2012)

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Raising Arizona
      1987 | USA | Laughs: N/A (Light-Hearted) | imdb: 7.4
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Two stars. An ex-con and his cop wife abduct a baby. Cute but not relaxing—you worry about what will happen to these poor people. (Last viewed: August 2009)

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48 Hours
      1982 | USA | Laughs: N/A (Light-Hearted) | imdb: 6.9
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Three stars. A cop (Nick Nolte) pulls a con (Eddie Murphy) out of jail for two days to crack a case. Endearing characters, beautiful performance by Murphy, a few good laughs. (Last viewed: August 2009)

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Heaven Can Wait
      1978 | USA | Laughs: N/A (Light-Hearted) | imdb: 6.9
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Three stars. A heaven bureaucrat makes a mistake and Joe (Warren Beatty) dies before he's had a chance to win the superbowl. Very sweet, with many funny moments. (Last viewed: August 2009)

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American Pie
      1999 | USA | Laughs: N/A (Light-Hearted) | imdb: 7.0
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Four high-school boys make a pact that they will lose their virginity before the senior prom. If you're looking for a laugh, you've got the wrong movie. But if you're after a smile and a glimpse into the psyche of upper-middle-class American male teenagers, your quest is over. (Last viewed: August 2011)

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Private Benjamin
      1980 | USA | Laughs: N/A (Light-Hearted) | imdb: 6.1
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I hope whoever classified this movie under "Comedy" has since been moved to another division of the film industry—perhaps sandwich-making. It's one of those films that are light-hearted, but certainly not one that makes you laugh out loud. Not very funny, but a few good moments, so not a complete waste of time. (Last viewed: August 2009)

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The Hudsucker Proxy
      1994 | USA | Laughs: N/A (Light-Hearted) | imdb: 7.3
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A good film, just not one that makes you laugh out loud. As often, the Cohen brothers have created a cartoonish world, one that I found visually engaging, though not so pleasant on the ear as several of the characters speak in phoney accents at twice the normal speed. It's New York in the 1950s, and a recent graduate from a small college gets an instant promotion from the mailroom to president of a large corporation, a scheme devised by the board to temporarily drive the stock down to later repurchase it cheaply. Unfortulately for the board members, the presumed dunce invents the hula-hoop. (Last viewed: April 2012)

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The King of Comedy
      1983 | USA | Laughs: N/A (Light-Hearted) | imdb: 7.8
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I found this movie upleasant to watch, but still liked it enough to give it a five out of ten. No doubt Martin Scorcese, who directed the movie, wanted you to cringe, a bit like you might cringe at the behavior of characters in the early instalments of TV series such as Curb Your Enthusiasm or The Office. The film follows two deranged characters who've made it their life's mission to stalk a New York television show host (Jerry Lewis). DeNiro pulls off the role of the alternatively pathetic and brilliant stalker who fantasizes about becoming the next King of Comedy. Easy to skip because hard to watch, but if you do watch it, it will stay with you. (Last viewed: November 2011)

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Thank You for Smoking
      2005 | USA | Laughs: N/A (Light-Hearted) | imdb: 7.6
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Follows the adventures of the tobacco industry's top PR guy. You end up liking him, of course. Fun. (Last viewed: May 2010)

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Pineapple Express
      2008 | USA | Laughs: N/A (Light-Hearted) | imdb: 7.0
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Two stars. Two potheads try to escape a murderous dealer. One of the thousand movies since Pulp Fiction that derive much of their "humor" from showing people shooting people as though that were as casual an activity as brushing one's teeth. (Last viewed: April 2011)

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Couples Retreat
      2009 | USA | Laughs: N/A (Light-Hearted) | imdb: 5.5
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Four couples spend a week in an exotic resort for couple therapy. It felt like watching a lot of therapy, which is uncommon in the movies. A good film from that standpoint, just not a particularly funny one. (Last viewed: April 2012)

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Knocked Up
      2007 | USA | Laughs: N/A (Light-Hearted) | imdb: 7.0
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Eight weeks after a one-night stand with a dude who, without the alcohol, wouldn't be far from her nightmare date, a TV presenter finds herself pregnant. A cute story overall, a few laughs, but also way too much frat-house humor for my taste. It also felt like the movie lasted four hours. Would not watch again. (Last viewed: October 2011)

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