Comedies from the 2000s

The Trotsky
      2009 | Canada | Laughs: 5.5 (Laugh and Smile) | imdb: 6.8
      wikipedia | who was involved?

Convinced he is the Canadian reincarnation of Leon Trotsky, a high school senior tries to organize his classmates into a student union. Although I didn't burst out laughing, I loved the movie and chuckled throughout. Probably the best high school movie I've even seen, and the second excellent Canadian comedy I've seen in a short while (the first was Starbuck). (Last viewed: April 2013)

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Friend Zone (Pagafantas)
      2009 | Spain | Laughs: 5.5 (Laugh and Smile) | imdb: 6.1
      wikipedia | who was involved?

A man falls in love with an Argentinean woman but can't avoid falling into the role of pagafantas, the guy who buys drinks but never becomes a romantic interest.

I'm not sure I laughed out loud, but I found the movie very funny and enjoyable. It's short and sweet, which is probably how comedies with a simple premise should be.

For those who enjoy accents, the out-of-place accent of the young woman is another aspect to savor.

(Last viewed: January 2019)

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Funny People
      2009 | USA | Laughs: 5.5 (Laugh and Smile) | imdb: 6.3
      who was involved?

A comedian at the top of his career (Adam Sandler) hires a comedian who is starting out to write jokes for his stand-up show. He has cancer but recovers midway through the movie, so we get a whole second film as a bonus. Not only did this movie make me laugh several times, it had a strong plot with characters that behave like real people (well, mostly).

Edit:
After watching Funny People a second time nine years later, I feel that this movie is an underrated little gem.

First off, the cast is spectacular. Adam Sandler has some funny bits — and some that flop, but that's the role, a thankless one. Seth Rogen is at his best. Jonah Hill is thrown in as a two-pack bonus. Several of the supporting actors made a name for themselves as comedians during the following years, such as Aubrey Plaza and Aziz Ansari from Parks and Recreation. Torsten Voges (someone I'd never heard of) is funny as a humorless German doctor. Jason Schwartzman and Leslie Mann are perfect for their roles and keep the smiles going. Eminem has a short but terrific intervention. And as a late treat in the final part of the movie, we're introduced to a new character played by Eric Bana, who featured in The Castle, perhaps the best Australian comedy of all times.

There is a prescient joke about Robin Williams slitting his wrists (at around 19'40" on my tape, during Rogen's first stand-up set). There are many other things to like. Are there some things to dislike? Yes. But overall, this is a really special film which I hope I remember to watch again ten years from now.

(Last viewed: Jan 2010 July 2019)

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Old School
      2003 | USA | Laughs: 5.5 (Chuckle) | imdb: 7.1
      wikipedia | dmoz | who was involved?

A thirty-year-old rents a house on a college campus. His buddies bully him into starting a fraternity. On first viewing (2011), I stopped there (about half an hour into the film) as it seemed to me that the movie kept getting worse every minute. Eleven years later, a trusted friend raved about the movie, and I thought I'd give it a second chance.

And indeed that time it made me smile a lot. The first time around, I must have assumed it was one of these raunchy comedies for horny young males, but it was much tamer than that. There was even a cute love story.

In short, give it a try.

(Last viewed: Apr 2011 November 2022)

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Wet Hot American Summer
      2001 | USA | Laughs: 5.5 (Laugh and Smile) | imdb: 6.6
      wikipedia | dmoz | who was involved?

This film takes place over the last day at Summer camp in the 1970s. I was glad to discover it as it was probably the funniest Summer camp movie I've seen. The humor is all over the place: some of it slapstick, some of it quite dark, some of it plain crude. The movie happens to feature many faces who became well-known in comedy in the next decade. I can't say that I laughed a lot, but I was entertained and would watch it again ten years from now. In the same theme, you may want to check out Meatballs and Heavyweights. (Last viewed: June 2015)

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L'Antidote
      2005 | France | Laughs: 5.5 (Watch Once) | imdb: 5.2
      who was involved?

A corporate mogul who has suddenly become afflicted with a speech impediment discovers that he can operate normally when in the presence of a toy factory's modest accountant, whom he hires to keep by his side day and night. This film probably won't make you break out with laughter, but it's entertaining enough, and if you're a fan of Jacques Villeret (best-known for his role in The Dinner Game, then you definitely have to watch it. Sadly Jacques hasn't played in other great comedies, and this is not one of the worst. (Last viewed: July 2014)

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The Dinner Guest (L'Invité)
      2007 | France | Laughs: 5.4 (Watch Once) | imdb: 5.6
      who was involved?

A man who has been unemployed for three years is offered an exciting position, but he has to overcome one final obstacle: a dinner in his own home with the chief of personnel. The new neighbor happens to be an image consultant and graciously offers to help. The most exciting thing about this movie is the unspoken promise of reliving the highs from the amazing Dinner Game, which stars one of the same actors. The promise cannot be fulfilled, of course. Neither Thierry Lhermite nor Daniel Auteuil—both competent actors—have what it takes to carry a laugh-out-lout comedy: they are more suited playing opposite born stand-up comedians. Nevertheless, it's a good effort and the movie has enough humor to warrant watching once. (Last viewed: October 2012)

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Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story
      2004 | USA | Laughs: 5.3 (Watch Once) | imdb: 6.7
      wikipedia | dmoz | who was involved?

To stay in business, the owner of a gym enters his handful of staff and clients into a dodgeball competition. A few laughs make this worth a watch despite the weak plot and characters. (Last viewed: May 2011)

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Superhero Movie
      2008 | USA | Laughs: 5.3 (Watch Once) | imdb: 4.5
      wikipedia | who was involved?

A spiderman spoof with some good chuckles. (Last viewed: April 2011)

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Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby
      2006 | USA | Laughs: 5.1 (Broken Comedies) | imdb: 6.6
      wikipedia | dmoz | who was involved?

This review is in two parts: the day I gave up, and the day I persevered. Part 1. Will Ferrell is often too loud for my taste, and in this movie he breaks all records. He plays a star race car driver. I hung on for as long as I could because of the Southern accents, but after 23 minutes of ear-busting chaos (and not a single laugh), I had to give up. Firmly in the unwatchable category. Part 2. After reading some glowing reviews, I gave it another shot. It turns out I had stopped at the low point of the movie (the bar scene). After that, the story twists, and the characters become more attaching. Perhaps worth watching once if you can handle loud acting. (Last viewed: July 2012)

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The Love Guru
      2008 | USA | Laughs: 5.0 (Watch Once) | imdb: 3.8
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This Mike Myers film is one of those comedies that starts very poorly but gradually improves—the opposite of Weekend at Bernie's. Perhaps the awful start explains the record-low IMDB rating (3.8 last time I checked). I got up after twenty minutes to grab a cup of tea, unsure of whether to persevere, and thought to myself, "this is the movie you make when you want to waste your public capital and tell the world you no longer want to make movies". But by the end, I felt that the writers had done a really good job researching the world of spiritual teachers, though not a great one at making us laugh. Largely, the Love Guru is an excuse for another extravagant character for Mike Myers to play, and he does a good job not relying on many tricks I never want to see again because of overuse, such as his peculiar way of raising his eyebrows. This is no Austin Powers in the laughter department (though it is almost as crass), but if you've had a passing acquaintance with the "guru business", you may appreciate many of the film's elements. (Last viewed: July 2012)

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Anger Management
      2003 | USA | Laughs: 5.0 (Laugh and Smile) | imdb: 6.3
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Wrongly accused of having lost his temper on an airplane, a man is ordered to undertake intense training in anger management under the supervision of a therapist who displays several symptoms of lunacy. Despite its numerous shortcomings, the movie made me laugh several times, thanks largely to Jack Nicholson's strong performance. This not Sandler's worst movie; nor (by far) is it his best. But if you're not expecting fireworks, the movie should have enough to keep you entertained. (Last viewed: May 2015)

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Bridget Jones' Diary
      2001 | U.K. | Laughs: 5.0 (Light-Hearted) | imdb: 6.7
      wikipedia | dmoz | who was involved?

A 32-year-old London woman struggles in her quest to find the man who will pop the question. There is a lot to cringe about in this movie, but in a good way—you cringe because you recognize situations that happen in real live, as in Curb Your Enthusiasm. Although this is not a laugh-out-loud comedy, you will probably smile throughout, thanks largely to Hugh Grant's dry humor. (Off-topic: when I first noticed Hugh Grant, I wondered whether he was Rupert Everett, another excellent British actor, who seemed to have disappeared shortly after starring in Another Country.) The other male actor (Colin Firth) is also excellent, and the lead actress (Renée Zellweger) does a great job. If you've held off on Bridget Jones' Diary because you thought it was a "girl's movie", give up now and give it a try. It's pretty good! On the other hand, you can give the sequel (Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason) a miss. (Last viewed: Jun 2003 September 2012)

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Legally Blonde
      2001 | USA | Laughs: 5.0 (Watch Once) | imdb: 6.3
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I can hardly believe it took me nearly fifteen years to watch this movie, but the numbers don't lie. I guess I was prejudiced against it without knowing what it was about. As it turns out, this is a movie about prejudice, probably the same kind of discrimination that kept me away from it all those years. Dumped by her boyfriend who thinks she is not smart enough for him, a young woman gets admitted to the same law school he is about to attend, but finds that people there are also very much prejudiced against her blonde hair—or perhaps more accurately her blondeness. I may not have laughed, but I chuckled a lot and thoroughly enjoyed the film. Another thing I did not expect: the movie is devoid of obscene language and nudity. (Last viewed: July 2015)

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Observe and Report
      2008 | USA | Laughs: 5.0 (Chuckle) | imdb: 5.8
      wikipedia | who was involved?

A shopping mall's security guard takes himself to be a supercop. At first the lead character's acting was so over the top that I nearly gave up, but in the end I'm glad I sat it out. Even around the 30-minute mark, you could be forgiven for thinking that the best part of the film is that its main character rides a gorgeous white-and-blue 1988 Honda Transalp. But the movie is unpredictable, and that is its chief strength. It is also short, as befits fast-food comedy.

There are a number of good lines, and I'm glad to report that there were a few chuckles here and there. Warning: this is not a family movie.

(Last viewed: January 2019)

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