I apologise. ‘Comedy’ is far too broad for me to put my favourites down here and not to have whimpering twats droning in my ear about how Caddyshack is ‘seminal’. (It’s not. You are just a twat.)
But, onward. Anyone under the misconception that comedy is only funny when it is somehow relevant to them only has to look at Charlie Chaplin’s The Great Dictator for renewed faith in early comedies’ power to tickle.
This wonderful pastiche of Nazism includes the subtly (and wonderfully) named dictator Adenoid Hynkel performing a lovely bit of ballet with a big inflatable globe. Absolute genius.
This and the films of Chaplin contemporary Buster Keaton form the basis for almost all physical comedy produced today.
Despite the seeming dearth of genuine comedy talent in mainstream cinema in recent years, some gems have nevertheless emerged, foremost among them Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy.
Without a doubt, it contains some of the greatest hammed-up lines in modern cinema, whilst the romantic sub plot even (kind of) works.
And just last year, Martin McDonagh’s move from stage to screen produced the hysterically funny In Bruges, thereby proving that there is room for sharp and biting dialogue in amongst the temptation of star power to carry a film.
Doing comedy a little bit differently often helps too, and Rob Reiner’s This Is Spinal Tap exploits the director’s incredible (albeit anal) attention to detail, to ensure that the film gets every bit of the documentary style spot on.
The result? The viewer is immediately and intensely transported into the sordid world of Nigel Tufnel and co.
Choosing my absolute personal favourite, though, required a painstaking effort to decide which comedy classic to pick from the bastion of bloody funny that is the complete Monty Python oeuvre. In the end, The Meaning of Life won out with just the right combination of witty dialogue and absurdity.
I know everyone will disagree with me, so I say this to the whimpering twats-bring it on.
