Subgenre Sampler

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Parting Shots (1998): Dir. Michael Winner
Feat. Chris Rea, Bob Hoskins, Ben Kingsley…; Once–fashionable photographer Chris Rea finds out he only has months to live, and decides to get his own back at those that have made his life…
Return of Spinal Tap, The (A Spinal Tap Reunion: The 25th Anniversary London Sell-Out) (1992): Dir. Jim Di Bergi
Feat. Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, Harry Shearer; Follow–up mockumentary to the beloved THIS IS SPINAL TAP, following the band on a sad final tour of the USA to promote their album Smell the…
Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter (Tune in Tomorrow) (1990): Dir. Jon Amiel
Feat. Keanu Reeves, Barbara Hershey, Peter Falk; A sophisticated cocktail of fantasy and bent reality in which Keanu Reeves and Barbara Hershey meet an endearing yet shrewd scriptwriter (Peter Falk)…
Big Steal, The (1990): Dir. Nadia Tass
Feat. Ben Mendelsohn, Claudia Karvan; Romantic romp from the makers of MALCOLM, possesses the charm and wit that made that film memorable. Teenager Ben Mendelsohn wins a date with the…
Bullseye! (1990): Dir. Michael Winner
Feat. Roger Moore, Michael Caine, Sally Kirkland; Lamentable farce has Caine and Moore playing dual roles. Firstly, as nuclear physicists with secret formulas to sell, and secondly as two…
Cadillac Man (1990): Dir. Roger Donaldson
Feat. Robin Williams, Tim Robbins; Motor–mouthed car salesman Robin Williams has his dealership (and alas, the fun) beseiged by a jealous, machine–gun toting husband (Tim…
Cry-Baby (Cry baby) (1990): Dir. John Waters
Feat. Johnny Depp, Amy Locane, Susan Tyrrell…; Another stylish, camp classic from the infamous director who made Divine a cult sensation. Depp heads a super cast in a tribute to the juvenile…
Death in Brunswick (1990): Dir. John Ruane
Feat. Sam Neill, John Clarke; Sam Neill gets himself into deep water when he lands a job in a seedy nightclub, falls in love, but unwittingly gets caught up in ethnic…
Erik the Viking (1990): Dir. Terry Jones
Feat. Tim Robbins, Mickey Rooney, Eartha Kitt; A swashbuckling comic fantasy from the Monty Python stable about a Nordic warrior who develops a conscience, and so leads his unruly band of…
Flashback (1990): Dir. Franco Amurri
Feat. Dennis Hopper, Kiefer Sutherland, Carol Kane…; Dennis Hopper parodies himself in this enjoyable, wacky film as an achetypal hippie who leads yup–tight FBI agent Kiefer Sutherland down the…
Freshman, The (1990): Dir. Andrew Bergman
Feat. Marlon Brando, Matthew Broderick, Penelope Ann Miller…; Chucklesome comedy finds NYC film student Broderick forced to run errands for small time mobster Brando (who does a mirror–perfect parody of…
Green Card (1990): Dir. Peter Weir
Feat. Gerard Depardieu, Andie MacDowell; English language debut for Gerard Depardieu as a French musician who enters into a marriage–of–convenience with a stranger (Andie…
House Party (1990): Dir. Reginald Hudlin
Feat. Robin Harris, Martin Lawrence; A young, all–black cast star in this hip comedy about a group of home–boys who stage the ultimate party while the folks are away. A…
I Love You to Death (1990): Dir. Lawrence Kasdan
Feat. Kevin Kline, Tracey Ullman, Joan Plowright…; Kevin Kline heads a great cast in this endearing black comedy about an embittered housewife who creatively tries to bump off her chronically…
Joe Versus The Volcano (1990): Dir. John Patrick Shanley
Feat. Tom Hanks, Meg Ryan, Lloyd Bridges…; Finding he has only six months to live, Tom Hanks is strangely offered megabucks to jump into a vat of hot lava for the sake of ancient gods.
Kindergarten Cop (1990): Dir. Ivan Reitman
Feat. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Penelope Ann Miller; The Hollywood success formula fires on all cylinders, with many laughs, action, a likeable support cast and Arnie on form as an undercover agent…
Loose Cannons (1990): Dir. Bob Clark
Feat. Dan Aykroyd, Gene Hackman, Dom DeLuise…; Clunky buddy cop comedy has Gene Hackman and Dan Aykroyd teaming up to fight crime, only one of them suffers from split personality disorder.
Mermaids (1990): Dir. Richard Benjamin
Feat. Cher, Winona Ryder, Christina Ricci…; Cher plays the sexpot mom of square daughter Winona Ryder who aspires to be a nun. Slight but affecting tale set in small town '60s America, with Bob…
Nuns On the Run (1990): Dir. Jonathan Lynn
Feat. Robbie Coltrane, Eric Idle; Bumbling crooks Robbie Coltrane and Eric Idle dress in strange habits to avert the law when a million dollar heist goes awry.
Pretty Woman (1990): Dir. Garry Marshall
Feat. Julia Roberts, Richard Gere; Julia Roberts was catapulted to stardom in this fairy–tale romance about a call–girl who is swept up by Richard Gere, a millionaire…
Quick Change (1990): Dir. Bill Murray
Feat. Bill Murray, Geena Davis, Randy Quaid; Clever caper comedy features the most ingenious bank robbery ever staged. Rollicking fun with Bill Murray, Geena Davis and Randy Quaid.
Rosalie Goes Shopping (1990): Dir. Percy Adlon
Feat. Marianne Sagebrecht, Brad Davis, Judge Reinhold…; Marianne Sagebrecht, the plump and lovable Bavarian from BAGDAD CAFE, is this time endowed with 37 credit cards and an insatiable appetite for…
Sibling Rivalry (1990): Dir. Carl Reiner
Feat. Kirstie Alley, Bill Pullman, Carrie Fisher…; Hysterical screwball comedy with Kirstie Alley playing an aspiring writer and neglected wife, whose fling with a handsome stranger leads to mistaken…
Waiting for the Light (1990): Dir. Christopher Monger
Feat. Shirley Maclaine, Teri Garr, Clancy Brown; Shirley MacLaine is a hoot in this silly family film about a former magician who moves her straight–laced niece and her mischievous children to…
When Harry Met Sally (1990): Dir. Rob Reiner
Feat. Meg Ryan, Billy Crystal; Thirtysomething favourite that amicably flirts with the subject of platonic relationships between men and women. Meg Ryan's priceless 'fake orgasm'…
Behaving Badly (TV mini-series) (1989): Dir. David Tucker
Feat. Judi Dench, Frances Barber, Maurice Denham…; A bleak though blackly–comic mini–series with Judi Dench as a dowdy housewife who belatedly comes out of her shell after her husband of…
Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989): Dir. Stephen Herek
Feat. Keanu Reeves, Alex Winter, George Carlin; Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter play a couple of crazed teenagers who are sent on a Excellent Adventure, collecting famous historical figures via a…
Bloodhounds of Broadway (1989): Dir. Howard Brookner
Feat. Matt Dillon, Jennifer Grey, Julie Hagerty…; An American Playhouse adaptation of four Damon Runyon tales which intersect on New Year's Eve 1928 in a milieu of jazz–age hedonism. A good…
Burbs, The (1989): Dir. Joe Dante
Feat. Tom Hanks, Bruce Dern, Carrie Fisher…; A worthwhile comic spin on that age–old comic scenario – what if those strange new neighbours were members of a cannibalistic cult?…
Chorus of Disapproval (1989): Dir. Michael Winner
Feat. Jeremy Irons, Anthony Hopkins, Prunella Scales…; A light and slight drama set around widower Jeremy Iron’s move to a seaside town and involvement with a local theatre group. Superb cast livens the…
Cousins (1989): Dir. Joel Schumacher
Feat. Ted Danson, Isabella Rossellini, Sean Young…; Superior remake of COUSIN COUSINE with Danson and Rossellini pretending to be lovers to avenge their unfaithful partners.
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (1989): Dir. Frank Oz
Feat. Steve Martin, Michael Caine; Small–time peddler Steve Martin and aristocratic con–man Michael Caine compete to swindle $50,000 from the next woman they meet. Wild and…
Dream Team, The (1989): Dir. Howard Zieff
Feat. Michael Keaton, Christopher Lloyd, Peter Boyle; Four mental patients are taken by their psychiatrist to see a baseball game and end up lost in New York after he is knocked unconscious while…
Emerald City (1989): Dir. Michael Jenkins
Feat. John Hargreaves, Robyn Nevin; Screen adaptation of David Williamson's play about an 'arty' film writer who moves to Sydney and coaxed into making commercial schlock. Funny and…
Get Smart Again (1989): Dir. Gary Nelson
Feat. Don Adams, Barbara Feldon; A latterday followup to the great Mel Brooks–produced TV Series, with Don Adams returning as the bumbling spy Maxwell Smart, here trying to…
Harlem Nights (1989): Dir. Eddie Murphy
Feat. Eddie Murphy, Richard Pryor, Redd Foxx…; An excellent comic cast can't save this mismatched black American riff on THE GODFATHER series, set amid the 1930s jazz–club underworld of…
Heathers (1989): Dir. Michael Lehmann
Feat. Winona Ryder, Christian Slater, Shannen Doherty; 'Heathers' are an elite group of glamourous, stuck–up brat–girls who gradually meet their maker courtesy of a rebel Heather (Winona…
How to Get Ahead in Advertising (1989): Dir. Bruce Robinson
Feat. Richard E. Grant, Rachel Ward; Richard E. Grant encores for the director of WITHNAIL AND I to play a manic genius ad–man whose conscience rears its ugly head while he…
National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (Christmas Vacation) (1989): Dir. Jeremiah Chechik
Feat. Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo, Randy Quaid; A John Hughes–penned comedy featuring Chevy Chase as the bedraggled father of the family Griswold, whose plans for a big family Christmas…
Parenthood (1989): Dir. Ron Howard
Feat. Steve Martin, Mary Steenburgen, Dianne Wiest…; An effervescent and poignant comedy about the trials and tribulations of family life. An impressive ensemble cast headed by Steve Martin provide…
See No Evil, Hear No Evil (1989): Dir. Arthur Hiller
Feat. Richard Pryor, Gene Wilder; Average teaming of Wilder and Pryor as a deaf man and a blind man on the lam. The high obscene–language level doesn't yield much comic results.
She-Devil (1989): Dir. Susan Seidelman
Feat. Meryl Streep, Roseanne, Ed Jr. Begley…; A stylised comic treatment of Fay Weldon's dark novel with Rosanne Barr exacting ultimate retribution on husband–stealing rich–bitch…
Tall Guy, The (1989): Dir. Mel Smith
Feat. Jeff Goldblum, Rowan Atkinson, Emma Thompson; Jeff Goldblum plays an American actor in England who faces successive crises with obnoxious employer Rowan Atkinson and love interest Emma Thompson.
Uncle Buck (1989): Dir. John Hughes
Feat. John Candy, Amy Madigan; John Candy plays a loathsome uncle with a heart of gold left in charge of his brother's kids for the weekend.
Vidiot from UHF, The (1989): Dir. Jay Levey
Feat. Al Yankovic, Michael Richards, Kevin McCarthy…; 'Weird' Al Yankovic showcases his brand of crazy satire as the manager of a loony TV station. Pretty stoopid, but kids will love it.
War of the Roses (1989): Dir. Danny De Vito
Feat. Kathleen Turner, Michael Douglas, Sean Astin…; Hollywood black humour is taken to the limit here as marital bliss turns to domestic warfare for Kathleen Turner and Michael Douglas. Bold and…
We're No Angels (1989): Dir. Neil Jordan
Feat. Robert De Niro, Sean Penn, Demi Moore…; Robert De Niro and Sean Penn team up as a couple of escaped convicts who cross the border in clergical attire.
Weekend at Bernies (1989): Dir. Ted Kotcheff
Feat. Andrew McCarthy, Jonathan Silverman, Catherine Mary Stewart; A tacky but highly inventive comedy about two young execs who must ensure their deceased boss at least appears that way in order to enjoy his luxury…
Wilt (1989): Dir. Michael Tuchner
Feat. Griff Rhys-Jones, Mel Smith; Tom Sharpe's outrageous farce with Griff Rhys Jones as the dowdy schoolteacher suspected of murdering his social–climbing wife. Bent in all the…
Young Einstein (1989): Dir. Yahoo Serious
Feat. Yahoo Serious, Odile Le Clezio, John Howard; Ozzie one–man film–making machine Yahoo Serious stars in his own zany slapstick epic about an intrepid young maverick who happens to be a…
Big Business (1988): Dir. Jim Abrahams
Feat. Bette Midler, Lily Tomlin, Fred Ward…; Midler and Tomlin play sets of identical twins in this mixed–identity farce.
Bull Durham (1988): Dir. Ron Shelton
Feat. Kevin Costner, Susan Sarandon, Tim Robbins; Costner and Sarandon star in this much–admired romantic baseball comedy.
Coming to America (1988): Dir. John Landis
Feat. Eddie Murphy, Arsenio Hall, James Earl Jones; Wacky Eddie Murphy classic in which an African Prince (Murphy) accompanied by his side–kick (Arsenio Hall) pilgrimage to America in search of…
Couch Trip, The (1988): Dir. Michael Ritchie
Feat. Dan Aykroyd, Charles Grodin, Donna Dixon…; Aykroyd plays a mental patient on the loose in Los Angeles masquerading as a renowned psychiatrist. Agreeably sends up Hollywood's therapy obsessions…
Crocodile Dundee 2 (1988): Dir. John Cornell
Feat. Paul Hogan, Linda Kozlowski, John Meillon…; The true blue ocker with the big knife runs into more trouble in New York when his sheila gets kidnapped by some drug dealing yobbos. Law of…
Earth Girls Are Easy (1988): Dir. Julien Temple
Feat. Geena Davis, Jeff Goldblum, Jim Carrey…; Under–rated campy musical about a trio of goofy aliens (incl. Jim Carrey in an early role) who crash–land in Geena Davis's swimming pool.
Fish Called Wanda, A (1988): Dir. Charles Crichton
Feat. John Cleese, Kevin Kline, Jamie Lee Curtis…; Rarely does a comedy achieve such a high laugh–count and provide substance beyond sheer entertainment value. A comic masterpiece written by and…
Great Outdoors, The (1988): Dir. Howard Deutch
Feat. Dan Aykroyd, John Candy, Annette Bening…; Dan Akroyd and John Candy are brothers–in–law who ruin each other's family vacation in this John Hughes production which exemplifies…
Hairspray (1988): Dir. John Waters
Feat. Divine, John Waters; Divine stars in his/her final film, heading a suitably whacko cast in the first PG–rated feature from long–time mentor John Waters. A…
Heartbreak Hotel (1988): Dir. Chris Columbus
Feat. David Keith, Tuesday Weld, Charlie Schlatter; Goofy comedy–adventure in which an aspiring rocker kidnaps Elvis Presley (David Keith) and hits the road in a pink Cadillac.
High Spirits (1988): Dir. Neil Jordan
Feat. Peter O'Toole, Donal McCann, Daryl Hannah…; All–star horror farce set around impoverished gentleman O'Toole's attempts to lure tourists to his Irish castle, with the promise of 'ghosts'…
Johnny Be Good (1988): Dir. Bud Smith
Feat. Anthony Michael Hall, Robert Downey Jnr., Uma Thurman…; Woeful comedy with a miscast Hall as a talented high school football player enjoying the perks and pitfalls of college celebrity.
License to Drive (1988): Dir. Greg Beeman
Feat. Corey Haim, Corey Feldman, Carol Kane…; A teen decides to go for a night on the town with his friends despite flunking his driver's test.
Murphy Brown (TV Series) (1988-1998): Feat. Candice Bergen; A solid and likeable sttcom set around a gutsy woman journalist in Washington DC, who negotiates her personal indulgences and demons along with the…
Mystic Pizza (1988): Dir. Donald Petrie
Feat. Julia Roberts, Lili Taylor, Annabeth Gish; Julia Roberts' star quality shines in this, her debut film, contrasting the love–lives of three pizza waitresses in a town called Mystic.…
Naked Gun, The (1988): Dir. David Zucker
Feat. Leslie Nielsen, George Kennedy, O.J. Simpson…; Leslie Neilsen perfects his deadpan for the Zucker Bros., who do for police work what their classic FLYING HIGH did for air travel. A…
Natural Causes (1988): Dir. Vernon Lawrence
Feat. George Cole, Prunella Scales; A farcical comedy of infidelity and spousal skulduggery. George Cole plays a professional 'disposer' who is hired to fabricate the suicide of a…
Punchline (1988): Dir. David Seltzer
Feat. Sally Field, Tom Hanks, John Goodman; Ambitious comedy–drama focused on the career–efforts of two, very different aspiring standup comics – a personable Sally Field and…
Satisfaction (Girls of Summer) (1988): Dir. Joan Freeman
Feat. Justine Bateman, Julia Roberts, Liam Neeson…; Flavour of the '80s, Justine Bateman (TV's FAMILY TIES), stole the limelight from her then fledgling co–star, Julia Roberts, in this hoary girl…
Scrooged (1988): Dir. Richard Donner
Feat. Bill Murray, Karen Allen, Alfre Woodard…; Bill Murray is hilariously mean–spirited as a yuppie incarnation of Charles Dicken’s ‘Scrooge’ who eventually gets a change of attitude…
She's Having a Baby (1988): Dir. John Hughes
Feat. Kevin Bacon, Elizabeth McGovern, Alec Baldwin…; Another John Hughes hit in which young Kevin Bacon and Elizabeth McGovern embark on marriage and parenthood.
Some Girls (1988): Dir. Mike Hoffman
Feat. Patrick Dempsey, Jennifer Connelly, Sheila Kelley…; An odd and moving little film in which a college student travels to Quebec to visit his girlfriend – and her eccentric family, and is thrust…
Twins (1988): Dir. Ivan Reitman
Feat. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Danny De Vito; A science experiment posits Big Arnie and pint–sized Danny DeVito as not–so–identical twins who meet as adults after being…
Vampire's Kiss (1988): Dir. Robert Bierman
Feat. Nicolas Cage, Maria Conchita Alonso, Jennifer Beals; Nicolas Cage gives a wildly uninhibited performance as a psychotic yuppie who thinks he's been bitten by a vampire. From the pen that wrote the…
Without A Clue (1988): Dir. Thom Eberhardt
Feat. Michael Caine, Ben Kingsley, Jeffrey Jones…; A nicely contrived send–up of the Sherlock Holmes stories, with Kingsley playing Doctor Watson, who in fact has invented the character of…
Broadcast News (1987): Dir. James L. Brooks
Feat. Holly Hunter, William Hurt, Albert Brooks…; Superb TV newsroom dramedy in which vacuous newsreader Hurt and neurotic reporter Brooks compete for the attentions of Holly Hunter.
Can't Buy Me Love (1987): Dir. Steve Rash
Feat. Patrick Dempsey; Likeable though period–bound comedy in which nerdy student Patrick Dempsey pays the gorgeous Amanda Peterson a thousand bucks to pose as his…
Date With An Angel (1987): Dir. Tom McLoughlin
Feat. Michael E. Knight, Emmanuelle Beart, Phoebe Cates…; Frothy and feckless, this dim comedy has a man waking up after his bachelor party to find an angel in his pool. You can bet they're going to have…
Eat the Rich (1987): Dir. Peter Richardson
Feat. Adrian Edmondson, Rik Mayall, Jennifer Saunders…; Terrific second feature from the COMIC STRIP players makes a spectacular mockery of the British class structure and Thatcherist politics. It's a…
Good Morning, Vietnam (1987): Dir. Barry Levinson
Feat. Robin Williams, Forest Whitaker; Robin Williams tour–de–force performance as an irreverant, rebel radio–jock stationed in Saigon during the Vietnam War. The funny…
Mannequin (1987): Dir. Michael Gottlieb
Feat. Andrew McCarthy, Kim Cattrall, Estelle Getty…; Andrew McCarthy stars as a department store window–dresser who discovers that one of his mannequins (Kim Cattrall) is actually a woman from…
Moonstruck (1987): Dir. Norman Jewison
Feat. Nicolas Cage, Cher, Danny Aiello; Superb comic drama rivals the best of Woody Allen through vignettes of family life in New York's Italian district, and the cast have never been…
Outrageous Fortune (1987): Dir. Arthur Hiller
Feat. Bette Midler, Shelley Long, George Carlin…; Floozy Bette Midler and straight–gal Shelley Long search for their boyfriend in common.
Overboard (1987): Dir. Garry Marshall
Feat. Goldie Hawn, Kurt Russell, Roddy McDowall; Cute and fluffy antics, with a snooty Goldie Hawn suffering amnesia and, being taken–in by ship–repairer Kurt Russell and his chaotic…
Pick-Up Artist, The (Pickup Artist) (1987): Dir. James Toback
Feat. Robert Downey Jnr., Molly Ringwald, Dennis Hopper…; Serial womanizer Downey gets more than he bargained for when he falls for mobster's daughter Ringwald. Teen sex comedy is more thorny than horny with…
Planes, Trains and Automobiles (1987): Dir. John Hughes
Feat. Steve Martin, John Candy; Well–matched comic coupling Steve Martin and John Candy go astray in the Midwest transport system. Reliably funny "mature" comedy is a pleasant…
Radio Days (1987): Dir. Woody Allen
Feat. Woody Allen, Mia Farrow, Julie Kavner; Woody Allen revisits his childhood days in the golden era of radio.
Rita, Sue and Bob Too (1987): Dir. Alan Clarke
Feat. Michelle Holmes, Siobhan Finneran; Frank sexuality has rarely been as squarely depicted as in this tale of two naive schoolgirls growing up in working class Liverpool. Bleak and darkly…
Roxanne (1987): Dir. Fred Schepisi
Feat. Steve Martin, Daryl Hannah; Steve Martin's splendid update of Cyrano de Bergerac casts him as a fire chief burdened with an enormous nose. Daryl Hannah is the object of his…
Secret of My Success (1987): Dir. Herbert Ross
Feat. Michael J. Fox, Helen Slater, Richard Jordan; Michael J. Fox returns back to the present to climb the Wall Street corporate ladder.
Spaceballs (1987): Dir. Mel Brooks
Feat. Rick Moranis, Mel Brooks, John Candy…; A rollicking and fairly successful Mel Brooks take–off of STAR WARS and the space–opera genre, with Rick Moranis irresistibly hilarious…
Three O'Clock High (1987): Dir. Phil Joanou
Feat. Casey Siemaszko; Bad day scenario finds teenage loner Siemaszko in a twist with the school’s leather–jacketed thug, who must wheedle out of a 3pm rendezvous…
Throw Momma from the Train (1987): Dir. Danny De Vito
Feat. Billy Crystal, Danny De Vito, Kim Greist…; Snappy comic spinoff of STRANGERS ON A TRAIN.
Tin Men (1987): Dir. Barry Levinson
Feat. Danny De Vito, Richard Dreyfuss, Barbara Hershey; A bitter feud escalates between aluminum–cladding salesm en Danny De Vito and Richard Dreyfuss in the 1950s. Both chinwaggers are in their…
Witches of Eastwick (1987): Dir. George Miller
Feat. Cher, Susan Sarandon, Michelle Pfeiffer…; Lively comic fantasy about three bored spinsters whose dreams of Mr. Right unwittingly conjure up a diabolical Jack Nicholson.
Back to School (1986): Dir. Alan Metter
Feat. Rodney Dangerfield, Sally Kellerman, Keith Gordon…; The finest comedy to feature the loveably crass Rodney Dangerfield, here playing a millionaire who returns to university to set an example for his…
Clockwise (1986): Dir. Christopher Morahan
Feat. John Cleese, Alison Steadman, Joan Hickson; Headmaster John Cleese, with pupil in tow, gets hopelessly lost enroute to a conference. In a more deadpan mode than the usual Python–esque…
Club Paradise (1986): Dir. Harold Ramis
Feat. Harold Ramis, Robin Williams, Peter O'Toole…; Robin Williams retreats to a tropical Caribbean island, helping to renovate a run–down resort at the mercy of ruthless developers. With Jimmy…
Crimes of the Heart (1986): Dir. Bruce Beresford
Feat. Diane Keaton, Jessica Lange, Sissy Spacek…; Diane Keaton, Jessica Lange and Sissy Spacek play the Magrath sisters, who reunite in their family home in Mississippi to regroup and settle their…
Crocodile Dundee (1986): Dir. Peter Faiman
Feat. Paul Hogan, Linda Kozlowski, David Gulpilil…; Immensely successful Aussie comedy with outbacker Hogan encountering New York.
Down and Out in Beverly Hills (1986): Dir. Paul Mazursky
Feat. Nick Nolte, Richard Dreyfuss, Bette Midler…; Street bum Nick Nolte moves in to the plush home of neurotic fat cat Richard Dreyfuss and family, to amply comedic effect.
Hannah and Her Sisters (1986): Dir. Woody Allen
Feat. Woody Allen, Michael Caine, Dianne Wiest…; Spot–on romantic comedy from Woody Allen, aligning another witty and perceptive script with a stellar cast.
Haunted Honeymoon (1986): Dir. Gene Wilder
Feat. Gene Wilder, Dom DeLuise, Gilda Radner…; Insipid farce has two hapless honeymooners besieged by various spooky happenings. There is some fun to be had here and Wilder's affection for Abbott…
Heartburn (1986): Dir. Mike Nichols
Feat. Meryl Streep, Jack Nicholson; Meryl Streep and Jack Nicholson undergo some engaging marital strife.
Howard the Duck (1986): Dir. Willard Huyck
Feat. Lea Thompson, Tim Robbins, Jeffrey Jones; An H–Bomb of interstellar proportions, this George Lucus produced quack–job starred a dwarf–sized humanoid duck, sent to earth to…
It's Garry Shandling's Show (1986-1990): Feat. Garry Shandling; Hugely influential show centered around the neurosis of Garry Shandling – basically playing himself, who along with the rest of the cast just…
Lucas (1986): Dir. David Seltzer
Feat. Corey Haim, Kerri Green, Charlie Sheen…; Genuinely sympathetic account of the teenage love of 'dweeb' Corey Haim for an older schoolmate (Green), through infatuation, rejection and...…
Malcolm (1986): Dir. Nadia Tass
Feat. Colin Friels, John Hargreaves; A simple young man with a genius for things mechanical is coerced into criminal activity by his dodgy new flatmate. Deserved winner of 8 Australian…
Money Pit, The (1986): Dir. Richard Benjamin
Feat. Tom Hanks, Shelley Long; An often very funny 80s comedy about couple Tom Hanks’ and Shelley Long’s disastrous purchase of a home in Long Island that conceals a host of…
Pretty in Pink (1986): Dir. John Hughes
Feat. Molly Ringwald, Harry Dean Stanton; Molly Ringwald faces some tricky teenage dilemmas in John Hughes' quintessentially '80s rite–of–passage.
Ruthless People (1986): Dir. David Zucker, Jerry Zucker, Jim Abrahams
Feat. Bette Midler, Danny De Vito; A genuine classic from the Zucker brothers and Touchstone pictures. The ingenious plot is laced with great gags, giving Bette Midler and Danny DeVito…
Something Wild (1986): Dir. Jonathan Demme
Feat. Melanie Griffith, Jeff Daniels, Ray Liotta; The then–hip Melanie Griffith takes conservative Jeff Daniels on a crash course in carefree living and kinky sex. But the fun turns to terror…
Space Camp (1986): Dir. Harry Winer
Feat. Kate Capshaw, Kelly Preston, Larry B. Scott…; Good natured 80's adolescent romp in which a group of young attendees of a space camp find themselves in space for real when their shuttle is…
Three Amigos (1986): Dir. John Landis
Feat. Steve Martin, Chevy Chase, Martin Short; Cheesy comedy with Steve Martin and Chevy Chase lured to Mexico as gunslingers.
Wildcats (1986): Dir. Michael Ritchie
Feat. Goldie Hawn, James Keach, Swoosie Kurtz; Feel–good football flick with Goldie Hawn as the ambitious coach who takes on an unlikely team of misfits from an inner–Chicago school.
After Hours (1985): Dir. Martin Scorsese
Feat. Griffin Dunne, Rosanna Arquette, Verna Bloom…; Scorsese picked up Best Director award at Cannes for this brilliant, Kafka–esque black comedy about an ordinary guy's traumatic and bizarre…
Always (Always...But Not Forever) (1985): Dir. Henry Jaglom
Feat. Henry Jaglom, Patrice Townsend, Joanna Frank…; One–man–movie–machine Henry Jaglom transforms his own divorce into one of his typically witty naturalistic comedies. The couple…
Better Off Dead (1985): Dir. Savage Steve Holland
Feat. John Cusack, Amanda Wyss, Donald Ogden Stewart…; Skewed version of the 80s teenage comedy which follows the plight of likeable John Cusack after he is dumped by his girlfriend. After many original…
Big Trouble (1985): Dir. John Cassavetes
Feat. Peter Falk, Alan Arkin, Charles Durning…; Cassavette's final film is far from a fitting finale to the iconoclast's career, but its not without its charms. Arkin plays a besieged insurance…
Catholic Boys (Heaven Help Us) (1985): Dir. Michael Dinner
Feat. Mary Stuart Masterson, John Heard, Donald Sutherland…; Slight, but engaging comedy set around a group of Roman Catholic schoolboys and their misadventures with the opposite sex.
Clue (1985): Dir. Jonathan Lynn
Feat. Eileen Brennan, Tim Curry, Madeline Kahn…; Whodunnit comedy based on the well–known boardgame, with its characters undergoing the rounds of suspicion and questioning after a murder.…
Coca Cola Kid, The (1985): Dir. Dusan Makavejev
Feat. Eric Roberts, Greta Scacchi, Bill Kerr…; Quirky Aussie comedy about a Coca Cola marketing guru (Roberts) who visits a small town in the Australian outback to try and sell his product, only…
Creator (1985): Dir. Ivan Passer
Feat. Peter O'Toole, Mariel Hemingway, Vincent Spano…; A charmingly absurd sci–fi rom–com from the 1980's starring Peter O'Toole as a madcap scientist who applies his eccentric methodology to…
Desperately Seeking Susan (1985): Dir. Susan Seidelman
Feat. Rosanna Arquette, Madonna, Aidan Quinn…; Rosanna Arquette and Madonna shine in this spunky and spirited New York comedy/murder mystery – up there with the best of John Hughes' popular…
Fletch (1985): Dir. Michael Ritchie
Feat. Chevy Chase, Joe Don Baker, Dana Wheeler-Nicholson…; Arguably considered his best feature comedy, Chevy Chase plays the titular newspaper reporter with a penchant for changing his identity who stumbles…
Get Out of My Room (1985): Dir. Richard Marin
Feat. Cheech and Chong, Cassandra Peterson, Mary Woronov…; Cheech and Chong oddity, with the doped–out duo contriving four music–videos and a documentary about the whole deal.
Grunt - the Wrestling Movie (1985): Dir. Allan Holzman
Feat. Steven Cepello, Marilyn Dodds Frank, Robert Glaudini; A mid–1980s attempt to cash in on the WWF wrestling craze, with a SPINAL TAP–esque mockumentary about the wrestler 'Mad Dog Joe De…
Lost in America (1985): Dir. Albert Brooks
Feat. Albert Brooks, Julie Hagerty; Albert Brooks and Julie Hagerty give up their stressful yuppie lifestyle to travel in a road–home across America, but things don't go quite to…
Mischief (1985): Dir. Mel Damski
Feat. Catherine Mary Stewart, Kelly Preston, Chris Nash…; Nostalgic teen comedy set in 50's Ohio, where an introverted teen attempts to win the love of the school heart throb, while his extroverted friend…
Morons From Outer Space (1985): Dir. Mike Hodges
Feat. Griff Rhys-Jones, Mel Smith, James B. Sikking…; Tepid space comedy has four aliens crash land on a British motorway and are quickly captured by the authorities who quickly learn that maybe there…
National Lampoon's European Vacation (1985): Dir. Amy Heckerling
Feat. Beverly D'Angelo, Chevy Chase, John Astin; Second in National Lampoon's 'Vacation' series sees the Griswald family off to Europe for a round of slapstick shenanigans with the English, French,…
Once Bitten (1985): Dir. Howard Storm
Feat. Jim Carrey, Lauren Hutton, Cleavon Little; A mature vampiress (Hutton) becomes a predator on an American high school scene, seeking the beauty–enhancing fluids of virgins. Tamely…
Private Function, A (1985): Dir. Malcolm Mowbray
Feat. Michael Palin, Maggie Smith, Denholm Elliott; Michael Palin and Maggie Smith star in Alan Bennett's savage satire of class hypocrisy. Set in post–WW2 Britain during food rationing, secret…
Prizzi's Honor (1985): Dir. John Huston
Feat. Jack Nicholson, Kathleen Turner, Anjelica Huston; Jack Nicholson plays a Mafia hitman, embroiled in some ripely comic and sexy intrigues.
Purple Rose of Cairo (1985): Dir. Woody Allen
Feat. Mia Farrow, Jeff Daniels, Danny Aiello; Exceptional comic fantasy about a depression–era housewife (Mia Farrow) whose solace in the movies blossoms into a romance with a screen…
Raising Arizona (1985): Dir. Joel Coen
Feat. Nicolas Cage, Holly Hunter; Nicolas Cage and Holly Hunter can't concieve a baby of their own, so they steal a quintuplet from a redneck tycoon. Highly original, off–beat…
St. Elmo's Fire (1985): Dir. Joel Schumacher
Feat. Demi Moore, Rob Lowe, Andrew McCarthy…; The definitive 'Brat Pack' movie – seven graduates find the big wide world and the urge to pair off has consequences on their friendship as a…
Sure Thing, The (1985): Dir. Rob Reiner
Feat. John Cusack, Daphne Zuniga, Tim Robbins…; Early John Cusack film puts an agreeable spin on the plot of IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT, where he and female–nemesis Daphne Zuniga uncomfortably…
Teen Wolf / Teen Wolf Too (1985-1986): Dir. Rod Daniel, Christopher Leitch
Feat. Michael J. Fox, Jason Bateman; In TEEN WOLF, Fox plays a high–school student who discovers he has lycanthropic tendencies. The sequel TEEN WOLF TOO continues the story in…
Volunteers (1985): Feat. Tom Hanks, John Candy, Rita Wilson…; Broad eighties comedy stars a fresh–faced Hanks as a upper class snob who joins the peace corps in Thailand in order to escape his gambling…
All of Me (1984): Dir. Carl Reiner
Feat. Steve Martin, Lily Tomlin; Martin gives a career–best turn when, through a little hocus–pocus, is forced to share his body with a crotchety millionairess.
At Last Smith And Jones (TV Series) (Alas Smith and Jones) (1984-1998): Feat. Mel Smith, Griff Rhys-Jones; Best of the British sketch show ALAS SMITH AND JONES. Similar in tone to NOT THE NINE O'CLOCK NEWS, this is equally hit–and–miss,…
Blame it on Rio (1984): Dir. Stanley Donen
Feat. Michael Caine, Demi Moore, Joseph Bologna…; French–style farce in which Caine and his business partner holiday in Rio de Janeiro with their respective teenage daughters in tow. Caine has…
Broadway Danny Rose (1984): Dir. Woody Allen
Feat. Woody Allen, Mia Farrow; Woody is a well–meaning show–biz agent who signs up any odd–ball with an act on the notion that they may pay long–term…
Cheech and Chong: Corsican Brothers (1984): Dir. Thomas Chong
Feat. Cheech and Chong; Cheech and Chong abandon drug–humour for this comic historical spoof, taking three roles each, with their own families being recruited to fill…
Flamingo Kid, The (1984): Dir. Garry Marshall
Feat. Matt Dillon; Amiable teen vehicle for Matt Dillon set at a 1950s holiday resort.
Johnny Dangerously (1984): Dir. Amy Heckerling
Feat. Michael Keating, Joe Piscopo, Marilu Henner…; Michael Keaton turns to a life of crime to support his ailing mother in this zany spoof of 1930's gangster films.
Moscow on the Hudson (1984): Dir. Paul Mazursky
Feat. Robin Williams, Alejandro Rey, Maria Conchita Alonso; Robin Williams plays a Russian musician who defects while touring the U.S., but finds his new home often less than rosy. Tragicomedy, played and…
Oxford Blues (1984): Dir. Robert Boris
Feat. Rob Lowe, Ally Sheedy, Amanda Pays…; A streetwise American hustler pursues the girl of his dream to England's where he enrols at Oxford University and joins the rowing team in an effort…
Police Academy (1984): Dir. Hugh Wilson
Feat. Steve Guttenberg, Michael Winslow, Kim Cattrall; Original of a long–series of 80s comedies lampooning various misfit recruits to a chaotic Police Academy. Stars Steve Guttenberg and Kim…
Protocol (1984): Dir. Herbert Ross
Feat. Goldie Hawn, Chris Sarandon, Richard Romanus; Goldie Hawn plays a charmingly naive cocktail waitress who ends up employed at the White House after saving the president's life, in this…
Revenge of the Nerds (1984): Dir. Jeff Kanew
Feat. Robert Carradine, Anthony Edwards; Distinguished among 80s comedies by its unique agenda in which two bespectacled, buck–toothed nerds battle it out with the college…
Secret Honor (1984): Dir. Robert Altman
Feat. Philip Baker Hall; A fictionalized monologue adapted from the stage by playwrights Donald Freed and Arnold M. Stone, with the great Philip Baker Hall as former…
Woman In Red, The (1984): Dir. Gene Wilder
Feat. Gene Wilder, Kelly Le Brock, Charles Grodin; Perhaps the height of Gene Wilder comedic indulgence, playing a middle–aged average man who becomes besotted with the womanly curves of leggy…
Auf Wiedersehen, Pet (TV Series) (1983-2004): Feat. Timothy Spall, Jimmy Nail, Tim Healy…; Much loved and admired British drama series about a gang of construction labourers who take slightly dodgy, yet lucrative jobs in Europe and…
Bullshot (1983): Dir. Dick Clement
Feat. Alan Shearman, Billy Connolly, Michael Aldridge…; Silly comedy starring Alan Shearman as 'Bullshot Crummond', a dunderheaded WW1 fighter pilot who must save the world from the dastardly Count Otto…
Cheech and Chong - Still Smokin (1983): Dir. Thomas Chong
Feat. Cheech Marin, Thomas Chong; Further herbal adventures from the creators of UP IN SMOKE, this time in the 'promised land' of Holland.
Class (1983): Dir. Lewis John Carlino
Feat. Rob Lowe, Jacqueline Bisset, Andrew McCarthy…; McCarthy plays a preppy student who is goaded by roommate Lowe into losing his virginity. He ends up being seduced by an older woman who turns out to…
Deal of the Century (1983): Dir. William Friedkin
Feat. Chevy Chase, Sigourney Weaver, Gregory Hines; Self–destructing satire finds Chevy Chase dealing arms with a South American dictator, to the tune of $300 million. FRENCH CONNECTION hotshot…
Doctor Detroit (1983): Dir. Michael Pressman
Feat. Dan Aykroyd, Howard Hesseman, Donna Dixon; Under–the–radar 80's comedy sees Aykroyd play a mild–mannered professor of literature who accidentally gets involved with four high…
Easy Money (1983): Dir. James Signorelli
Feat. Rodney Dangerfield, Joe Pesci, Geraldine Fitzgerald…; Brash comedy with Dangerfield ideally cast as a middle–aged slob who must change his ways in order to receive a ten million dollar inheritance.
Educating Rita (1983): Dir. Lewis Gilbert
Feat. Julie Walters, Michael Caine; Satisfying modern take on Pygmalion, with uncultured fair lady Julie Walters and sceptical tutor Michael Caine.
Finally Sunday (Vivement Dimanche!) (1983): Dir. Francois Truffaut
Feat. Fanny Ardant, Jean-Louis Trintignant; A businessman in trouble with the police over the murder of his wife's lover finds solace in his secretary who decides to investigate the case…
Lovesick (1983): Dir. Marshall Brickman
Feat. Dudley Moore, Elizabeth McGovern, Alec Guinness…; A psychiatrist who falls in love with a patient is visited by the spirit of Sigmund Freud, who gives him advice on how to handle it.
Man With Two Brains, The (1983): Dir. Carl Reiner
Feat. Steve Martin, Kathleen Turner; Steve Martin plays a surgeon who frustrated with his wicked, overbearing wife (Kathleen Turner), falls in love with a…
Meaning of Life, The (Monty Python's Meaning of Life) (1983): Dir. Terry Jones
Feat. Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Eric Idle…; Hilarious, oft–times bilious Monty Python hit that examines The Big Issue in a series of loosely–connected sketches.
Mr. Mom (1983): Dir. Stan Dragoti
Feat. Michael Keaton, Teri Garr, Christopher Lloyd…; Easy–going, if predictable role reversal comedy with a screenplay written by 80's teen icon John Hughes. Keaton plays a dad who, after…
National Lampoon's Vacation (1983): Dir. Harold Ramis
Feat. Chevy Chase, Randy Quaid, John Candy; Inaugurating a series that would yield two more vacations/sequels, this moderately amusing gagfest follows the travails of Chevy Chase and family as…
Risky Business (1983): Dir. Paul Brickman
Feat. Tom Cruise, Rebecca De Mornay; A kind of '80s update of THE GRADUATE, this imaginative comedy propelled a 17–year old Tom Cruise into the limelight. Uncommonly stylish and…
Trading Places (1983): Dir. John Landis
Feat. Eddie Murphy, Dan Aykroyd, Don Ameche…; A sturdy comic conceit – for a bet, two interfering millionaires swap the lives of a rich man (Dan Aykroyd) and a poor man (Eddie Murphy) – makes…
Two of a Kind (1983): Dir. John Herzfeld
Feat. John Travolta, Olivia Newton-John, Charles Durning…; God (voiced by Gene Hackman) is so disappointed with mankind he prepares a second Flood, but is persuaded by angels to bet on the reformation of two…
Valley Girl (1983): Dir. Martha Coolidge
Feat. Nicolas Cage, Deborah Foreman, Elizabeth Daily…; One of the coolest teen flicks of the early 80s exults a first starring role for Nicolas Cage as a Hollywood punk who crashes a suburban party and…
Yellowbeard (1983): Dir. Mel Damski
Feat. Graham Chapman, Peter Boyle, Eric Idle…; Pirate farce for serious Python completists only. Impressive cast though.
Author! Author! (1982): Dir. Arthur Hiller
Feat. Al Pacino, Dyan Cannon, Tuesday Weld…; Pacino plays a playwright whose wife deserts the family shortly before his breakthrough work opens on Broadway. Slight, but attractive comedy is a…
Cheech and Chong's Nice Dreams (1982): Dir. Thomas Chong
Feat. Cheech and Chong, Timothy Leary; Mark III from the C&C dope–movie factory sees the hapless pair use an ice–cream van to smokescreen their illicit activities. Cult…
Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid (1982): Dir. Carl Reiner
Feat. Steve Martin; Martin's most clever vehicle has him interacting with vintage film footage of Humphrey Bogart, James Cagney and Lauren Bacall, to dazzling effect. A…
Deathtrap (1982): Dir. Sidney Lumet
Feat. Michael Caine, Christopher Reeve, Joe Silver…; A clever, self–referential comedy based around a failing writer of crime playwright who plans to murder his student for his brilliant whodunnit…
Diner (1982): Dir. Barry Levinson
Feat. Mickey Rourke, Ellen Barkin, Kevin Bacon…; Endearing, and enduring, tale of college friends growing up in the 1950s Baltimore was a box–office flop but soon found an enthusiastic…
Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982): Dir. Amy Heckerling
Feat. Jennifer Jason Leigh, Sean Penn, Judge Reinhold…; This early–80s teen pic survives a lot better than most, finding surprisingly subtle shades of the adolescent experience amid some frank…
Flying High 2 (1982): Dir. Ken Finkleman
Feat. Robert Hays, Julie Hagerty, Lloyd Bridges…; Sequel to spoof film Flying High has the same cast, same plot, same hero – and pretty much the same jokes, but is not nearly as funny as it's…
Ginger Meegs (1982): Dir. Jonathan Dawson
Feat. Garry McDonald; Colourful movie adaptation of the iconic Australian comic strip, following the antics of a red–haired prepubescent mischief–maker who…
Irish R. M., The (1982-1985): Dir. Robert Chetwyn
Feat. Peter Bowles, Beryl Reid, Niall Toibin…; Classic Irish comedy–drama series following a retired English army officer living in turn–of–the–century West Ireland. Based…
Missionary, The (1982): Dir. Richard Loncraine
Feat. Michael Palin, Maggie Smith, Trevor Howard…; Jolly Brit comedy sees Palin as the Rev. Charles Fortesque, recalled to England from missionary work in Africa to minister London's prostitutes,…
Monty Python at the Hollywood Bowl (1982): Dir. Terry Hughes
Feat. Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam…; Sheaf of classic sketches, incl. Lumberjacks, delivered onstage in Los Angeles. Should provoke tears of nostalgic merriment for fans.
National Lampoon's Class Reunion (1982): Dir. Michael Miller
Feat. Gerrit Graham, Fred McCarren, Miriam Flynn…; More of the same from National Lampoon – Lizzie Borden High's Class of '72 have their reunion disrupted by a deranged alum out for revenge…
Night Shift (1982): Dir. Ron Howard
Feat. Shelley Long, Pat Corley, Michael Keaton…; Well–delivered comedy concerning a worker at a morgue who is persuaded to start a prostitution racket by a manic co–worker. Whole cast…
Not the Nine O'Clock News (TV Series) (1982): Feat. Rowan Atkinson, Mel Smith, Griff Rhys-Jones…; The breakthrough series for comic superstars Rowan Atkinson, Mel Smith, Griff Rhys Jones and, er, Pamela Stephenson. The political sketches are as…
Privates On Parade (1982): Dir. Michael Blakemore
Feat. John Cleese; John Cleese stars in this perky adaptation of the play about a gay Song and Dance Unit of the Brtish army stationed in 1940s Singapore.
Things Are Tough All Over (1982): Dir. Thomas K. Avildsen
Feat. Cheech and Chong; The fourth outing for smokesters Cheech Marin and Tommy Chong in their usual guises, this time tangling with a pair of Arabs (also played by C & C)…
Tootsie (1982): Dir. Sydney Pollack
Feat. Dustin Hoffman, Jessica Lange, Bill Murray; Much–loved classic, with unemployed actor Dustin Hoffman donning a dress to pay the bills. Unfortunately, his TV–soap character, Dorothy…
All Night Long (1981): Dir. Jean-Claude Tramont
Feat. Gene Hackman, Barbra Streisand, Dennis Quaid…; Gene Hackman escapes the druggery of family life by shacking up with nutty Barbra Streisand in this uneven screwball comedy. Totally erratic,…
Cannonball Run (1981): Dir. Hal Needham
Feat. Burt Reynolds, Roger Moore, Farrah Fawcett…; Packed with an absurd combination of stars, this trans–continental car race yarn is largely a vehicle for Burt Reynolds wisecracks and some…
Continental Divide (1981): Dir. Michael Apted
Feat. John Belushi, Blair Brown, Allen Garfield…; Neglected Belushi outing is a gentle comedy with a hard–nosed journalist falling for an eagle researcher high in the mountains of Colorado.
Hoodwink (1981): Dir. Claude Whatham
Feat. John Hargreaves, Judy Davis, Geoffrey Rush…; Devious bank robber Hargreaves eludes the law by pretending to be blind in this low–key Aussie caper–romance. Geoffrey Rush’s first…
Incredible Shrinking Woman, The (1981): Dir. Joel Schumacher
Feat. Lily Tomlin, Charles Grodin, Ned Beatty…; Fitfully amusing comedy mines the considerable talents of Lily Tomlin in the role of a housewife accidentally shrunk by her husband. Considerably…
My Dinner with Andre (1981): Dir. Louis Malle
Feat. Wallace Shawn, Andre Gregory; An honest exchange of philosophy transpires over dinner between an out–of–work playwright and a theatre director. Remarkably compelling…
Neighbors (Neighbours) (1981): Dir. John G. Avildsen
Feat. Dan Aykroyd, John Belushi, Cathy Moriarty; Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi bicker over the back–fence in this suburban comedy.
Private Lessons (1981): Dir. Alan Myerson
Feat. Sylvia Kristel, Eric Brown, Howard Hesseman…; A slightly queasy mix of thriller and sexual drama, has a teenager (Brown) initiated by the family maid (Kristel) into the carnal facts of life, and…
Private Schulz (1981): Feat. Michael Elphick, Ian Richardson, Billie Whitelaw…; Gleefully macabre farce focuses on the scheming titular character who convinces the Nazis to mass counterfeit millions of five pound notes in a bid…
S.O.B. (1981): Dir. Blake Edwards
Feat. Julie Andrews, William Holden, Richard Mulligan…; Blake Edwards' satire of the film industry and Hollywood society in which a movie producer who made a huge flop tries to salvage his career by…
Stripes (1981): Dir. Ivan Reitman
Feat. Bill Murray, Harold Ramis, Warren Oates…; In a moment of weakness and despair, a slobbish Bill Murray enlists in the US Army and spends the rest of the movie humourously regretting the…
9 to 5 (Nine to Five) (1980): Dir. Colin Higgins
Feat. Dolly Parton, Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin; Secretarial trio of Dolly Parton, Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin combine forces to outwit their sexist–pig boss in one of the spunkier 80s…
A Change of Seasons (1980): Dir. Richard Lang
Feat. Shirley Maclaine, Anthony Hopkins, Bo Derek; Comedy of tangled relationships and mid–life crises, following a forty–something woman who begins a relationship with a young,…
Blues Brothers, The (1980): Dir. John Landis
Feat. John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd, Carrie Fisher; Smash comedy with great soul music and epic sight–gags.
Caddyshack (1980): Dir. Harold Ramis
Feat. Chevy Chase, Rodney Dangerfield, Bill Murray…; Rude and crude golfing hi–jinks, often deliriously funny. Perhaps most famous for the infantile chocolate–bar in the swimming pool scene.
Cheech and Chong's Next Movie (1980): Dir. Thomas Chong
Feat. Cheech Marin, Thomas Chong, Paul Reubens…; The pot–head duo followed UP IN SMOKE with another batch of set pieces spiked with a brand of humour that (surely?) requires a particular state…
Cowboys (TV Series) (1980): Dir. Michael Mills
Feat. Colin Welland, David Kelly, Roy Kinnear; Wickedly funny early–80's comedy centered around a dubious firm of dis–functional builders.
Hi-de-hi! (TV Series) (1980-1988): Feat. Paul Shane, Ruth Madoc, Jeffrey Holland…; The classic 1980s comedy series that took a sardonic look at the garish and cheerful culture of post–WW2 British holiday camps. Set around the…
Jerk, The (1980): Dir. Carl Reiner
Feat. Steve Martin; Classic debut for Steve Martin as a hayseed inventor raised in the bayou.
Last Married Couple in America, The (1980): Dir. Gilbert Cates
Feat. George Segal, Natalie Wood, Richard Benjamin…; A "happily married" Californian couple begin to doubt their 15 year marriage after their friends all divorce and pressure them to do the same.
Little Miss Marker (1980): Dir. Walter Bernstein
Feat. Walter Matthau, Julie Andrews, Tony Curtis…; Comedy set in the 30's, following a gloomy, cantankerous bookie (Walter Matthau) running a gambling operation, who finds himself with a 6–year…
Melvin and Howard (1980): Dir. Jonathan Demme
Feat. Paul Le Mat, Jason Sr. Robards; Low–key gem of a road–movie in which yokel Paul Le Mat (AMERICAN GRAFFITI) rescues a grizzled tramp on a desert highway one night, who…
My Bodyguard (1980): Dir. Tony Bill
Feat. Chris Makepeace, Adam Baldwin, Matt Dillon…; A newcomer to a Chicago high school hires the biggest fellow student to be his 'bodyguard', especially to protect him from a lunch–money…
Private Benjamin (1980): Dir. Howard Zieff
Feat. Goldie Hawn, Eileen Brennan, Armand Assante…; Well–fashioned vehicle for Hawn's natural comic talents, she here plays a swanky socialite who joins the army on the spur of the…
Rising Damp (TV Series) (1980): Dir. Ronnie Baxter
Feat. Leonard Rossiter, Richard Beckinsale, Frances de la Tour…; A dank Brit boarding–house is the setting for this classic sitcom written by Eric Chappell. Series 1 & 2 (15 episodes) available across two…
Sir Henry at Rawlinson End (1980): Dir. Steve Roberts
Feat. Trevor Howard, Patrick Magee; Based on Vivian Stanshall's surreal radio monologues, this tipsy British comedy concerns the attempts of an eccentric British aristocrat to exorcise…
Stir Crazy (1980): Dir. Sidney Poitier
Feat. Richard Pryor, Gene Wilder, Craig T. Nelson; The first and best of the Pryor/Wilder comedies, about a pair of clumsy crooks who land in jail. Plenty of laughs – though fairly predictable…
Used Cars (1980): Dir. Robert Zemeckis
Feat. Jack Warden, Kurt Russell; Two sibling used car dealers (both played by Jack Warden) take their rivalry and sales gimmicks to a bad–taste extreme. Good script elevates…
10 (1979): Dir. Blake Edwards
Feat. Dudley Moore, Bo Derek, Julie Andrews; The cuddly charms of Dudley Moore lift this light comedy out of the saccharine. Moore plays a successful composer falling in love with gorgeous Bo…
1941 (1979): Dir. Steven Spielberg
Feat. John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd, Toshiro Mifune; The dir.’s only real commercial failure, this loose slapstick comedy, set in a Californian seaside town visited by a Japanese submarine in 1941,…
Animal House (1979): Feat. John Belushi, Donald Sutherland, Karen Allen…; National Lampoon's frat–house classic with a grossly hilarious Belushi.
Design For Living / Mrs. Capper's Birthday / What Mad Pursuit (The Noel Coward Collection - Disc 3) (1979-1985): Dir. Philip Saville, Mike Ockrent
Feat. Dandy Nichols, Patricia Hayes, Hugh Laurie…; –Design For Living (79') Contrived comedy set in a Paris apartment where a woman and the two men she loves all live together in an awkward…
Dick Emery - Thames TV Specials (1979): Feat. Dick Emery; Classic songs and sketches abound in this collection of Dick Emery comedy specials. Includes: 'The Dick Emery Comedy Hour', 'The Dick Emery Hour',…
Dukes of Hazzard, The (TV Series) (1979-1985): Feat. Tom Wopat, John Schneider, Catherine Bach…; Mixing hayseed humour and car–action aplenty, this hit TV show milked Southern stereotypes for all their worth as country cousins Bo (dark) and…
Eric Sykes Collection (The Plank, Rhubarb Rhubarb!, It's Your Move, Mr H. Is Late, The Big Freeze, The Eric Sykes Show, The Likes of Sykes) (1979-1993): Dir. Eric Sykes
Feat. Eric Sykes, Arthur Lowe, Tommy Cooper…; A ridiculously long list of British comic talent star in these slapstick masterpieces from the 1970s and 80s, all of which are virtually dialogue…
In-Laws, The (1979): Dir. Arthur Hiller
Feat. Peter Falk, Alan Arkin, Richard Libertini…; Alan Arkin and Peter Falk deliver some effortless comedy in this straightforward buddy–comedy, as a dentist and CIA–agent embroiled in a…
Life of Brian (Monty Python's Life of Brian) (1979): Dir. Terry Jones
Feat. John Cleese, Eric Idle, Michael Palin; This parody of the life and times of Jesus Christ is the funniest and most successful of the Monty Python features. A cult favourite.
Manhattan (1979): Dir. Woody Allen
Feat. Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Mariel Hemingway; This classy introspective comedy from Woody Allen tributes his beloved city while his neurotic alter–ego searches for romantic and intellectual…
Meatballs (1979): Dir. Ivan Reitman
Feat. Bill Murray; A laidback Bill Murray injects some meat into the summer camp cliche, here playing a trainee counselor in charge of a group of misfit stereotypes:…
More American Graffiti (1979): Dir. Bill L. Norton
Feat. Ron Howard, Bo Hopkins, Candy Clark…; College graduates deal with Vietnam and other issues of the late '60s in this creaky sequel to the coming–of–age hit.
Porridge (1979): Dir. Dick Clement
Feat. Ronnie Barker, Richard Beckinsale; Ronnie Barker returns for this feature film based on the popular British TV series as a long–time prison inmate Fletcher who here arranges a…
Potter (TV Series) (1979): Feat. Arthur Lowe; Memorable British sitcom of a busybody retiree who occupies his time by meddling in other people's business – much to the chagrin of his…
Starting Over (1979): Dir. Alan J. Pakula
Feat. Burt Reynolds, Jill Clayburgh, Candice Bergen…; James L. Brooks scripted this classic breakup comedy with Burt Reynolds and Jill Clayburgh (fresh off AN UNMARRIED WOMAN) as divorcees trying to get…
Corvette Summer (1978): Dir. Matthew Robbins
Feat. Mark Hamill, Annie Potts, Eugene Roche…; Benign comedy with Hamill heading to Vegas in pursuit of a Corvette Stingray stolen from his auto–shop class.
End, The (1978): Dir. Burt Reynolds
Feat. Burt Reynolds, Dom DeLuise; Black comedy directed by and starring Burt Reynolds, who plays a real–estate agent who decides to kill himself when he is diagnosed with a…
Flying High (Airplane!) (1978): Dir. David Zucker, Jerry Zucker, Jim Abrahams
Feat. Robert Hays, Julie Hagerty, Lloyd Bridges…; Side–splittingly funny lampoon of the Airport / Disaster movie genre, voted the best comedy of all time in 1999 by EMPIRE magazine.
Grange Hill (TV Series) (1978-2008): Candid British kids series following the exploits of a group of school misfits dealing with the day–to–day struggles of life in a…
House Calls (1978): Dir. Howard Zieff
Feat. Walter Matthau, Glenda Jackson, Art Carney…; Matthau plays a recent widower who attempts to make up for all the fidelity by womanizing he much as he can, before Glenda Jackson comes along and…
Mork and Mindy (TV Series) (1978-1982): Feat. Robin Williams, Pam Dawber; The wacky TV show that proved a breakthrough vehicle for Robin Williams, playing the cutesome, unpredictable Mork, an alien from the planet…
Rutles, The (All You Need is Cash) (1978): Dir. Gary Weis, Eric Idle
Feat. Michael Palin, John Belushi, Bianca Jagger…; The mock–Beatles twist and "rut" in a spot–on piss–take of the Fab Four, led by Monty Python’s Eric Idle and making a…
Taxi (TV Series) (1978-1983): Feat. Judd Hirsch, Danny De Vito, Tony Danza…; Another sitcom staple of the 1970s from the creators of The Mary Tyler Moore Show, set in the refreshingly blue–collar world of a New York cab…
Tommy Cooper - Just Like That (TV Series) (1978): Feat. Tommy Cooper, Andrew Sachs; Comedy–magician and cohort of Eric Sykes, Tommy Cooper, delivers his distinctive, hilarious brand of 'tragic magic' in this six–part…
Up in Smoke (1978): Dir. Lou Adler
Feat. Cheech and Chong; Cheech and Chong's first movie is their best and most remembered. They transpose their popular doped–out comic routines for the big screen, in…
Are You Being Served? - The Movie (1977): Dir. Bob Kellett
Feat. John Inman, Mollie Sugden; Spinoff movie of the British TV–Series set in a department store. Retains the cast and broad campiness of the original, as the staff go on…
Fun With Dick And Jane (1977): Dir. Ted Kotcheff
Feat. George Segal, Jane Fonda, Ed McMahon…; Amusing low–brow satire sees affluent Segal and Fonda plunged into possible poverty and turning to criminal enterprise in an effort to sustain…
Jabberwocky (1977): Dir. Terry Gilliam
Feat. Michael Palin; Monty Python's Lewis Carroll–inspired medieval farce with Michael Palin in the lead.
Kentucky Fried Movie (1977): Dir. John Landis
Feat. Barry Dennen, George Lazenby, Henry Gibson…; A product of the Kentucky Fried Theatre (Zucker, Abrahams, Zucker of FLYING HIGH fame), this collection of skits, gags and spoofs comes across as a…
Last Remake of Beau Geste, The (1977): Dir. Marty Feldman
Feat. Marty Feldman, Michael York, Ann-Margret…; Marty Feldman directs and co–writes this star–studded satire loosely based on the novel Beau Geste, a frequently–filmed story of…
Late Show, The (1977): Dir. Robert Benton
Feat. Art Carney, Lily Tomlin, Bill Macy; A grumpy semi–retired private investigator partners with a quirky female client to catch the people who murdered his partner.
Mind Your Language (TV Series) (1977): Dir. Stuart Allen
Feat. Barry Evans; Evans plays a mild–mannered, but harried teacher of non–English speakers at the Southbank College of Further Education in this amiably…
Oh, God! (1977): Dir. Carl Reiner
Feat. George Burns, John Denver; John Denver is a supermarket attendant whose life is turned upside down when God (George Burns) starts appearing to him in visions. A…
Rag Trade, The (TV Series) (1977): Dir. Stuart Allen
Feat. Peter Jones, Miriam Karlin; Factory girl comedy set in a working class, East–End fashion sweatshop, this was considered progressive for its time due to its largely…
Robin's Nest (TV Series) (1977): Dir. Peter Frazer-Jones
Feat. Richard O'Sullivan, Tessa Wyatt, Tony Britton…; Good–natured Brit TV comedy with Richard O'Sullivan reprising the role of Robin Tripp from the popular series, MAN ABOUT THE HOUSE. This time…
Semi-Tough (1977): Dir. Michael Ritchie
Feat. Burt Reynolds, Kris Kristofferson, Jill Clayburgh…; A running back and wide receiver scrimmage over the adorable Jill Clayburgh in this loose–lipped satire of professional sport by way of the…
Silver Bears (1977): Dir. Ivan Passer
Feat. Michael Caine, Cybill Shepherd, Louis Jourdan…; Low–key crime comedy caper with Michael Caine playing a financial wizard working with a crime boss to launder money from a Swiss bank.
Soap (TV Series) (1977): Feat. Billy Crystal, Katherine Helmond, Robert Mulligan…; Still the best satire of the television soap opera, this initially controversial series enveloped its line–up of characters in plots involving…
Three Piece Suite (TV Series) (1977): Feat. Diana Rigg; Rarefied BBC sketch show with Diana Rigg portraying three different women across three separate sketches, alternating effortlessly between comedy and…
World's Greatest Lover, The (1977): Dir. Gene Wilder
Feat. Gene Wilder, Carol Kane, Dom DeLuise…; Hit–and–miss comedy set in the 1920s with Wilder as a sexually rapacious loser who heads to Hollywood intending to become the next…
Alfie Darling (1976): Dir. Ken Hughes
Feat. Alan Price, Jill Townsend, Joan Collins…; Alan Price is a poor substitute for Michael Caine in this limp sequel. This time round Alfie is driving lorries round Europe and back to his…
Bad News Bears (1976): Dir. Michael Ritchie
Feat. Walter Matthau, Tatum O'Neal, Vic Morrow; Delightfully cynical baseball comedy starring Walter Matthau as an alcoholic ex–baseball pitcher who becomes a coach for a youth baseball team…
Fall and Rise of Reginald Perrin, The (TV Series) (1976): Dir. John Howard Davies, Gareth Gwenlan
Feat. Leonard Rossiter, Pauline Yates; The ultimate midlife–crisis sitcom, follows the adventures of Reginald as he wakes up to the absurdity of his middle–class existence and…
George and Mildred (TV Series) (1976): Dir. Peter Frazer-Jones
Feat. Yootha Joyce, Brian Murphy; The landlords of MAN ABOUT THE HOUSE bicker away to much amusement in this still–funny 70s sitcom. Moving to an upmarket suburb proves an…
Laverne & Shirley (TV Series) (1976): Feat. Penny Marshall, Cindy Williams; From the golden age of sitcoms, this HAPPY DAYS spin–off followed the fortunes of two salty, life–long friends (Penny Marshall and Cindy…
Likely Lads, The (1976): Dir. Michael Tuchner
Feat. Rodney Bewes, James Bolam; Feature spin–off from the unique 60's British comedy series focused on two men in the North East of England as they struggle with middle age…
Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman (TV Series) (1976-1977): Feat. Louise Lasser, Greg Mullavey; Adventurous satirical soap opera from the 70's following a small–town housewife who encounters various complex and compounding…
Nickelodeon (1976): Dir. Peter Bogdanovich
Feat. Ryan O'Neal, Burt Reynolds, Tatum O'Neal…; Peter Bogdanovich’s affection for golden age Hollywood shines through in this heartfelt comedy about a lawyer sent to shut down an ailing silent…
Peeper (1976): Dir. Peter Hyams
Feat. Michael Caine, Natalie Wood, Kitty Winn…; Patchy noir send–up with Caine as a poor man's Phillip Marlowe struggling to find a missing woman, with his biggest obstacle being himself.
Private Lives (The Noel Coward Collection - Disc 2) (1976): Feat. Penelope Keith, Alec McCowen; Droll comedy–of–errors centred on a recently divorced couple that book into a hotel with their new spouses, only to discover their suites…
Rich Little Show, The (TV Series) (1976): Feat. Rich Little; World famous impressionist Rich Little attempted to forge his own persona in this well–remembered sketch series, though invariably, reverted…
Spanish Fly (1976): Dir. Bob Kellett
Feat. Leslie Phillips, Terry-Thomas, Sue Lloyd; Sex–on–the–brain British comedy from the permissive 70's follows the 'naughty' antics of the debonair Leslie Phillips and…
Adventures of Sherlock Holmes' Smarter Brother, The (1975): Dir. Gene Wilder
Feat. Madeline Kahn, Marty Feldman, Dom DeLuise…; Fitfully amusing romp with Wilder as the great detective's resentful brother determined to steal the spotlight. Madeline Kahn steals the show.
Barney Miller (TV Series) (1975): Feat. Hal Linden, Barbara Barrie, Abe Vigoda…; This offbeat '70s sitcom about the drudgery and ordinary absurdity of everyday police work remains a cult favourite among TV aficionados and…
Great Macarthy, The (1975): Dir. David Baker
Feat. John Jarratt, Judy Morris, Barry Humphries; A not unlikeable drama from 1970s Australian cinema, set on the boundary between amateur and professional Australian Rules football. Jarratt plays a…
Love Among the Ruins (1975): Dir. George Cukor
Feat. Laurence Olivier, Katharine Hepburn, Colin Blakely…; Nicely polished period TV–movie, with barrister Olivier defending aging beauty Hepburn, who is being sued by a gigolo for 'abandonment'. Of…
Lucky Lady (1975): Dir. Stanley Donen
Feat. Gene Hackman, Liza Minnelli, Burt Reynolds…; Shapeless caper with three rum–runners set during the prohibition whose lives are complicated by the personal relationships. A notorious…
Sunshine Boys, The (1975): Dir. Herbert Ross
Feat. Walter Matthau, George Burns; Two ageing comedians, known as the "Sunshine Boys" for 43 years together, have parted ways on unfriendly terms and have not spoken to each other in…
Two's Company (TV Series) (1975-1979): Dir. Stuart Allen
Feat. Elaine Stritch, Donald Sinden; Light–hearted comedy series outlining the cultural clash between an American writer living in London and her British butler who fail to see…
Welcome Back, Kotter (TV Series) (1975): Feat. Gabe Kaplan, John Travolta; This classic American sitcom still holds up in its rowdy but progressive view of high school delinquency and remedial education. A young John…
Best of Les Dawson, The (1974-1977): Feat. Les Dawson; Genial comedian Dawson was all over British (and NZ) television in the 1970s, using his array of comic and musical talents in shows like "Blankety…
California Split (1974): Dir. Robert Altman
Feat. George Segal, Elliott Gould, Gwen Welles; A terrific gambling lark–come–cautionary tale from director Robert Altman, starring George Segal as a casual gambler who befriends a…
For Pete's Sake (1974): Dir. Peter Yates
Feat. Barbra Streisand, Michael Sarrazin, Estelle Parsons; Middling comedy depicts Barbra Streisand as the wife of depressed NYC taxi–driver Michael Sarrazin – to change their fortunes she pursues…
Great McGonagall, The (1974): Dir. Joseph McGrath
Feat. Spike Milligan, Peter Sellers, Valentine Dyall; Based on the true story of 19th Scottish 'nonsense' poet William McGonagall (Milligan), who courted favour from Queen Victoria (Sellers) amongst…
Groove Tube, The (1974): Dir. Ken Shapiro
Feat. Chevy Chase, Ken Shapiro, Richard Belzer; An early satire of television broadcasts, which takes news, programmes, childrens' shows and adverts in its subversive stride. Famous now for its…
Harry & Tonto (Harry and Tonto) (1974): Dir. Paul Mazursky
Feat. Art Carney, Ellen Burstyn, Rene Enriquez…; Art Carney won the Oscar for his performance as a retiree embarking on a cross country odyssey with his beloved cat Tonto.
Parade (1974): Dir. Jacques Tati; An eclectic comedy cabaret show that involves the filming of live performers on and offstage with small minuets dotted throughout. This final film…
Thursday's Game (1974): Dir. Robert Moore
Feat. Gene Wilder, Bob Newhart, Ellen Burstyn…; Well regarded made–for–TV buddy movie. Acquaintances Gene Wilder and Bob Newhart, deeply mired in parallel mid–life crises,…
Adolf Hitler: My Part in His Downfall (1973): Dir. Norman Cohen
Feat. Jim Dale, Arthur Lowe; Jim Dale plays a young Spike Milligan, then an aspiring jazz musician who in 1940 reluctantly obeys his call–up and joins the Royal Artillery…
Love Thy Neighbour - The Movie (1973): Feat. Jake Smethurst, Rudolph Walker; Card–carrying unionist Eddie Booth, a socialistic avowed racial discriminator who maintains a constant barrage of abuse at his neighbor, a…
Man About the House (TV Series) (1973): Dir. Peter Frazer-Jones
Feat. Richard O'Sullivan, Yootha Joyce, Brian Murphy; Classic Brit sitcom concerning the accomodation adventures of student Richard O'Sullivan and his two female flatmates. Two flies in the ointment…
National Health, The (1973): Dir. Jack Gold
Feat. Lynn Redgrave, Colin Blakely, Eleanor Bron…; Riotous black comedy focusing on the appalling conditions at an under–funded National Health Service hospital, based on the acclaimed 1969 play…
No Sex Please We're British (1973): Dir. Cliff Owen
Feat. Ronnie Corbett, Beryl Reid, Arthur Lowe…; "Riotous" British sex farce based on the long–running stageplay about a swell of "adult literature" that floods a prudish small town by the way…
Once Upon a Scoundrel (1973): Dir. George Schaefer
Feat. Zero Mostel, A Martinez, Katy Jurado; Obscure Mostel comedy, in which the stone–faced comedian plays a cruel landowner in rural Mexico. Worth a look for fans.
Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em (TV Series) (1973): Feat. Michael Crawford, Michele Dotrice; The side–splitting misadventures of legendary klutz, Frank Spencer incarnated by a nimble, pre–'Phantom of the Opera' Michael Crawford.…
Sting, The (1973): Dir. George Roy Hill
Feat. Robert Redford, Paul Newman, Robert Shaw…; Classic vehicle for Robert Redford and Paul Newman playing two Depression–era conmen. Winner of seven Oscars including Best Picture. Music by…
Whatever Happened To The Likely Lads? (TV Series) (1973): Feat. James Bolam; Popular sequel to "The Likely Lads", a hit British sitcom from the partnership of Dick Clement and Ian La Francis of which only nine of those shows…
A Gorgeous Girl Like Me (Une Belle Fille Comme Moi) (1972): Dir. Francois Truffaut
Feat. Bernadette Lafont, Andre Dussollier; Twisted French black comedy of a licentious, manipulative murderess recounting her sordid past to a green criminology student. Dripping in silly…
Are You Being Served? (TV Series) (1972-1985): Feat. Mollie Sugden, John Inman; The staff at 'Grace Brothers' department store serve out the humourous innuendos in this long–running British sitcom.
Avanti (1972): Dir. Billy Wilder
Feat. Jack Lemmon, Juliet Mills; Neglected upon release, but now no more, this late Billy Wilder comedy, Jack Lemmon and Juliet Mills connect in a Mediterranean resort, where each…
Bless This House (1972): Dir. Gerald Thomas
Feat. Sidney James; Sidney Carry–On James is the long–suffering head of a madcap household, whose constant tomfoolery cause him endless headaches; his…
Evil Roy Slade (1972): Dir. Jerry Paris
Feat. John Astin, Mickey Rooney, Henry Gibson…; Wacky western spoof made its way onto screens after originally flopping as TV pilot. John Astin (ADDAM'S FAMILY) plays the titular villain on…
Last of the Red Hot Lovers (1972): Dir. Gene Saks
Feat. Alan Arkin, Sally Kellerman, Paula Prentiss…; Neil Simon adapts his portrait of a middle aged restaurateur trying desperately to join the sexual revolution by taking advantage of his mother's…
Lo Scopone Scientifico (1972): Dir. Luigi Comencini
Feat. Bette Davis, Alberto Sordi, Silvana Mangano…; Little–known Italian comedy stars Bette Davis as a wealthy, Nora Desmond–esque countess who entices those less fortunate to gamble with…
Love Thy Neighbour (TV Series) (1972): Dir. Stuart Allen
Feat. Jake Smethurst, Rudolph Walker; Devised to defuse some of the racial tension of the day, this controversial 70s Brit sitcom hilariously pits black and white neighbours…
MASH (TV Series) (M*A*S*H) (1972-1983): Feat. Alan Alda, Wayne Rogers, Loretta Swit; Long running and much loved TV Series loosely based on Robert Altman’s 1969 film set in a Mobile Army Surgical Hospital in the Korean…
Monty Python's And Now for Something Completely Different (1972): Feat. Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Eric Idle…; An anthology of some of the great moments from Monty Python's revolutionary comedy programme.
Ooh, You Are Awful (1972): Dir. Cliff Owen
Feat. Dick Emery, Derren Nesbitt, Ronald Fraser; Cheeky Brit comedy focused on a con–man (Emery) who swindles an Italian millionaire out of a large sum of cash, only to have it deposited into…
Pete 'n' Tillie (1972): Dir. Martin Ritt
Feat. Walter Matthau, Carol Burnett, Geraldine Page…; Bittersweet character story of a smarmy rogue and an aging virgin who get married despite fundamental differences which remain unaltered nine years…
Pocket Money (1972): Dir. Stuart Rosenberg
Feat. Paul Newman, Lee Marvin, Strother Martin…; Broke and in debt, an otherwise honest cowboy gets mixed up in some shady dealings with a crooked rancher. Amiable comedy written by a pre–fame…
Pulp (1972): Dir. Mike Hodges
Feat. Michael Caine, Mickey Rooney, Lionel Stander…; After completing the phenomenal GET CARTER Caine and dir. Hodges reteamed for this lightweight, yet highly watchable comedy thriller. Caine plays…
Rentadick (1972): Feat. Richard Briers, James Booth, Richard Beckinsale…; From a screenplay by John Cleese and Graham Chapman, Rentadick, a band of private detectives, are hired to protect a rich scientist's business as…
Savages (1972): Dir. James Ivory
Feat. Sam Waterston, Lewis J. Stadlen, Anne Francine…; Merchant Ivory's most unexpected film is an allegorical story of a primitive jungle tribe who are interrupted, mid human–sacrifice, by a…
Shelley (TV Series) (1972-1992): Feat. Hywel Bennett; Classic British comedy series revels in one of the more unlikely deadly sins: sloth. University graduate James Shelley (Bennett) is a cynical,…
Steptoe and Son / Steptoe and Son Ride Again (1972-1973): Dir. Peter Sykes, Cliff Owen
Feat. Harry H. Corbett, Wilfred Brambell; Two spinoff feature films starring the same rag–and–bone men from the classic TV Series. In STEPTOE AND SON, Harold disastrously marries…
Till Death Us Do Part (TV Series) (1972-1974): Feat. Warren Mitchell; Contentious, well remembered BBC sitcom is a comedy firebrand about a narrow–minded Cockney geezer whose racist diatribes were intended to be…
Travels With My Aunt (1972): Dir. George Cukor
Feat. Maggie Smith, Alec McCowen, Louis Jr. Gossett…; A young Maggie Smith ages up in this entertaining if over–stuffed whimsy based on the novel by Graham Greene about the odd–ball…
Up the Chastity Belt (1972): Dir. Bob Kellett
Feat. Frankie Howerd, Nora Swinburne, Graham Crowden; More Howerd led malarkey, set in the middle ages, with Frankie as a servant comically defending his master's daughter.
Up the Front (1972): Dir. Bob Kellett
Feat. Frankie Howerd, Bill Fraser, Hermione Baddeley…; One of Frankie Howerd's bigscreen starring roles in a spinoff of the 'Up Pompeii' TV Series. Here he plays an WWII soldier who has invasion plans…
What's Up Doc? (1972): Dir. Peter Bogdanovich
Feat. Barbra Streisand, Ryan O'Neal, Madeline Kahn…; Creditable homage to the screwball farces of Hawks and Sturges, with Barbara Streisand as the wildcard in the life of musicologist Ryan O’Neal.…
Where Does It Hurt? (1972): Dir. Rodney Amateau
Feat. Peter Sellers, Rick Lenz, Harold Gould…; Watchable farce has Sellers playing Dr. Albert T Hopfnagel, a corrupt hospital official devoted to the art of ripping off patients. Barbed satire…
Beware Of A Holy Whore (Warnung vor einer heiligen Nutte, The Little Chaos, The City Tramp) (1971): Dir. Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Feat. Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Hanna Schygulla; Dubbed Fassbinder's most autobiographical work, this ambiguous comedy investigates relations between a clan of artists attempting to make a film in…
Boy Friend, The (1971): Dir. Ken Russell
Feat. Twiggy, Christopher Gable, Max Adrian…; Unavailable on any format until recently, this long lost flight of fancy finds Ken Russell remodeling the golden age of musicals in his own…
Carnal Knowledge (1971): Dir. Mike Nichols
Feat. Jack Nicholson, Art Garfunkel, Ann-Margret…; Classic from the early 70s 'zeitgeist', this funny yet sobering film chronicles the sex lives of two disparate men from high–school to…
Comedians, The (TV Series) (1971-1993): Born out of the working men's clubs in 70's England, and beginning as an experiment for Granada TV, this had more gags, one–liners and knowing…
Dad's Army The Movie (1971): Dir. Norman Cohen
Feat. Arthur Lowe, John Le Mesurier, Clive Dunn; The feature film is a coarser expansion of the characters and situations that endeared millions to the long–running TV show.
Edward Woodward Hour, The (TV Series) (1971): Feat. Beryl Reid, Patrick Cargill; A light entertainment special from the early 1970s for Thames Television showcasing the whimsical side of Edward Woodward, most famous for his…
Little Murders (1971): Dir. Alan Arkin
Feat. Elliott Gould, Marcia Rodd; Actor Alan Arkin directs this black comedy about a girl who brings her boyfriend home to meet her severely dysfunctional family amidst a series of…
Lucky Luke (1971): Hardcase western animation, from the creator of ASTERIX, centred on Lucky Luke the cowboy and his penchant for upholding law over the land.…
Magnificent Seven Deadly Sins, The (1971): Dir. Graham Stark
Feat. Harry Secombe, Spike Milligan, Harry H. Corbett…; Minor British comedy from the 'liberated' 70s, sees various comedians run the gamut of sinful behaviour in the company of some saucy female…
Minnie and Moskowitz (1971): Dir. John Cassavetes
Feat. Seymour Cassel, Gena Rowlands, John Cassavetes…; John Cassavetes' most accessible film is an unlikely romance between a museum curator and a parking attendant set over four days and nights.…
Monty Python's Fliegender Zirkus (1971): Dir. Ian Macnaughton
Feat. John Cleese, Michael Palin, Terry Gilliam…; A particularly surreal later–Python, first released on German television. Features strange and often absurd English subtitles.
Persuaders, The (TV Series) (1971): Dir. Basil Dearden
Feat. Roger Moore, Tony Curtis; Roger Moore and Tony Curtis play a debonair duo who lend their status and charm to dissuade the criminal fraternity. Wonderfully corny. DVD 'Box…
Plaza Suite (1971): Dir. Arthur Hiller
Feat. Walter Matthau, Maureen Stapleton, Barbara Harris…; Walter Mathau takes on three roles in this winning trilogy of one act plys by Neil Simon all set in the same hotel suite.
Simply Sykes (1971-1982): Feat. Tommy Cooper, Hattie Jacques; Comprising two shows made for Thames Television; Sykes – With the Lid Off (1971) has comedy legend Eric Sykes dare to take the lid off the many…
Six Dates with Barker (6 Dates with Barker) (1971): Feat. Ronnie Barker; A six–part showcase for the comedic talents of Ronnie Barker, this one–off series revolved around half–a–dozen situation…
Skin Game (1971): Dir. Paul Bogart
Feat. James Garner, Louis Jr. Gossett, Susan Clark…; Beguiling comedy about a pair of con–artists who pose as master and slave to deceive unsuspecting rednecks in the post–civil war era.
Stork (1971): Dir. Tim Burstall
Feat. Bruce Spence, Graeme Blundell, Jackie Weaver; True blue Aussie classic with the hyper–gangly Bruce Spence whose bawdy misadventures in work, life and love are fueled by booze and a twisted…
Support Your Local Gunfighter (1971): Dir. Burt Kennedy
Feat. James Garner, Suzanne Pleshette; James Garner again plays a con–man, this time mistaken for a notorious gunfighter. Good natured, entertaining satire.
They Call Me Trinity (1971): Dir. Enzo Barboni
Feat. Terence Hill, Bud Spencer; The film that triggered the careers of B–movie icons Terence Hill and Bud Spencer is an engaging spaghetti–western spoof. Something of a…
They Might Be Giants (1971): Dir. Anthony Harvey
Feat. George C. Scott, Joanne Woodward, Jack Gilford…; A delightfully goofy comic mystery starring George C. Scott as a psychiatric patient who is convinced he is Sherlock Holmes at a Manhattan hospital…
Up Pompeii (1971): Dir. Bob Kellett
Feat. Frankie Howerd, Sir Michael Hordern, Barbara Murray…; Frankie Howerd's bawdy comedy with a Roman slave inadvertently becoming the possessor of a scroll naming the proposed assassins of the Emperor Nero.
Bombay Talkie (1970): Dir. James Ivory
Feat. Shashi Kapoor, Zia Mohyeddin; Probably the most visually distinguished Merchant–Ivory film, this semi–satiric swirl through the 'Bollywood' film industry works as both…
Doctor in Trouble (1970): Dir. Ralph Thomas
Feat. Leslie Phillips, Robert Morley, Harry Secombe…; In this round of the British comedy series, the dear doctor (Phillips) hides himself aboard an ocean liner to pursue a marriage prospect. A strong…
Hi Mom! (1970): Dir. Brian De Palma
Feat. Robert De Niro, Charles Durning, Allen Garfield…; One of dir. De Palma's underrated early satires is loosely a sequel to 'Greetings', with Robert De Niro returning from the Vietnam War to try and…
Kelly's Heroes (1970): Dir. Brian G. Hutton
Feat. Clint Eastwood, Donald Sutherland, Telly Savalas…; Comic WWII yarn in which Clint Eastwood recruits a wildcat tank platoon to help rob a bank in German territory. Features one of Donald Sutherland's…
Lola (Twinky, London Affair) (1970): Dir. Richard Donner
Feat. Charles Bronson, Susan George; Comedy drama following the relationship between a 38 year old American man who writes pornographic novels and the 16 year old girl he falls in love…
Loot (1970): Dir. Silvio Narizzano
Feat. Richard Attenborough, Lee Remick, Milo O'Shea…; Broad English farce, based around Joe Orton's stageplay, in which bank–robbers hide their loot in a coffin under the body. As slapstick comedy…
Lovers and Other Strangers (1970): Dir. Cy Howard
Feat. Beatrice Arthur, Bonnie Bedelia, Michael Brandon…; Smart ensemble comedy about preparations for a young couple's wedding and how this stirs up the lives of those around them. Full of many delightful…
Mary Tyler Moore Show, The (TV Series) (1970-1974): Feat. Mary Tyler Moore, Ted Knight, Edward Asner…; A highly polished, somewhat revolutionary sitcom following the career path and domestic life of a determinedly single newsroom journalist, this made…
Odd Couple, The (TV Series) (1970): Feat. Jack Klugman, Tony Randall; Spinning off from the feature film based on Neil Simon's Broadway play, this small screen version winningly supplants the Lemmon–Matthau double…
Out-of-Towners, The (1970): Dir. Arthur Hiller
Feat. Jack Lemmon, Sandy Dennis; Playing on the prejudices of 'ordinary folk' towards the Big Bad City of New York, writer Neil Simon cranks out a series of escalating indignities…
Rise and Rise of Michael Rimmer, The (1970): Dir. Kevin Billington
Feat. Peter Cook, John Cleese, Harold Pinter…; Follow the meteoric rise of one Michael Rimmer, an entry–level ad exec. who turns a fledging agency into an industry heavyweight, graduates to…
Simon Simon (1970): Feat. Graham Stark; Short but farcical 'sound–effect' comedy, featuring a host of cameo appearances from the comedians and actors of the day, including Michae…
Suppose They Gave a War and Nobody Came (1970): Dir. Hy Averback
Feat. Tony Curtis, Ernest Borgnine, Suzanne Pleshette…; Tensions rise to boiling point between an Army base and a neighbouring redneck town in this off–beat satire.
There's A Girl In My Soup (1970): Dir. Roy Boulting
Feat. Peter Sellers, Goldie Hawn, Diana Dors…; Romantic comedy set around the unpredictable frission between a ladykilling TV personality (Sellers) and a kooky young thing (Hawn). A bit…
Things of Life, The (Les Choses De La Vie) (1970): Dir. Claude Sautet
Feat. Romy Schneider, Michel Piccoli, Jean Bouise; Golden Palm nominated French comedy focusing on the life of a fatally injured man who upon seeing his life flash before his eyes realizes he must…
Two Mules for Sister Sara (1970): Dir. Don Siegel
Feat. Clint Eastwood, Shirley Maclaine; Mexican–set western adventure following a mysterious nun pursued by the French Army who begins a mutually beneficial relationship with a…
Where's Poppa? (Going Ape) (1970): Dir. Carl Reiner
Feat. George Segal, Ruth Gordon, Ron Leibman…; George Segal becomes determined to hurry along the demise of his ultra–demanding, super–senile 87 year–old mom (Ruth Gordon). Few…
Bed Sitting Room, The (1969): Dir. Richard Lester
Feat. Spike Milligan, Rita Tushingham, Dudley Moore…; Spike Milligan and Richard Lester have a field day with this absurdist post–apocalyptic premise, in which British survivors prevail through the…
Boot Hill (1969): Dir. Giuseppe Colizzi
Feat. Bud Spencer, Terence Hill, Woody Strode…; Typically raucous Hill and Spencer westerner with the un–dynamic duo doing battle with a tyrannical mayor.
Cactus Flower (1969): Dir. Gene Saks
Feat. Goldie Hawn, Ingrid Bergman, Walter Matthau; Broadway adaptation won a supporting actress Oscar for Goldie Hawn, playing second fiddle to Ingrid Bergman for the love of dentist Walter Matthau.…
Carry on Christmas (Carry on Christmas ('69) , Carry on Long John, Carry on Stuffing, Carry on Christmas (73')) (1969-1973): An essential addition to the collection of any Carry On fan; four TV specials over two discs with over 90 minutes of bonus material. A bright caper…
Computer Wore Tennis Shoes, The (1969): Dir. Robert Butler
Feat. Kurt Russell, Cesar Romero, Joe Flynn…; One of Kurt Russell's early, family–friendly appearances in a straightforward Disney comedy. He plays a student who is injected with a…
Futtocks End (1969): Dir. Bob Kellett
Feat. Ronnie Barker, Sir Michael Hordern, Roger Livesey; Bonafide comedy classic in the 'wordless' style of Eric Sykes, stars Ronnie Barker as a lecherous befuddled Army General who hosts a weekend…
Liver Birds, The (1969): Feat. Nerys Hughes, Polly James, Mollie Sugden; Two very different single girls share a flat in the age of glam–rock, the pill and women's lib in this hugely popular BBC sitcom that was the…
Ma Nuit Chez Maud (My Night at Maud's / My Night with Maud) (1969): Dir. Eric Rohmer
Feat. Jean-Louis Trintignant, Francoise Fabian, Marie-Christine Barrault; Rohmer's fourth moral tale again presents the idea of a man's romantic dilemma with more than one woman in his life. The wordy philosophising is…
Magic Christian, The (1969): Dir. Joseph McGrath
Feat. Peter Sellers, Ringo Starr, Richard Attenborough…; From Terry Southern's novel, a wildly loopy satire about an eccentric multi–millionaire (Peter Sellers) who adopts a destitute son (Ringo…
Me, Natalie (1969): Dir. Fred Coe
Feat. Patty Duke, James Farentino, Salome Jens…; Thoughtful, though occasionally mawkish coming–of–age tale with Patty Duke as a young woman struggling with low self esteem and fighting…
Mister Jerico (1969): Dir. Sidney Hayers
Feat. Patrick Macnee, Herbert Lom, Connie Stevens; Cheesy 60s crime caper stars AVENGERS actor Patrick Macnee as a conman set out to rob a diamond from a millionaire, only to have his plans disrupted…
Over the Hill Gang, The (1969): Dir. Jean Yarbrough
Feat. Walter Brennan, Edgar Buchanan, Pat O'Brien…; Laidback reunion for various horse–opera stars of old cleaning up a lawless town in the old west. Telemovie doesn't quite have a script worthy…
Reivers, The (1969): Dir. Mark Rydell
Feat. Steve McQueen, Sharon Farrell, Ruth White…; Amiable coming–of–age lark set in 1905 Mississippi with a mischievous McQueen hitting the road with his employer's prized automobile and…
Secret of Santa Vittoria, The (1969): Dir. Stanley Kramer
Feat. Anthony Quinn, Anna Magnani, Hardy Kruger…; Bombastic war comedy with Quinn as a wine sodden local buffoon who through a number of contrivances becomes town mayor. When the townsfolk learn of a…
Slogan (1969): Dir. Pierre Grimblat
Feat. Jane Birkin, Serge Gainsbourg; Vivacious French romance about a reckless advertising director who throws caution to the wind and abandons his preggers wife to embark on a worldwide…
Staircase (1969): Dir. Stanley Donen
Feat. Rex Harrison, Richard Burton, Cathleen Nesbitt; Sitting somewhere between farce and melancholy, a pair of aging barbers bicker over the possibility of ending their loving but often volatile…
Support Your Local Sheriff (1969): Dir. Burt Kennedy
Feat. James Garner, Joan Hackett; The definitive Western spoof stars James Garner as a reluctant sheriff ordained to restore law and order to a village struck by goldrush fever.
Take a Girl Like You (1969): Dir. Jonathan Miller
Feat. Hayley Mills, Oliver Reed; A rare adult role for child star Hayley Mills, playing a school teacher in a small British town who is reckoning with the attentions of multiple…
Take the Money and Run (1969): Dir. Woody Allen
Feat. Woody Allen; Woody's first film as do–it–all is a collection of hilarious gags about the life of a would–be thief.
Virgin Soldiers, The (1969): Dir. Norman Cohen
Feat. Lynn Redgrave, Hywel Bennett, Nigel Davenport…; Comdey–drama following a squad of naive young British soldiers in 1950's Singapore who fall for the daughter of the Regimental Sergeant Major.
Vortex, The / Hay Fever (The Noel Coward Collection - Disc 1) (1969-1984): Dir. Philip Dudley
Feat. Margaret Leighton, Richard Warwick, Penelope Keith…; –The Vortex (69') Dark and disturbing drama centred on a family torn apart by drug abuse and sordid affairs. This deeply shocking play, that…
Buona Sera, Mrs. Campbell (1968): Dir. Melvin Frank
Feat. Gina Lollobrigida, Shelley Winters, Phil Silvers…; Genial World War II farce with Italian seductress Lollobrigida receiving payments from three American GIs all under the impression they are the…
Candy (1968): Dir. Christian Marquand
Feat. Ewa Aulin, Marlon Brando, Richard Burton…; Sixties sex farce that satirizes pornographic stories through the adventures of its naive eponymous heroine, played by Swedish model, Ewa Aulin.…
Dad's Army (TV Series) (1968-1977): Feat. Arthur Lowe, Clive Dunn, John Le Mesurier…; The classic British TV series set around the gently–observed antics of home–guardsmen during WW2 under the inimitable Sergeant Mannering…
Doris Day Show, The (TV Series) (1968-1972): Feat. Doris Day, Denver Pyle, Fran Ryan…; A popular and ever–changing sitcom centred around America's 'apple–pie' actress, here making her first smallscreen foray. Appearing at…
For Love of Ivy (1968): Dir. Daniel Mann
Feat. Sidney Poitier, Beau Bridges, Carroll O'Connor; A well–heeled black family find their maid is about to leave, so contrive to engineer a romance for her with a local truck–driver.…
Ghost and Mrs. Muir, The (TV Series) (1968): Feat. Hope Lange, Edward Mulhare; Fondly remembered sitcom based on the R. A. Dick novel (itself made into a 1947 film) about a young widow and family who befriend a ghost haunting…
Here's Lucy (TV Series) (1968): Feat. Lucille Ball; Audiences still loved Lucy in this swansong sitcom for the beloved comedian. Ball plays a zany widow; her real–life son and daughter play her…
How To Save A Marriage And Ruin Your Life (1968): Dir. Fielder Cook
Feat. Dean Martin, Stella Stevens, Eli Wallach…; Comedy where an attorney and bachelor attempts to save his friend's marriage by seducing the woman who his friend is having an affair with, with…
Inspector Clouseau (1968): Dir. Bud Yorkin
Feat. Alan Arkin, Frank Finlay, Patrick Cargill…; This little known entry in the "Pink Panther" series of films was made by the Mirisch company in spite of Peter Sellers and director Blake Edwards…
Italian Job, The (1968): Dir. Peter Collinson
Feat. Michael Caine, Sir Noel Coward, Benny Hill; Petty crook Michael Caine and an incarcerated Noel Coward have a crack at the big one in this ebullient caper movie memorable for its glam car chases…
Live a Little, Love a Little (1968): Dir. Norman Taurog
Feat. Elvis Presley, Michele Carey, Rudy Vallee; Another musical comedy pairing director Norman Taurog with The King. Elvis plays a playboy pin–up photographer whose carefree life is…
Nearest and Dearest (TV Series) (1968-1973): Dir. June Howson
Feat. Hylda Baker, Jimmy Jewel; Likeable Brit comedy series centred on a middle–age brother and sister who inherit their father's derelict pickle factory and must contend with…
Night They Raided Minskey's, The (1968): Dir. William Friedkin
Feat. Jason Robards Jr., Britt Ekland, Norman Wisdom…; An exquisite recreation of New York’s lower East Side burlesque domain headlines this 1920s romp, with Britt Ekland as the Amish girl turned saucy…
Odd Couple, The (1968): Dir. Gene Saks
Feat. Jack Lemmon, Walter Matthau; Neil Simon's genius was in full force when he wrote this smash Broadway play – a letter–perfect, belly–aching examination of men in…
Please Sir! (TV Series) (1968-1972): Feat. John Alderton; A window into the British education system of old, this award–winning comedy series sees John Alderton (Upstairs Downstairs) as an optimistic…
Randall and Hopkirk Deceased (TV Series) (1968): Dir. Various
Feat. Mike Pratt, Kenneth Cope, Annette Andre; Cult 60s British comedy–thriller in which Mike Pratt and Kenneth Cope play investigators, one of whom happens to be dead. Complete series…
Sweet Charity (1968): Dir. Bob Fosse
Feat. Shirley Maclaine, Ricardo Montalban, John McMartin…; Neil Simon's Broadway version of Fellini's NIGHTS OF CABIRIA makes a smashing musical film thanks to the director's razzamatazz, late 60's chic, and…
What's So Bad About Feeling Good? (1968): Dir. George Seaton
Feat. George Peppard, Mary Tyler Moore, Don Stroud…; A hip, literally infectious comedy centred around a cynical former advertising executive living a Beatnik–Bohemian life in a New York loft. The…
With Six You Get Egg Roll (1968): Feat. Doris Day, Brian Keith; Doris Day's last film sees the archetypal girl–next–door a more mature "working mom", here a widower trying to integrate her three sons…
Yours, Mine and Ours (1968): Dir. Melville Shavelson
Feat. Lucille Ball, Henry Fonda, Van Johnson…; Family comedy based loosely on the life of Helen Beardsley, who in the 1960's had a family of 18 children with husband Frank Beardsley, from their…
A Guide for the Married Man (1967): Dir. Gene Kelly
Feat. Walter Matthau, Inger Stevens, Sue Ane Langdon…; Daffy skit comedy with Morse giving Mathau lessons on how to cheat on his wife in order to preserve their marriage, and these 'lessons' are…
Bedazzled (1967): Dir. Stanley Donen
Feat. Peter Cook, Dudley Moore, Raquel Welch…; A brilliant and enduring satire that updates of the 'Faust' tale to swinging London, with Moore playing a lovelorn chef who is lured into a pact by…
Bobo, The (1967): Dir. Robert Parrish
Feat. Peter Sellers, Britt Ekland, Rossano Brazzi…; Sellers chews up the scenery as 'Juan', a singing bullfighter who finally books a job with a famous theatre director on the proviso that he can…
Caprice (1967): Dir. Frank Tashlin
Feat. Doris Day, Richard Harris, Michael J. Pollard; Madcap comedy features Day as a spy for a cosmetics company who stumbles upon a drug smuggling ring. Richard Harris plays a fellow agent who may or…
Cool Hand Luke (1967): Dir. Stuart Rosenberg
Feat. Paul Newman, George Kennedy; Sure–footed, entertaining chain–gang yarn with a famously repulsive egg–eating contest.
Countess from Hong Kong, The (1967): Dir. Charles Chaplin
Feat. Marlon Brando, Sophia Loren, Syd Chaplin…; None too distinguished final film for dir. Chaplin is set aboard a cruise ship, on which US diplomat Brando finds a stowaway Russian countess…
Firemen's Ball, The (1967): Dir. Milos Forman
Feat. Jan Vostrcil, Josef Sebanek, Josef Valnoha; Early film from the director of AMADEUS and CUCKOO'S NEST is an engaging, off–beat collection of comic vignettes, including a clumsy beauty…
Flim-Flam Man, The (1967): Dir. Irvin Kershner
Feat. George C. Scott, Sue Lyon, Harry Morgan…; Light–hearted comedy in which a veteran Southern conman attempts to pass on his tricks to a young army deserter, only to discover his novice is…
Flying Nun, The (TV Series) (1967-1970): Feat. Sally Field, Marge Redmond, Madeleine Sherwood…; Wholesome, if rather off–kilter, family sitcom in which the young Sally Field plays a novice nun, whose starched headgear somehow enables her…
Graduate, The (1967): Dir. Mike Nichols
Feat. Dustin Hoffman, Anne Bancroft, Katherine Ross; An endearing Dustin Hoffman in his first leading role, is seduced by a middle–aged woman and then falls in love with her daughter. A brilliant…
Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967): Dir. Stanley Kramer
Feat. Katharine Hepburn, Spencer Tracy, Sidney Poitier; Katharine Hepburn and Spencer Tracy become perplexed parents of son–in–law Sidney Poitier, in this agreeable mixed–marriage comedy.
Honey Pot, The (1967): Dir. Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Feat. Rex Harrison, Susan Hayward, Maggie Smith…; Trifling comedy of money and manipulation in which Harrison plays a millionaire who deceives a trio of former mistresses into believing he is dying.…
How I Won the War (1967): Dir. Richard Lester
Feat. John Lennon, Michael Crawford; John Lennon and Michael Crawford do service in this black satire on military lunacy.
How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (1967): Dir. David Swift
Feat. Robert Morse, Michele Lee, Rudy Vallee; Skillfully treading the line between silliness and satire, this adaptation of the lauded Broadway musical sees Morse play an ambitious young window…
Magnificent Two, The (1967): Dir. Cliff Owen
Feat. Morecambe and Wise; Perhaps the tightest of the TV comedy duo's cinematic attempts, in which they play a pair of salesmen dithering around in an unstable South American…
Playtime (1967): Dir. Jacques Tati
Feat. Jacques Tati; Tati's satirical vision of modern city life and brutalist architecture is his magnum opus. His alter–ego Mr. Hulot goes about his third…
President's Analyst, The (1967): Dir. Theodore J. Flicker
Feat. James Coburn; Madcap comedy suspense tracking a hapless guy awarded the task of being the president's assistant, who then must deal with bribes and death threats…
Reluctant Astronaut, The (1967): Dir. Edward Montagne
Feat. Don Knotts, Leslie Nielsen, Joan Freeman; Don Knotts, best known as the comedic sidekick on the "Andy Griffiths Show", plays a goofy carnival ride operator who is hired as a janitor at the…
Rocket To The Moon (1967): Dir. Don Sharp
Feat. Burl Ives, Troy Donahue, Gert Frobe…; Jules Verne’s sci–fi classic gets a stupendously silly makeover in this comic chronicle of a scientific consortium’s attempts to launch a…
Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967): Dir. George Roy Hill
Feat. Julie Andrews, Mary Tyler Moore, Carol Channing…; Likeable, though overlong musical set in the swinging 20s and something of a sequel to Andrew's "The Boyfriend". Harebrained farce predominates…
Woman Times Seven (1967): Dir. Vittorio De Sica
Feat. Shirley Maclaine, Rossano Brazzi, Vittorio Gassman…; Shirley MacLaine inhabits seven different women in seven fanciful, star–studded mini–stories of adultery for Italian dir. Vittorio De…
After The Fox (Caccia alla Volpe) (1966): Dir. Vittorio De Sica
Feat. Peter Sellers, Victor Mature, Britt Ekland…; Peter Sellers plays a con–man who escapes jail and must masquerade as a film–director, managing to pull off a major gold bullion…
Arabesque (1966): Dir. Stanley Donen
Feat. Sophia Loren, Gregory Peck; Whimsical spy shenanigans in London, with Anglo–Arab relations straining over the custody of a hieroglyphic code. Sophia Loren's extraordinary…
Dead Heat on a Merry-Go-Round (1966): Dir. Bernard Girard
Feat. James Coburn, Aldo Ray, Camilla Sparv; James Coburn stars as Eli Kotch, a captivating rogue and full–time con man in this comical crime caper.
Follow Me, Boys! (1966): Dir. Norman Tokar
Feat. Fred MacMurray, Vera Miles, Lillian Gish; Disney classic about a simple man who settles in a small town during the 1930's and starts a Boy Scout Troop.
Gambit (1966): Dir. Ronald Neame
Feat. Shirley Maclaine, Michael Caine; Charming, clever heist flick about a Cockney conman and a kooky showgirl whose brilliantly elaborate plan to steal an invaluable sculpture backfires…
Georgy Girl (1966): Dir. Silvio Narizzano
Feat. Lynn Redgrave, Alan Bates, Charlotte Rampling…; Quaint comedy in which 'ugly duckling' Lynn Redgrave strives for happiness alongside her flamboyant friends. Its casual depiction of abortion made…
Ghost and Mr. Chicken, The (1966): Dir. Alan Rafkin
Feat. Don Knotts, Joan Staley, Liam Redmond…; A pretty darned funny Don Knotts vehicle that has the rubber–faced comedian as a timid typesetter who hasn't a chance of becoming a reporter…
Glass Bottom Boat, The (1966): Dir. Frank Tashlin
Feat. Doris Day, Rod Taylor, Dom DeLuise…; Completely transparent comedy of the fluffy 60s variety, with Doris Day, pursued by Rod Taylor and mistaken for a Soviet spy.
How to Steal a Million (1966): Dir. William Wyler
Feat. Audrey Hepburn, Peter O'Toole, Eli Wallach…; A top cast lifts this romantically–inclined suspense caper, wherein Hepburn must steal a forged sculpture belonging to her own family before it…
Munster, Go Home (1966): Dir. Earl Bellamy
Feat. Fred Gwynne, Yvonne De Carlo, Al Lewis…; Feature length outing for the Munsters has the family travelling to London after Herman discovers he's a Lord.
Russians Are Coming, The Russians are Coming! The (1966): Dir. Norman Jewison
Feat. Alan Arkin, Carl Reiner, Eva Marie Saint…; A Russian submarine runs aground on the New England coastline, sending locals into paroxysms of humourous paranoia. Fairly well–judged satire…
San Ferry Ann (1966): Dir. Jeremy Summers
Feat. Barbara Windsor, David Lodge, Wilfred Brambell…; Dialogue–free comedy about a group of rag–tag British travellers travelling on the San Ferry Ann from Dover to France and getting up to…
Spinout (1966): Dir. Norman Taurog
Feat. Elvis Presley, Shelley Fabares; Musical comedy starring Elvis as a race car driver and singer in a band, whose carefree single life is threatened by the romantic advances of three…
Steptoe and Son (TV Series) (1966): Feat. Harry H. Corbett, Wilfred Brambell; The classic 60s comedy show featuring the bickering father and son team, who run a faltering rag and bone business.
Texas Across The River (1966): Dir. Michael Gordon
Feat. Dean Martin, Alain Delon, Rosemary Forsyth…; Gag–heavy Western spoof sees Joey Bishop get painted up 'native' and Dean Martin and Alain Delon facing off for the love of Rosemary Forsyth's…
That Riviera Touch (1966): Dir. Cliff Owen
Feat. Morecambe and Wise; The British comic duo's second cinematic outing, here getting unknowingly entangled with a gang of jewel thieves in the Cote d'Azur, who use them to…
Walk, Don't Run (1966): Dir. Charles Walters
Feat. Cary Grant; During the Tokyo Olympics, an American athlete shares an apartment with an amorous distraction and a wealthy businessman. Breezy comedy marks Cary…
What Did You Do In The War, Daddy? (1966): Dir. Blake Edwards
Feat. James Coburn, Dick Shawn, Aldo Ray; Deft farce set during World War II. Coburn and company charged with seizing a small Sicillian village are surprised to find its inhabitants only too…
Wrong Box, The (1966): Dir. Bryan Forbes
Feat. John Mills, Ralph Richardson, Michael Caine…; A classic black farce where two Victorian siblings (Richardson and Mills) scramble tooth and nail to collect a massive legacy, each trying to outwit…
Alfie (1965): Dir. Lewis Gilbert
Feat. Michael Caine, Shelley Winters; The film that made Michael Caine a household name. His eponymous anti–hero is that of a likely lad who likes to 'ave a go wiv the birds. They…
Art of Love, The (1965): Dir. Norman Jewison
Feat. James Garner, Dick Van Dyke, Elke Sommer…; Amiable con–artist comedy with Dick van Dyke as a frustrated painter who fakes his own death to increase his painting's value.
Big Job (1965): Dir. Gerald Thomas
Feat. Sid James, Sylvia Syms, Dick Emery; Classic comedy in the tradition of the 'CARRY ON' films centered around a group of arrested bankrobbers, who, after being released from prison, try…
Boeing, Boeing (1965): Dir. John Rich
Feat. Tony Curtis, Jerry Lewis, Thelma Ritter; Comedy with Tony Curtis playing a philanderer who is secretly engaged to three different air stewardesses, and Jerry Lewis as the surprise house…
Catch Us If You Can (1965): Dir. John Boorman
Feat. Dave Clark, Barbara Ferris, Lenny Davidson; Surprisingly downbeat comedy vehicle for pop band the Dave Clark Five sees a stuntman (Clark) for a pro–meat commercial run away with its star…
Do Not Disturb (1965): Feat. Doris Day, Rod Taylor, Hermione Baddeley…; Everything seems rosy for a pair of well–to–do newlyweds. That is, until the Husband (Taylor) begins spending more time out with his sexy…
Family Jewels, The (1965): Dir. Jerry Lewis
Feat. Jerry Lewis, Sebastian Cabot, Jay Adler…; Jerry Lewis directs while mugging his way through no less than seven roles, six of whom who are the uncles of a 10–year–old heiress who…
Fists in the Pocket (1965): Dir. Marco Bellochio
Feat. Lou Castel, Paola Pitagora, Marino Mase; A ferocious intensity pervades this bitter yet utterly startling tale of a family afflicted with epilepsy, blindness and frustration, unafforded the…
Get Smart (TV Series) (1965-1968): Feat. Don Adams, Barbara Feldon, Edward Platt; Iconic 60's spy spoof series following the enduringly hilarious adventures of an enthusiastic but incompetent secret agent and his loyal, glamorous…
Gidget (TV Series) (1965-1966): Feat. Sally Field, Don Porter, Betty Conner; Truly likeable television spinoff series of the 1959 movie, about a spunky young surfer girl (Field) who comes of age around her friends, solo Dad…
Great Race, The (1965): Dir. Blake Edwards
Feat. Tony Curtis, Jack Lemmon, Natalie Wood…; Near–classic comedy set around the first New York–to–Paris car race in the early 20th century, with a cast of greats and bag of…
Green Acres - Farm Favorites (1965-1966): Dir. Richard L. Bare
Feat. Eddie Albert, Eva Gabor; Innocuous odd–couple series centred on a high–flying Manhattan lawyer who craves the simple country life and drags his pouting socialite…
Hallelujah Trail, The (1965): Dir. John Sturges
Feat. Burt Lancaster, Lee Remick, Donald Pleasence…; Unusual western adventure about a wagon train of whisky that becomes the target of the US cavalry, the Temperance League and local Indians. Overlong…
Hogan's Heroes (TV Series) (1965-1966): Feat. Bob Crane, Werner Klemperer, John Banner…; Cheeky American WW2 series centred around a motley bunch of Yankee prisoners and their haphazard endeavours to disturb the Nazi war effort and make…
How To Murder Your Wife (1965): Dir. Richard Quine
Feat. Jack Lemmon, Virna Lisi, Claire Trevor…; Lemmon plays a wealthy cartoonist who accidentally marries stripper Lisi while on a bender, and struggles to devise a quick 'solution' to the…
I Dream of Jeannie (TV Series) (1965-70): Feat. Barbara Eden, Larry Hagman; Sitcom magic with a BEWITCHED–inspired premise, features Barbara Eden as the obliging but overzealous (and of course, sexy)…
I Spy (TV Series) (1965-1968): Feat. Bill Cosby, Robert Culp; Bill Cosby and Robert Culp star as international espionage agents Alexander Scott and Kelly Robinson in this snazzy cult '60s TV series. A blend…
Intelligence Men, The (1965): Dir. Robert Asher
Feat. Morecambe and Wise; The big–screen debut of TV duo Morecambe and Wise, who bumble through this spy spoof with reputations just intact. Has a few scenes of cheeky…
Knack and How to Get It, The (1965): Dir. Richard Lester
Feat. Rita Tushingham, Michael Crawford, Ray Brooks; Under–rated moddish mid–60s item with a slightly mixed reputation, concerning a youthful Crawford's attempts to learn how to have a "way…
Loved One, The (1965): Dir. Tony Richardson
Feat. Robert Morse, Jonathan Winters, Anjanette Comer…; Satirical take on the funeral business in which a young British poet goes to work at a Hollywood cemetery. Doing for funerals what that DR…
Marriage on the Rocks (1965): Dir. Jack Donohue
Feat. Frank Sinatra, Deborah Kerr, Dean Martin…; Romantic comedy pairing Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin, about a businessman's wife who ends up divorcing him and marrying his best friend through a…
Outlaws Is Coming, The (1965): Dir. Norman Maurer
Feat. Larry Fine, Moe Howard, Joe De Rita; In their last comic feature, the Three Stooges don cowboy hats for a slapstick romp in the Wild West.
Shop on High Street, The (The Shop on Main Street) (1965): Dir. Jan Kadar; A key film of the Czech film renaissance of the 1960s, that explores 'everyday fascism' through the story of a Jewish shopkeeper who mistakes her…
Strange Bedfellows (1965): Dir. Melvin Frank
Feat. Rock Hudson, Gina Lollobrigida, Gig Young; Dim comedy with Hudson and Lollobrigida as an estranged couple perpetually on the verge of reconciling.
That Darn Cat! (1965): Dir. Robert Stevenson
Feat. Hayley Mills, Dean Jones, Dorothy Provine…; One of the very best Disney live–action comedies, has Hayley Mills and her Siamese cat help solve a bank–robbery and kidnapping case.…
That Funny Feeling (1965): Dir. Richard Thorpe
Feat. Sandra Dee, Bobby Darin, Donald O'Connor…; Third of the Darin and Dee comedies is a comic misadventure in which a New York publisher humors an actress/maid who tries to pass off his apartment…
Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines (1965): Dir. Ken Annakin
Feat. Stuart Whitman, Sarah Miles, James Fox…; Great theme tune sets the tone of this large–scale, rip–roaring comedy about a 1910 aeroplane race, rife with international conflicts,…
A Home of Your Own (1964): Dir. Jay Lewis
Feat. Ronnie Barker, Richard Briers, Peter Butterworth…; Classic 1960s slapstick about a cavalier construction team working on a new housing estate, this began a fruitful trend for 'wordless' English film…
Addams Family, The (TV Series) (1964-1966): Feat. John Astin, Carolyn Jones, Ted Cassidy…; Macabre 1960s sitcom about a family whose gothic lifestyle and trappings make for a mordant contrast with 'apple–pie' America. 22 episodes…
Bargee, The (1964): Dir. Duncan Wood
Feat. Harry H. Corbett, Hugh Griffith, Eric Sykes…; Mildly sexist, politically incorrect Brit comedy from the writers of STEPTOE AND SON follows a womanising barge worker (Corbett) and his fellow…
Beyond the Fringe (1964): Feat. Dudley Moore, Peter Cook, Alan Bennett…; The West End / Broadway comedy sketch show that paved the way for satirical revue shows, with four of Britain's top comedians performing a variety of…
Brass Bottle, The (1964): Dir. Harry Keller
Feat. Tony Randall, Burl Ives, Barbara Eden…; Agreeably daffy comedy that inspired I DREAM OF JEANNIE with Tony Randall accidentally releasing of a long trapped genie who predictably causes all…
Disorderly Orderly, The (1964): Dir. Frank Tashlin
Feat. Jerry Lewis; Jerry Lewis creates comic havoc in a hospital as an inept and over–sympathetic orderly. Mixed bag of wild slapstick and mushy pathos.
Father Came Too (1964): Dir. Peter Graham Scott
Feat. Leslie Phillips, Ronnie Barker, James Robertson-Justice…; Jovial slapstick comedy reunites THE FAST LADY's cast for a showdown between homemaking newlyweds and an overbearing father determined to have his…
Father Goose (1964): Dir. Ralph Nelson
Feat. Cary Grant, Leslie Caron, Trevor Howard; Wartime situational comedy with Cary Grant in his penultimate role as an uncouth South Sea beachcomber who becomes a coast watcher for the Allies,…
Gilligan's Island (TV Series) (1964-1965): Feat. Bob Denver, Alan Hale, Jim Backus…; The classic fluffy American sitcom, follows the adventures of the crew of the SS Minnow when they are marooned on a desert island. Due to an…
Gomer Pyle U.S.M.C (TV Series) (1964-1965): Feat. Jim Nabors, Frank Sutton; Gomer Pyle, THE ANDY GRIFFITH SHOW’s loveable country bumpkin, joins the marine core in this classic sitcom of naivety–meets–reality of…
Kiss Me, Stupid (1964): Dir. Billy Wilder
Feat. Dean Martin, Kim Novak; Philandering crooner Dean Martin shows interest in an aspiring songwriter, but only in order to bed his wife. Silly sex farce, though from talented…
Kissin' Cousins (1964): Dir. Gene Nelson
Feat. Elvis Presley, Arthur O'Connell, Glenda Farrell…; Elvis both an Air Force officer and his hillbilly cousin, and negotiates the affections of two other female cousins, in this cheerfully hick musical…
Man's Favorite Sport? (1964): Dir. Howard Hawks
Feat. Rock Hudson, Paula Prentiss, Maria Perschy…; Tepid late–period Hawks has phony fishing expert Hudson fumbling his way through an angling contest with brash Paula Prentiss the only one in…
Marriage Italian Style (Matrimonio All'italiana) (1964): Dir. Vittorio De Sica
Feat. Marcello Mastroianni, Sophia Loren; This hilarious marriage farce features Sophia Loren as a long–suffering unwedded woman: on her deathbed, she convinces the commitment–shy…
McHale's Navy (1964): Dir. Edward Montagne
Feat. Ernest Borgnine, Tim Conway, Joe Flynn…; War–time comedy where marines are embroiled in a gambling misadventure, based on the 60's TV sitcom of the same name.
Misadventures of Merlin Jones, The (1964): Dir. Robert Stevenson
Feat. Tommy Kirk, Annette Funicello, Leon Ames; Disney live–actioner about a brainy freshman (Kirk) who causes a stir on campus when he goes to college, with the help of a mind–reading…
Munsters, The (TV Series) (1964-1965): Dir. Various
Feat. Fred Gwynne, Yvonne De Carlo, Al Lewis…; Memorable TV–comedy set around a ghoulish–looking, but otherwise normal family – who are mystified as to why everyone reacts so…
Paris When it Sizzles (1964): Dir. Richard Quine
Feat. William Holden, Audrey Hepburn, Sir Noel Coward…; Paris simmers in this minor comedy about a group of movie–writers acting out their ideas of the streets of the French capital, with a good cast…
Patsy, The (1964): Dir. Jerry Lewis
Feat. Jerry Lewis, John Carradine, Nancy Kulp…; The retinue of a recently–deceased celebrity connive to groom his bellhop to impersonate him and thus continue the gravy train. Of course with…
Send Me No Flowers (1964): Dir. Norman Jewison
Feat. Doris Day, Rock Hudson, Tony Randall; Fluffy comedy of the 'Rock and Doris' variety, with Hudson playing a hypochondriac who believes he is about to die. A top support cast adds to this…
Shot in the Dark, A (The Pink Panther II) (1964): Dir. Blake Edwards
Feat. Peter Sellers, Elke Sommer, George Sanders…; The second Inspector Clouseau film, in which the bumbling detective becomes convinced a beautiful woman is innocent of murder, despite the evidence…
Topkapi (1964): Dir. Jules Dassin
Feat. Melina Mercouri, Peter Ustinov, Maximilian Schell…; A classy comic–romantic spin on the director’s RIFIFI shot on location in Turkey and Greece, that climaxes with another brilliantly exacted…
What a Way to Go! (1964): Dir. J. Lee Thompson
Feat. Shirley Maclaine, Paul Newman, Robert Mitchum…; Stacked, big–budget comedy has fun at the expense of a cursed Shirley MacLaine: she plays a wealthy widow whose $200 million fortune has been…
World of Henry Orient, The (1964): Dir. George Roy Hill
Feat. Peter Sellers, Paula Prentiss, Angela Lansbury…; An irreverant and oddly unique Sellers comedy, in which the 'Pink Panther' plays a NYC concert pianist who is 'stalked' by two teenage devotees,…
Yellow Rolls-Royce, The (1964): Dir. Anthony Asquith
Feat. Ingrid Bergman, Rex Harrison, Omar Sharif…; Star–studded omnibus following three consecutive owners of a cute Rolls Royce Pantom II. An English aristocrat, a Chicago gangster and a…
4 For Texas (Four for Texas) (1963): Dir. Robert Aldrich
Feat. Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Ursula Andress…; Frivolous comedy–western in which "Rat Pack–ers" Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin play friendly rivals who each make a bid for a waterfront…
A New Kind of Love (1963): Dir. Melville Shavelson
Feat. Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward, Thelma Ritter…; Husband–and–wife team Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward star in this Paris–set rom–com about a womanizing reporter and a…
Billy Liar (1963): Dir. John Schlesinger
Feat. Tom Courtenay, Julie Christie; Tom Courtenay daydreams his way out of a dull office job, to entertaining yet damaging effect, eventually ending up engaged to two fiances at the…
Dinner for One (Der 90. Geburtstag (The 90th Birthday)) (1963): Dir. Heinz Dunkhase
Feat. Freddie Frinton, May Warden; A classic two–hand comedy sketch staged by German TV in its original English language (written by British author Lauri Wylie), with a short…
Donovan's Reef (1963): Dir. John Ford
Feat. John Wayne, Lee Marvin, Jack Warden…; One of dir. Ford’s more comically inclined efforts with ex–Navy buddies John Wayne, Lee Marvin and Jack Warden raising hell on the remote…
Fast Lady, The (1963): Dir. Ken Annakin
Feat. Leslie Phillips, Ronnie Barker, James Robertson-Justice…; Stanley Baxter attempts to woo Julie Christie with a Bentley convertible he can't drive in this hilarious English comedy, centred on the perils of…
Heavens Above (1963): Dir. John Boulting
Feat. Peter Sellers; Frightfully British satire of life in the clergy saved from 'Carry–On' status by Peter Sellers' winning performance.
It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963): Dir. Stanley Kramer
Feat. Spencer Tracy, Milton Berle, Sid Caesar…; Spencer Tracy leads a countless cast of cameos for a slapstick epic centering around a frantic search for buried bank loot. Your attention might…
Ladies Who Do (1963): Dir. C.M. Pennington-Richards
Feat. Peggy Mount, Harry H. Corbett, Robert Morley…; Dusty sixties Brit comedy, about a group of office cleaning ladies who make a killing on the stock exchange after striking upon some inside…
Man from the Diners' Club, The (1963): Dir. Frank Tashlin
Feat. Danny Kaye, Cara Williams, Martha Hyer…; Comedy with Danny Kaye playing a meek clerk who gets into trouble when he approves a Diner's Club card for a mobster running a racketeering…
Marriage Lines (TV Series) (1963-1965): Feat. Prunella Scales, Richard Briers; A classic domestic comedy with Richard Briers and Prunella Scales as a newly married couple jumping hurdles both at home and at work. Included here…
McLintock! (1963): Dir. Andrew McLagen
Feat. John Wayne, Maureen O'Hara, Yvonne De Carlo…; TAMING OF THE SHREW goes West in this rambunctious battle of wits between cattle rancher (Wayne) and his firebrand wife (O’Hara), in search of a…
Move Over, Darling (1963): Dir. Michael Gordon
Feat. Doris Day, James Garner; Originally intended for Marilyn Monroe as 'Something's Got to Give', Doris Day and James Garner instead appear in this comedy about a long…
Nutty Professor, The (1963): Dir. Jerry Lewis
Feat. Jerry Lewis, Stella Stevens; Jerry Lewis' most hilarious, certainly most personal work uses the Jekyll–and–Hyde device to exploit his comic genius as both awkward…
Son of Flubber (1963): Dir. Robert Stevenson
Feat. Fred MacMurray, Nancy Olson, Keenan Wynn…; A (then) rare Disney sequel in which Fred MacMurray returns as THE ABSENT–MINDED PROFESSOR for another round of visual gags based around the…
Stitch in Time, A (1963): Dir. Robert Asher
Feat. Norman Wisdom, Edward Chapman, Jeanette Sterke…; More disasters befall Norman as on a trip to the hospital he meets a young girl hasn't smiled since her parents death so our kindhearted hero wrecks…
Summer Magic (1963): Dir. James Neilson
Feat. Hayley Mills, Burl Ives, Dorothy McGuire; Sweetly sentimental Disney version of the Kate Wiggins novel 'Mother Carey's Chickens', about a poor Boston family who make a drafty Maine homestead…
Take Her, She's Mine (1963): Dir. Henry Koster
Feat. Sandra Dee, Audrey Meadows, Robert Morley…; Lightly likable comedy with Stewart as an anguished father concerned that his college–age daughter is hanging out with the wrong crowd –…
Thrill of It All!, The (1963): Dir. Norman Jewison
Feat. Doris Day, James Garner; Carl Reiner (THE JERK) wrote this mildly thrilling Doris Day vehicle, where she plays a housewife roped into a series of TV commercials.
Tom Jones (1963): Dir. Tony Richardson
Feat. Albert Finney, Susannah York, Hugh Griffith…; Albert Finney inhabits the randy trou of Tom Jones, a wild and reckless young man with an eye for the ladies. A lavishly produced Oscar winner,…
Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow (1963): Dir. Vittorio De Sica
Feat. Sophia Loren, Marcello Mastroianni; A compendium of three stories starring Sophia Loren in her luscious prime in three very different roles. Together with Marcello Mastroianni, it…
40 Pounds of Trouble (Forty Pounds of Trouble) (1962): Dir. Norman Jewison
Feat. Tony Curtis, Suzanne Pleshette, Phil Silvers…; Tony Curtis plays a harangued casino manager dodging outstanding alimony payments while caring for an abandoned six–year–old girl.…
Billy Rose's Jumbo (1962): Dir. Charles Walters
Feat. Doris Day, Stephen Boyd, Jimmy Durante…; Cracking musical extravaganza based around the real–life Billy Rose stageshow and doctored with brilliant Rodgers and Hart songs, plus dance…
Courtship of Eddie's Father, The (1962): Dir. Vincente Minnelli
Feat. Glenn Ford, Ron Howard, Shirley Jones; Wholesome family comedy, wherein widower Glenn Ford is prodded into romance by his six–year son Ron Howard (who went on to become the…
Dick Van Dyke Show, The (TV Series ) (1962-1966): Dir. Carl Reiner
Feat. Dick Van Dyke, Mary Tyler Moore; Seminal sitcom set around a New York comedy writer and his family. Van Dyke's wife was played by Mary Tyler Moore in her first major…
Five Weeks in a Balloon (1962): Dir. Irwin Allen
Feat. Red Buttons, Fabian, Barbara Eden…; Predictable but entertaining adaptation of Jules Verne's tale about a professor (Hardwicke) who plans to fly across Africa in a balloon and ends up…
Gypsy (1962): Dir. Mervyn LeRoy
Feat. Rosalind Russell, Natalie Wood, Karl Malden; Eye–catching musical comedy–drama based on the memoir of burlesque entertainer Gypsy Rose Lee, whose career was driven by her aggressive…
If a Man Answers (1962): Dir. Henry Levin
Feat. Sandra Dee, Bobby Darin, Micheline Presle…; Very light comedy with Sandra Dee as a rich socialite conspiring with her mother in an attempt to make new hubby Bobby Darin jealous.
It's Only Money (1962): Dir. Frank Tashlin
Feat. Jerry Lewis, Zachary Scott; Comedy with Jerry Lewis playing a hapless TV repairman who aspires to be a private detective, but ends up getting confused for the man he is trying…
Lucy Show, The (TV Series) (1962-1968): Feat. Lucille Ball, Gale Gordon; Lucille Ball's followup to I LOVE LUCY (without husband Desi Arnaz) was a longrunning classic in its own right, with many of the Ball offspring…
Mr Hobbs Takes a Vacation (1962): Dir. Henry Koster
Feat. James Stewart, Maureen O'Hara, Fabian…; James Stewart, Maureen O'Hara, and a gaggle of kids take the holiday from hell in this early, jovial precursor to NATIONAL LAMPOON'S VACATION.
Road to Hong Kong, The (1962): Dir. Norman Panama
Feat. Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, Joan Collins…; Last in the series of 'Road' movies starring Hope and Crosby, this time the mad–cap duo play a pair of con–men who accidentally learn of…
That Touch of Mink (1962): Dir. Delbert Mann
Feat. Doris Day, Cary Grant; Pure–hearted country girl Doris Day becomes a romantic target for rich playboy Cary Grant, after his Rolls splashes her with mud. Other,…
Three Stooges in Orbit / Meet Hercules (1962): Dir. Edward Bernds
Feat. Moe Howard, Larry Fine, Joe De Rita; Two features in which the three kings of slapstick are propelled into space with hostile Martians, and visit ancient Rome via a time machine.
Trial and Error (The Dock Brief) (1962): Dir. James Hill
Feat. Peter Sellers, Richard Attenborough, Beryl Reid; Sellers plays a washed–up barrister who must represent wife–murderer Attenborough, who insists upon his guilt. This is ignored by Sellers…
Two For The Seesaw (1962): Dir. Robert Wise
Feat. Robert Mitchum, Shirley Maclaine, Edmon Ryan…; 'Odd couple' comedy set in NYC, where a Nebraskan lawyer (Mitchum) moves to start life anew and hits the romantic playground in the company of kooky…
Waltz of the Toreadors (1962): Dir. John Guillermin
Feat. Peter Sellers, Dany Robin, Margaret Leighton…; Bruising comedy with an elderly general struggling to come to terms with impending retirement and his ruinous personal life.
Wrong Arm of the Law, The (1962): Dir. Cliff Owen
Feat. Peter Sellers, Lionel Jeffries, Bernard Cribbins…; Hilarious comic spoof, in which a gang of Australian thieves is pursued by Scotland Yard and criminal underworld alike. Peter Sellers is at the…
2000 Year Old Man, The - The Complete History (1961-1998): Feat. Mel Brooks, Carl Reiner; Mel Brooks, playing the 'oldest man in the world' in conversation with Carl Reiner, fronts this all–time classic comedy sketch, much of which…
Come September (1961): Dir. Robert Mulligan
Feat. Rock Hudson, Gina Lollobrigida, Bobby Darin…; Racy romp with Rock on the Riviera as a businessman habitually harangued on holiday when all he wants is to lavish the luscious Lollobrigida.
Days of Thrills and Laughter (1961): Dir. Various
Feat. Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy, Charles Chaplin…; The third in Robert Youngson's trilogy of definitive compilations of silent comedy, this time with swashbuckling action to match the outrageous…
Double Bunk (1961): Dir. C.M. Pennington-Richards
Feat. Ian Carmichael, Janette Scott, Sid James…; Newlyweds Ian Carmichael and Janette Scott purchase a rickety houseboat, set sail for France in this buoyant and occasionally bawdy Brit comedy.
Errand Boy, The (1961): Dir. Jerry Lewis
Feat. Jerry Lewis, Brian Donlevy, Howard McNear…; Lewis plays his perennial bumbler, here recruited as an oddjob man on a Hollywood Studio lot who must also spy on employee activities. Contains some…
Great Impostor, The (1961): Dir. Robert Mulligan
Feat. Tony Curtis, Karl Malden, Edmond O'Brien…; Tony Curtis bluffs his way though society in this comic caper based on the true story of Ferdinand Demara who successfully passed himself off as a…
Ladies Man, The (1961): Dir. Jerry Lewis
Feat. Jerry Lewis, George Raft; A handyman at an academy for aspiring actresses, Jerry Lewis must grapple with a vast, split–level set in one of his best comedies.
Lover Come Back (1961): Dir. Delbert Mann
Feat. Doris Day, Rock Hudson, Tony Randall; Doris Day and Rock Hudson spar away as rival ad–execs – Day is the ethical virgin, Hudson the unscrupulous lady–killer, while Tony…
Mr. Ed (TV Series) (Mister Ed) (1961-1966): Feat. Alan Young; Golden age television sitcom centred around a talking horse who lives in the backyard stable of a husband and wife, but is only conversant with the…
On the Double (1961): Dir. Melville Shavelson
Feat. Danny Kaye, Dana Wynter, Wilfrid Hyde-White; Zany action–comedy set during the Invasion of Normandy, where an American soldier and talented mimic (Danny Kaye) impersonates a British high…
One, Two, Three (1961): Dir. Billy Wilder
Feat. James Cagney, Horst Buchholz, Pamela Tiffin; James Cagney is marvellous as a zealous Coke executive in Germany, keen on penetrating the Russian market, but mortified when his boss's daughter…
Only Two Can Play (1961): Dir. Sidney Gilliat
Feat. Peter Sellers, Mai Zetterling, Richard Attenborough…; One of Peter Seller's earlier films sees him in rare semi–dramatic part, playing a librarian in a small Welsh town who has an affair. Dryly…
Pocketful of Miracles (1961): Dir. Frank Capra
Feat. Ann-Margret, Bette Davis, Glenn Ford…; Frank Capra's final film (and Ann–Margret's debut) is an appealing remake of his earlier LADY FOR A DAY, in which the poverty–stricken…
Andy Griffith Show, The (TV Series) (1960-1968): Feat. Andy Griffith, Don Knotts, Ron Howard; Classic US TV series set in the quiet town of Maybury, North Carolina, out of which comedian Griffith spun his homely brand of humour. Two volumes of…
Apartment, The (1960): Dir. Billy Wilder
Feat. Jack Lemmon, Shirley Maclaine; Neurotic insurance clerk Jack Lemmon wheedles his way up the corporate ladder by loaning his apartment keys to philandering executives, unknowing…
Bellboy, The (1960): Dir. Jerry Lewis
Feat. Jerry Lewis, Alex Gerry; A quickly–made diversion for director/star Lewis that became a major hit. The comic piles on the on 'spastic' routines as the…
Bells are Ringing (1960): Dir. Vincente Minnelli
Feat. Judy Holliday, Dean Martin, Fred Clark…; Winning musical rom–com from Vincente Minnelli (MEET ME IN ST LOUIS), with Judy Holliday playing a fictionalised version of real–life…
Bulldog Breed, The (1960): Dir. Robert Asher
Feat. Norman Wisdom, Ian Hunter, David Lodge…; Nautical farce with our Norman persuaded to join the navy as if that wasn't a bad enough idea they want to send the genial buffoon into space.
Cinderfella (1960): Dir. Frank Tashlin
Feat. Jerry Lewis, Ed Wynn, Dame Judith Anderson…; Many years before SHREK, there was this comical parody on the world of fairy–tales, with ace comic Lewis playing a male version of the…
It Started in Naples (1960): Dir. Melville Shavelson
Feat. Clark Gable, Sophia Loren, Vittorio De Sica; Winning combination of Gable and Loren guided by director Shavelson (HOUSEBOAT) team up again for this romantic comedy drama set in Naples following…
League of Gentlemen, The (1960): Dir. Basil Dearden
Feat. Jack Hawkins, Richard Attenborough, Bryan Forbes…; A high–class league of British actor gents – Jack Hawkins, Richard Attenborough, Bryan Forbes, Roger Livesy and others – conspire…
Light Up the Sky! (1960): Dir. Lewis Gilbert
Feat. Ian Carmichael, Benny Hill, Dick Emery…; Ian Carmichael leads an inept searchlight unit during in this bumbling and occasionally tragic wartime comedy. Larrikins Benny Hill and Tommy Steele…
Make Mine Mink (1960): Dir. Robert Asher
Feat. Terry-Thomas, Athene Seyler, Hattie Jacques…; Four unlikely crims embark on a fur thieving spree in this good–natured comedy with a somewhat politically incorrect theme.
Man in the Moon (1960): Dir. Basil Dearden
Feat. Kenneth More, Shirley Anne Field; Loony space–race satire sees Kenneth More as an arrogant bachelor whose ability to withstand anything marks him out as the first astronaut.
Millionairess, The (1960): Dir. Anthony Asquith
Feat. Peter Sellers, Sophia Loren, Vittorio De Sica…; Loren plays a spoiled heiress who tries to 'buy' a husband in the form of principled doctor Sellers. Fairly good adaptation of George Bernard Shaw's…
My Three Sons (TV Series) (1960): Feat. Fred MacMurray, Don Grady, Stanley Livingston…; One of the longest–running sitcoms in American television history (at 360 episodes), this 'family values' classic starred Fred MacMurray as a…
Never On Sunday (1960): Dir. Jules Dassin
Feat. Jules Dassin, Melina Mercouri; Director Jules Dassin (think a bug–eyed Tony Randall) plays a disillusioned American philosopher searching for answers in the birthplace of…
Our Man in Havana (1960): Dir. Carol Reed
Feat. Alec Guinness, Burl Ives, Maureen O'Hara…; Witty, forgotten spy satire from dir. Reed (THE THIRD MAN) has Alex Guinness run riot as an undercover vacuum cleaner salesman spooking for the…
Please Don't Eat the Daisies (1960): Dir. Charles Walters
Feat. David Niven, Doris Day; NY critic David Niven, wife Doris Day and their gaggle of kids (plus pet sheepdog) are an unstoppable hurricane of cheer and frivolous good humour,…
Pure Hell of St Trinian's / Great St Trinian's Train Robbery (1960-1966): Dir. Frank Launder, Sidney Gilliat
Feat. George Cole, Cecil Parker, Joyce Grenfell…; A double feature of later 'St Trinians' comedies derived from Ronald Searle's cartoons (though without mainstay Alistair Sim). Pure Hell of St…
Rebel, The / Punch and Judy Man, The (1960-1962): Dir. Robert Day, Jeremy Summers
Feat. Tony Hancock, George Sanders, Dennis Price…; A double feature of Tony Hancock's two big–screen outings. The Rebel (1960) Dir. Robert Day – Here Hancock trades in his office career…
Shoot the Pianist (Shoot the Piano Player) (1960): Dir. Francois Truffaut
Feat. Charles Aznavour, Marie Dubois, Nicole Berger…; Part homage to Hollywood film noir, part love story and part and parcel of the new wave, a down–on–his–luck pianist is drawn into…
Strange World of Gurney Slade, The (TV Series) (1960): Feat. Anthony Newley; An unpredictable, wildly inventive comedy where an actor (Anthony Newley) walks off the set of a banal sit–com and into an absurd fantasy world…
Tall Story (1960): Dir. Joshua Logan
Feat. Jane Fonda, Anthony Perkins; A young Jane Fonda makes her screen debut in this candy–coated comedy as a bubbly co–ed with romantic yearnings for basketballer Anthony…
Two Way Stretch (1960): Dir. Robert Day
Feat. Peter Sellers, Wilfrid Hyde-White, Bernard Cribbins…; Peter Sellers leads a jailbird trio whose plans for the ultimate heist are scuppered by the arrival of a staunch prison warden.
When Comedy Was King (1960): Dir. Various
Feat. Charles Chaplin, Buster Keaton, Stan Laurel…; Second anthology of priceless silent comedy from complier Robert Youngson features excerpts from the likes of Chaplin, Keaton, Laurel & Hardy,…
Where the Boys Are (1960): Dir. Henry Levin
Feat. Dolores Hart, George Hamilton, Yvette Mimieux…; Fairly 'swingin' sixties beach romp with Hart, Hamilton and a cast of bright young co–eds on Spring Break vacation at Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.…
Zazie Dans Le Metro (Zazie in the Underground) (1960): Dir. Louis Malle
Feat. Catherine Demongeot, Philippe Noiret; Anarchistic comedy drops the impudent 11yr old Zazie into the care of Uncle Phillipe Noiret and the whirlygig chaos of modern Paris. Adapted from…
Battle of the Sexes, The (1959): Dir. Charles Crichton
Feat. Peter Sellers, Robert Morley, Constance Cummings…; An archly engaging comedy based upon a James Thurber story in which the head clerk (Sellers) of a tweed manufacturer resists the efforts of the…
Don't Give Up the Ship (1959): Dir. Norman Taurog
Feat. Jerry Lewis, Dina Merrill; Comedy with Jerry Lewis playing a Junior Navy Officer whose ship mysteriously goes missing years after WWII, and he is called upon to find it right…
I'm All Right Jack (1959): Dir. John Boulting
Feat. Ian Carmichael, Peter Sellers, Terry-Thomas…; Brilliant satire of labour and class relations, makes a glorious mockery of unions and management alike as upperclass twit Ian Carmichael joins the…
It Happened to Jane (1959): Dir. Richard Quine
Feat. Doris Day, Jack Lemmon, Ernie Kovacs; Ordinary folk take on corporate bullying in this under–rated rom–com starring Doris Day as a widowed small–business woman and…
Operation Petticoat (1959): Dir. Blake Edwards
Feat. Cary Grant, Tony Curtis; Submarine Capt. Cary Grant and First Mate Tony Curtis excel in this seaborne comedy.
Pillow Talk (1959): Dir. Michael Anderson
Feat. Doris Day, Rock Hudson, Tony Randall; Party–line adversaries Rock Hudson and Doris Day conduct a hilarious romance of deception in this imaginative sex comedy. With Rock as the…
Shaggy Dog, The (1959): Dir. Charles Barton
Feat. Fred MacMurray, Jean Hagen, Tommy Kirk…; Fred MacMurray excels in this Disney live–actioner, playing a postman whose son accidentally transforms himself into a talking sheepdog with…
Some Like It Hot (1959): Dir. Billy Wilder
Feat. Tony Curtis, Jack Lemmon, Marilyn Monroe; One of the great comedies, in which Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon dress as women and join an all–girl travelling jazz band in order to escape the…
Square Peg, The (1959): Dir. John Paddy Carstairs
Feat. Norman Wisdom, Honor Blackman, Edward Chapman…; Chaotic comedy with Wisdom as an an inept council workman whose road mending gets him into conflict with the Army. Arguably Wisdom's best film with…
Too Many Crooks (1959): Dir. Mario Zampi
Feat. Terry-Thomas, George Cole, Sid James…; Four incompetent, would–be criminals make a meal of a kidnapping–ransom plot in this farcical crime caper from the Rank Organisation.
Bell, Book and Candle (1958): Dir. Richard Quine
Feat. James Stewart, Kim Novak, Jack Lemmon; Enchanting romantic comedy adapted from the Broadway play stars Kim Novak as a witch who casts a spell on her neighbour, played by James Stewart.
Carry On Forever! Box Set (Carry On Screaming; Carry On Constable; Carry On Cowboy; Carry On Sergeant; Carry On Teacher; Carry On Spying; Carry On Nurse; Carry On Jack; Carry On Cabby; Carry On Regardless; Carry On Cleo; Carry On Cruising) (1958-1966): Feat. Sid James, Joan Sims, Kenneth Williams…; A 12–disc set containing various 'Carry On' comedies of the 1950–60s. All are also available separately for rental: Carry On…
Damn Yankees (Whatever Lola Wants) (1958): Dir. George Abbott, Stanley Donen
Feat. Tab Hunter, Gwen Verdon, Ray Walston…; Supremely entertaining musical rom–com that transposes the Faustian legend to the world of American baseball, with Gwen Verdon in the iconic…
Geisha Boy (1958): Dir. Frank Tashlin
Feat. Jerry Lewis; Jerry Lewis plays a clumsy stage–magician touring Japan who leaves multiple havoc in his wake.
Houseboat (1958): Dir. Melville Shavelson
Feat. Cary Grant, Sophia Loren, Martha Hyer…; Fortunes change for widower and father–of–three Cary Grant when he takes up residence on a floating home, and employs Sophia Loren as his…
Matchmaker, The (1958): Dir. Joseph Anthony
Feat. Shirley Booth, Anthony Perkins, Shirley Maclaine…; Farcical adaptation of the Broadway play about a meddling madam who prides herself on playing cupid to the young folk around town until one day…
Me and the Colonel (1958): Dir. Peter Glenville
Feat. Danny Kaye, Nicole Maurey, Curt Jurgens; Danny Kaye plays a Jewish refugee being comically resourceful in his efforts to evade the Nazi's before WWII, in this charming comedy.
Mon Oncle (1958): Dir. Jacques Tati
Feat. Jacques Tati; Monsieur Hulot returns in another gag–laden adventure. His whimsical ways endear him to his nephew, but leave the boy's trendy parents cold.…
Rally 'Round the Flag, Boys! (1958): Dir. Leo McCarey
Feat. Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward, Joan Collins…; None too funny surburban satire is kept afloat by Woodward and Newman – despite the latter's lack of comedic flair. The two stars play husband…
Rock-A-Bye-Baby (1958): Dir. Frank Tashlin
Feat. Jerry Lewis, Marilyn Maxwell; A stooging Jerry Lewis must babysit the triplets of starlet Marilyn Maxwell, who wants to keep them a secret from her public.
Sheriff of Fractured Jaw, The (1958): Dir. Raoul Walsh
Feat. Jayne Mansfield, Kenneth More, Henry Hull…; In this goofy western, Jayne Mansfield plays a buxom saloon proprietor who lassos a clueless Englishman when he becomes the sheriff of the titular…
Teacher's Pet (1958): Dir. George Seaton
Feat. Clark Gable, Doris Day, Gig Young…; Self–taught newspaper–man Clark Gable is cynical about journalism school, but becomes enchanted with a teacher (Doris Day) and decides to…
A King in New York (1957): Dir. Charles Chaplin
Feat. Charles Chaplin, Maxine Audley, Dawn Addams; Mild satire, in which Chaplin plays the leader of 'Estrovia' whose visit to NYC is beset by witchhunts, noise, and 1950s conservatism. Has often…
Admirable Crichton, The (1957): Dir. Lewis Gilbert
Feat. Kenneth More, Cecil Parker, Sally Ann Howes; Comedy about an impeccable butler (Kenneth More) who becomes the ruler of an aristocratic family when social order is flipped after they all become…
Blue Murder at St. Trinian's (1957): Dir. Frank Launder
Feat. Terry-Thomas, George Cole, Alastair Sim…; Particularly raucous installment of the popular naughty schoolgirl series; this time their behaviour gets the headmistress thrown in jail and the…
Delicate Delinquent, The (1957): Dir. Don McGuire
Feat. Jerry Lewis, Darren McGavin, Martha Hyer…; Comedian Lewis plays a janitor who is mistakenly picked–up by police as a juvenile delinquent and forced into the police training himself. This…
Designing Woman (1957): Dir. Vincente Minnelli
Feat. Gregory Peck, Lauren Bacall, Dolores Gray; A sportswriter and a fashion–designer marry after a whirlwind romance, and discover they have little in common in this diverting rom–com…
Desk Set (His Other Woman) (1957): Dir. Walter Lang
Feat. Spencer Tracy, Katharine Hepburn, Gig Young…; Screwball Tracy–Hepburn vehicle makes good use of their excellent chemistry. Tracy is an efficiency expert come to computerise a New York firm…
Golden Age of Comedy, The (1957): Dir. Various
Feat. Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy, Ben Turpin…; Perfect introduction to the world of silent comedy, this is the first of three celebrated compilations from cinephile Robert Youngson. Hailed as…
Green Man, The / School for Scoundrels (1957-1960): Dir. Basil Dearden, Robert Hamer
Feat. Alastair Sim, George Cole, Terry-Thomas…; A double feature of comedies starring Alastair Sim. The Green Man (1957) Dir. Basil Dearden – One of Sim's best films, playing an apparently…
Kiss Them For Me (1957): Dir. Stanley Donen
Feat. Cary Grant, Jayne Mansfield, Leif Erickson…; Very very silly war comedy with Grant and his navy buddies fighting for their right to spend their shore leave as they see fit, which inevitably…
Leave It to Beaver (TV Series) (1957): Feat. Jerry Mathers, Hugh Beaumont, Barbara Billingsley; One of the most beloved family sitcoms of its time set around the mischief–making exploits of young Theodore 'Beaver' Cleaver.
Naked Truth, The (Your Past is Showing) (1957): Dir. Mario Zampi
Feat. Peter Sellers, Terry-Thomas, Peggy Mount…; Dark comedy set in the tabloid industry with an extortionate publisher marked for death by his celebrity victims.
Prince and the Showgirl, The (1957): Dir. Laurence Olivier
Feat. Laurence Olivier, Marilyn Monroe; Curious comedy juxtaposes the talents of Laurence Olivier and Marilyn Monroe to surprising effect. Filmed in London during the coronation of George V.
Sad Sack, The (1957): Dir. George Marshall
Feat. Jerry Lewis, David Wayne, Phyllis Kirk…; A charming adaptation of the beloved comic strip by George Baker, with Jerry Lewis playing a hopeless soldier whose planned six weeks weeks of…
Smallest Show on Earth, The (1957): Dir. Basil Dearden
Feat. Peter Sellers, Virginia McKenna, Bill Travers…; A small gem of British comedy, concerning a young couple who inherit a movie–house from a long lost uncle. Along with the semi–decrepit…
Tammy and the Bachelor (1957): Dir. Joseph Pevney
Feat. Debbie Reynolds, Leslie Nielsen, Walter Brennan; Debbie Reynolds shines in this classic rom–com about an unsophisticated woman from backwoods Mississippi who falls in love with a wealthy pilot…
Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? (1957): Dir. Frank Tashlin
Feat. Tony Randall, Jayne Mansfield, Joan Blondell; Single ad man Tony Randall saves his job but complicates his romantic life by using superstar sexpot Jayne Mansfield in a lipstick campaign.…
Around the World in 80 Days (1956): Dir. Michael Anderson
Feat. David Niven, Cantinflas, Shirley Maclaine; Lively spectacle in which David Niven attempts to perform the title feat, while no less than 44 other stars make cameo appearances. Garnered four…
Bus Stop (1956): Dir. Joshua Logan
Feat. Marilyn Monroe, Don Murray; Marilyn Monroe excels in this comedy/drama as a distraught southern showgirl who becomes the object of desire and marriage for an obsessive and naive…
Court Jester, The (1956): Dir. Norman Panama, Melvin Frank
Feat. Danny Kaye, Basil Rathbone, Angela Lansbury; Much–loved comedy thrives off the charms of Danny Kaye as a bogus jester entangled in spoofed up royal intrigues from the Middle Ages. Basil…
Forever Darling (1956): Dir. Alexander Hall
Feat. Lucille Ball, James Mason, Desi Arnaz; The unique talents of Lucille Ball is the strongest aspect of this 'dysfunctional marriage' comedy, starring James Mason as her Guardian Angel. Ball…
Hollywood or Bust (1956): Dir. Frank Tashlin
Feat. Jerry Lewis, Dean Martin; Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin try to crash the Hollywood lifestyle, in frenzied style.
King and Four Queens, The (1956): Dir. Raoul Walsh
Feat. Clark Gable, Eleanor Parker, Jean Willes…; Wily comedy–western with con man Gable ingratiating himself with the cantankerous mother of four outlaws and their beautiful widows in order to…
Naughty Girl (Cette Sacree Gamine) (1956): Dir. Michel Boisrond
Feat. Brigitte Bardot, Francoise Fabian; A con–artist father leaves his devious minx of a daughter in the hands of a performer who discovers the girl is bent on disrupting his life the…
Pardners (1956): Dir. Norman Taurog
Feat. Jerry Lewis, Dean Martin, Agnes Moorehead; Comic–partners Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis saddle–up for a jaunt in the Old West.
Plucking the Daisy (Mademoiselle Striptease) (1956): Dir. Roger Vadim
Feat. Brigitte Bardot, Roger Vadim; One of the Brigitte Bardot/Roger Vadim light comedies that relies on Bardot's charms rather more than the simple story of a smalltown woman who is…
Private's Progress (1956): Dir. John Boulting
Feat. Richard Attenborough, Dennis Price, Terry-Thomas…; Popular Ealing war satire finds Ian Carmichael, as the film’s spotty college freshman, conscripted to military service where he’s whipped into…
Teahouse of the August Moon, The (1956): Dir. Daniel Mann
Feat. Marlon Brando, Glenn Ford, Machiko Kyo…; Dated culture clash comedy with Glenn Ford as an American GI charged with teaching democracy to the inhabitants of a small Japanese…
Abbott and Costello Meet the Keystone Kops (1955): Dir. Charles Lamont
Feat. Bud Abbott, Lou Costello; An interesting 'Abbott and Costello' where the duo, circa 1914, take refuge from crooks by hiding in the Mack Sennett studios and end up…
Abbott and Costello Meet the Mummy (1955): Dir. Charles Lamont
Feat. Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Marie Windsor; One of the better films in the 'Abbott and Costello' series, sees the bumbling duo wrapped up in the intrigue surrounding the excavation of The…
Artists and Models (1955): Dir. Frank Tashlin
Feat. Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, Shirley Maclaine…; Bubbly, brain–addled comedy with comic–artist Dean Martin getting his ideas from roommate Jerry Lewis’ wild nocturnal mutterings. Rated…
Daddy Long Legs (1955): Dir. Jean Negulesco
Feat. Fred Astaire, Leslie Caron, Terry Moore…; An orphaned French teenager (Caron) endears herself to a playboy sophisticate (Astaire), who secretly sponsors her in an American private education.…
Doctor at Sea (1955): Dir. Ralph Thomas
Feat. Dirk Bogarde, Brigitte Bardot; Dirk Bogarde is once again the eligible MD, in this entertaining second entry in the series taken from Richard Gordon's novels. The crushing boredom…
Honeymooners, The (TV Series) (The Color Honeymooners; The Jackie Gleason Show) (1955-1956): Feat. Jackie Gleason; This Jackie Gleason sitcom from the 1950s is the saga of a not–so–newly–wed couple who lived in a run down apartment. "The…
Lucky Me (1955): Dir. Jack Donohue
Feat. Doris Day, Robert Cummings, Phil Silvers; Showbiz musical comedy with Doris Day paired once again with CALAMITY JANE tune smiths Sammy Fain and Paul Francis Webster.
Mister Roberts (1955): Dir. John Ford
Feat. Henry Fonda, James Cagney, Jack Lemmon; Naval officer Henry Fonda yearns for combat but instead must tolerate his eccentric captain (James Cagney). Jack Lemmon won an Oscar for his funny…
Sergeant Bilko (TV Series) (The Phil Silvers Show) (1955-1959): Feat. Phil Silvers, Harvey Lembeck; Three–disc compilation of 18 episodes from the classic US sitcom about an irresponsible, gambling conman of a staff sergeant at a US Army base…
Seven Year Itch, The (1955): Dir. Billy Wilder
Feat. Marilyn Monroe, Tom Ewell; Marilyn Monroe gives plenty of dumb blonde for this comedy about a married man (Tom Ewell) who has a fling with you–know–who.
To Paris with Love (1955): Dir. Robert Hamer
Feat. Alec Guinness, Odile Versois, Vernon Gray…; Widowed aristocrat Guinness takes his estranged son to Paris where romantic entanglements await. Tepid romantic comedy fails to rise to the standard…
We're No Angels (1955): Dir. Michael Curtiz
Feat. Humphrey Bogart, Aldo Ray, Peter Ustinov…; Moderately interesting Hollywood comedy concerns three convicts (Bogart, Ray and Ustinov) who escape from Devils Island and have to transform into…
3 Coins in the Fountain (Three Coins in the Fountain) (1954): Dir. Jean Negulesco
Feat. Clifton Webb, Dorothy McGuire, Jean Peters…; Likeable, but modest classic in which three women throw coins into the Fountain of Trevi in Rome, to try their romantic luck. Great tourist locales…
Belles of St. Trinian's, The (1954): Dir. Frank Launder
Feat. Alastair Sim, Joyce Grenfell, George Cole…; Classic pre–CARRY ON hi–jinks set in a seedy girl's school and based on Ronald Searle's cartoon series. Alastair Sim (in drag) plays…
Doctor in the House (1954): Dir. Ralph Thomas
Feat. Dirk Bogarde; First and best of a series in which Doctors and Nurses exchange fleeting glances and banter for comic effect while training at a med school. Dirk…
Father Knows Best (TV Series) (1954-1960): Dir. Peter Tewksbury
Feat. Sarah Selby, Jane Wyatt, Billy Gray; Cloying sitcom bathed in the idealised glow of 50's apple–pie America, centred on a suburban family and their typically patriarchal upbringing.…
Knock on Wood (1954): Dir. Melvin Frank, Norman Panama
Feat. Danny Kaye, Mai Zetterling, Torin Thatcher…; Danny Kaye plays a ventriloquist who is comically unlucky in love due to his jealous dummy, who manages to sabotage every relationship he has right…
Living It Up (1954): Dir. Norman Taurog
Feat. Jerry Lewis, Dean Martin, Janet Leigh…; One of the funnier Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis comedies of the 17 they made together. Jerry Lewis plays a stationmaster from provincial New Mexico…
Long, Long Trailer, The (1954): Dir. Vincente Minnelli
Feat. Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz; Gallivanting in an enormous RV across America, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz journey to disaster in this winning slapstick comedy. The classic TV…
Maggie, The (High and Dry) (1954): Dir. Alexander Mackendrick
Feat. Paul Douglas, Alex Mackenzie; Ealing comedy about the argumentative crew of an aged cargo boat, captained by a wily Scottish man who clashes with a wealthy American industrialist.
Sabrina (1954): Dir. Billy Wilder
Feat. Audrey Hepburn, Humphrey Bogart, William Holden; Cinderella–ish comic yarn with a dream cast and director. Audrey Hepburn plays a humble chauffeur's daughter who wins the affections of noble…
Student Prince, The (1954): Dir. Richard Thorpe
Feat. Ann Blyth, Edmund Purdom, John Ericson…; Taken from the operetta by Sigmund Romberg, and the third filmed version of the tale of a young Prince breaking out into the real world by falling in…
To Catch a Thief (1954): Dir. Alfred Hitchcock
Feat. Cary Grant, Grace Kelly; Hitchcock takes a whimsical approach for this caper about a reformed cat burglar who sets about catching the thief that is imitating his old style.…
Who Done It? (1954): Dir. Basil Dearden
Feat. Benny Hill; A young Benny Hill nudges and winks his way through his only feature film, as a novice private eye who gets involved with foreign spies.
Young at Heart (1954): Dir. Gordon Douglas
Feat. Frank Sinatra, Doris Day; Slick musical with Frank Sinatra wooing Doris Day, while trying to make it as a singer.
Affairs of Dobie Gillis, The (1953): Dir. Don Weis
Feat. Debbie Reynolds, Bobby Van, Bob Fosse…; Lighthearted MGM college musical set on a Midwestern university campus, where two freshmen spend their time cutting class and courting two coeds.…
Beat the Devil (1953): Dir. John Huston
Feat. Humphrey Bogart, Gina Lollobrigida, Peter Lorre…; Spoofing their own suspense movies (such as CASABLANCA and MALTESE FALCON), Humphrey Bogart and dir. Huston produced this comic oddity with the help…
Caddy, The (1953): Dir. Norman Taurog
Feat. Jerry Lewis, Dean Martin; Golf comedy from the Jerry Lewis/Dean Martin stable. Lewis caddies, Martin sings ‘That’s Amore’.
Calamity Jane (1953): Dir. David Butler
Feat. Doris Day, Howard Keel; Big, rousing musical western, featuring Doris Day as the tomboy heroine, who falls for easygoing Wild Bill Hickok (Howard Keel).
Captain's Paradise (1953): Dir. Anthony Kimmins
Feat. Alec Guinness, Yvonne De Carlo, Celia Johnson; Nautical romp with captain Alec Guinness paying the price of having a wife in two ports – sultry Yvonne De Carlo and a genial Celia Johnson.
Final Test, The (1953): Dir. Anthony Asquith
Feat. Jack Warner, Robert Morley, George Relph…; Gentle comedy of values has a famed cricketer making his way to the middle for one last innings. Meanwhile is son is torn between seeing dad bat one…
Genevieve (1953): Dir. Henry Cornelius
Feat. John Gregson, Dinah Sheridan, Kenneth More…; The London to Brighton car rally sets off this high–spirited, fondly remembered comedy in which a couple make a wager with their affectionate…
Hobson's Choice (1953): Dir. David Lean
Feat. Charles Laughton; Hard to take one's eyes off the maniacal acting of Charles Laughton in this Dickensian comic–drama, as a vulgar cobbler whose rebellious eldest…
Million Pound Note, The (1953): Dir. Ronald Neame
Feat. Gregory Peck, Ronald Squire, Joyce Grenfell…; A fairly neat adaptation of Mark Twain's satirical fable about a pair of rich brothers who bet over whether a man can live on a million pounds,…
Moon is Blue, The (1953): Dir. Otto Preminger
Feat. William Holden, Maggie McNamara, David Niven; Bright, bristling romantic comedy centered on the courtship of a blithe and carefree commercials actress (McNamara) by the smooth–as–silk…
Mr. Hulot's Holiday (Les Vacances de Monsieur Hulot) (1953): Dir. Jacques Tati
Feat. Jacques Tati, Nathalie Pascaud; Jacques Tati fine–tunes the virtues of JOUR DE FETE to create his most eponymous character. The first of four Hulot features follows the…
Norman Wisdom Collection, The (Trouble in Store, Up in the World, On the Beat.) (1953-1962): Feat. Norman Wisdom, Margaret Rutherford; Collection of three comedies – Trouble in Store, Up in the World and On the Beat – from admired British slapstick comedian Norman Wisdom,…
Best of Frankie Howerd, The (1952-1981): Feat. Frankie Howerd; A compilation of classic moments in the TV career of comedian Frankie Howerd. Although he initially got his start in post–WW2 radio, he went to…
Crimson Pirate, The (1952): Dir. Robert Siodmak
Feat. Burt Lancaster; Camp swashbuckler stars Burt Lancaster as a spirited pirate who leads an island people's revolt against a ruling tyrant. Rollicking entertainment…
Down Among the Z Men (The Goon Show Movie) (1952): Dir. Maclean Rogers
Feat. Peter Sellers, Spike Milligan, Harry Secombe…; A rare outing into film for the Goons, in their original four–man lineup – Spike Milligan, Peter Sellers, Harry Secombe, Michael Bentine –…
Has Anyone Seen My Gal? (1952): Dir. Douglas Sirk
Feat. Charles Coburn, Lynn Bari, Piper Laurie…; Sirk–for–hire musical comedy finds the iconic melodramatist at his most unidentifiable: Coburn stars as an elderly money bags with no…
Importance of Being Earnest (1952): Dir. Anthony Asquith
Feat. Michael Redgrave, Michael Denison, Dame Edith Evans…; Screen version of Oscar Wilde's brilliant comedy of manners starring a host of British stage thesps.
Jumping Jacks (1952): Dir. Norman Taurog
Feat. Jerry Lewis, Dean Martin; The comic duo of Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin make an unlikely pair of paratroopers.
Love Nest (1952): Dir. Joseph M. Newman
Feat. Marilyn Monroe; Unremarkable comedy about nosey neighbours in a broken–down apartment block, one of whom is Marilyn Monroe.
Monkey Business (1952): Dir. Howard Hawks
Feat. Cary Grant, Ginger Rogers, Charles Coburn…; Scientist Cary Grant discovers a rejuvenation serum which has screwball side–effects. Stars include the director and writing team – Ben…
On The Beat (1952): Dir. Robert Asher
Feat. Norman Wisdom, Jennifer Jayne, Raymond Huntley…; Wisdom returns to his most popular role as Norman Pitkin, and more trouble ensues when he takes to the streets dressed in his father's police uniform.
Pat and Mike (1952): Dir. George Cukor
Feat. Katharine Hepburn, Spencer Tracy; Athlete Katharine Hepburn pursues track triumphs with the aid of coach Spencer Tracy. Hepburn–Tracy coupling runs like a well–oiled…
Quiet Man, The (1952): Dir. John Ford
Feat. John Wayne, Maureen O'Hara; Ex–boxer John Wayne retires to his Irish homeland in search of tranquillity and maybe the hand of Maureen O'Hara. This romantic comedy was a…
Road To Bali (1952): Dir. Hal Walker
Feat. Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Dorothy Lamour; The only Technicolor Road picture they made, this time the comic and the crooner star as two song–and–dance men who set out to rescue a…
Scared Stiff (1952): Dir. George Marshall
Feat. Jerry Lewis, Dean Martin; Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin make a ‘spooktacle’ of themselves in this version of Paul Dickey and Charles Goddard’s Broadway hit.
Stalag 17 (1952): Dir. Billy Wilder
Feat. William Holden, Don Taylor, Otto Preminger…; Sophisticated WW2 film in which comedy and suspense make uneasy but fascinating bedfellows. William Holden leads imprisoned American G.Is who plan…
Three Stooges - Volume 2 (1952-1956): Feat. The Three Stooges; Five shorts: Squareheads of the Round Table (1948), Gents in a Jam (1952), Tricky Dicks (1953); Rumpus in the Harem, Hot Stuff (1956, recycled of…
Titfield Thunderbolt, The (1952): Dir. Charles Crichton
Feat. Stanley Holloway, George Relph, Naunton Wayne…; Gorgeously shot comedy with Stan Holloway leading the way in saving his local branch railway from being cut by British Rail. At the more whimsical…
We're Not Married (1952): Dir. Edmund Goulding
Feat. Marilyn Monroe, Ginger Rogers, Fred Allen…; Overlooked Marilyn Monroe starrer is a multi–episode comedy in which six married couples find out their weddings weren't legitimate.
What Price Glory? (1952): Dir. John Ford
Feat. James Cagney, Dan Dailey, Corinne Calvet; Soldiers James Cagney and Dan Dailey take time out from the trenches of WWI for some zesty romantic rivalry over local attraction Corrinne Calvet.
Appointment with Venus (1951): Dir. Ralph Thomas
Feat. David Niven, Glynis Johns, Kenneth More; Bizarre war drama based on a true story about a small recently occupied British isle with a very important prize cow living on it that the War Office…
As Young As You Feel (1951): Dir. Harmon Jones
Feat. Marilyn Monroe; A young Marilyn Monroe has a support role in this affable corporate satire about a printing employee who won’t sit still for retirement. Based on a…
Green Grow the Rushes (1951): Dir. Derek Twist
Feat. Richard Burton, Honor Blackman, Roger Livesey…; Minor comedy, of the English variety, set in a brandy–soaked Kent village.
Let's Make It Legal (1951): Dir. Richard Sale
Feat. Claudette Colbert, Macdonald Carey, Marilyn Monroe; Marilyn Monroe has an ornamental role in this light ‘divorcee’ comedy.
Man in the White Suit (1951): Dir. Alexander Mackendrick
Feat. Alec Guinness, Joan Greenwood, Cecil Parker; Lab–worker Alec Guinness invents a fabric that never wears out or gets dirty, only to have it suppressed by industry and unions alike. More…
On The Riviera (1951): Dir. Walter Lang
Feat. Danny Kaye, Gene Tierney, Corinne Calvet…; Talented Broadway veteran Danny Kaye stars in this musical comedy, playing an American entertainer who develops a skit impersonating a wealthy…
People Will Talk (1951): Dir. Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Feat. Cary Grant, Jeanne Crain, Hume Cronyn; Enjoyable and sophisticated allegory, disguised as a standard Hollywood romantic comedy, in which a humanitarian doctor (Grant) must contend with the…
Stooge, The (1951): Dir. Norman Taurog
Feat. Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, Polly Bergen; Comedy set in the world of 1930's vaudeville, where an egotistical but struggling Broadway performer (Dean Martin) finds success when he hires a…
At War with the Army (1950): Dir. Hal Walker
Feat. Jerry Lewis, Dean Martin; The first of many films Martin and Lewis made together, here the duo go from one mishap to another in an army training camp in World War II.
At War With The Enemy (1950): Dir. Hal Walker
Feat. Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis; After stealing the show in MY FRIEND IRMA, the duo of Martin and Lewis took centre stage here for the first time, enveloped in the potential madness…
Born Yesterday (1950): Dir. George Cukor
Feat. Judy Holliday, Broderick Crawford, William Holden; Judy Holliday won an Oscar for her role as the 'dumb' blonde mistress of a ruthless tycoon who takes up English lessons, falls for her teacher, then…
Father of the Bride (1950): Dir. Vincente Minnelli
Feat. Spencer Tracy, Elizabeth Taylor; The original comedy in which the affable Spencer Tracy gets his knickers in a twist when young daughter Elizabeth Taylor decides to tie the knot.
Groucho Marx - You Bet Your Life (TV Series) (1950-1961): Feat. Groucho Marx; Legendary TV quiz show featuring the iconic Marx Brother, questioning, sparring and toying with various contestants. Despite the format, verbal…
Harvey (1950): Dir. Henry Koster
Feat. James Stewart; Jimmy Stewart's personal favourite role is his middle–aged drunk who has a six–foot rabbit friend that only he can see. From Mary Chase's…
Magnet, The (1950): Dir. Charles Frend
Feat. Stephen Murray, Kay Walsh, James Fox; After tricking a school–chum out of a toy magnet, an 11yr–old James Fox gets the guilts and resolves to 'do good'. Quirkily…
Adam's Rib (1949): Dir. George Cukor
Feat. Spencer Tracy, Katharine Hepburn; A bittersweet battle of the sexes in which married lawyers find themselves on opposite sides of an attempted murder case. High–brow romp was…
Adventures of Francis the Talking Mule, The - Volume 1 (Francis, Francis Goes to the Races, Francis Goes to West Point, Francis Covers the Big Town) (1949-1952): Dir. Arthur Lubin
Feat. Donald O'Connor, Chill Wills, Piper Laurie…; The first four comedies starring O'Connor as an affably naive young man, who is assisted through life by a berating, smart–arsed talking mule…
Africa Screams (1949): Dir. Charles Barton
Feat. Bud Abbott, Lou Costello; More dependable comedy from the Abbott and Costello duo, this time running amok in Africa, complete with racial stereotypes.
Golden Age of Comedy (TV Series) (1949-1960): Feat. Groucho Marx, Humphrey Bogart, Bob Hope…; Treasure trove of broadcast comedy classics from America's variety show golden age. Includes a bonus sixth disc with rare standup performances from…
History of Mr. Polly, The (1949): Dir. Anthony Pelissier
Feat. John Mills, Betty Ann Davies, Megs Jenkins…; Bracing comedy set in the Victorian era follows the various misfortunes of sensitive but ineffectual draper Mills as he sets out in search of…
Inspector General, The (1949): Dir. Henry Koster
Feat. Danny Kaye, Barbara Bates, Gene Lockhart…; Danny Kaye plays a travelling salesman who is arrested in a small–town and mistakenly identified as a feared tax–inspector. One of Kaye's…
It's a Great Feeling (1949): Dir. David Butler
Feat. Jack Carson, Dennis Morgan, Doris Day…; Soft–edged Hollywood satire with Jack Carson, Denny Morgan and Doris Day on the path to success. Notable for its great array of show–biz…
Love Happy (1949): Dir. David Miller
Feat. Harpo Marx, Chico Marx, Marilyn Monroe; Final Marx Bros. comedy, is a downbeat entry, with a brief scene with Marilyn Monroe.
My Dear Secretary (1949): Dir. Charles Martin
Feat. Kirk Douglas, Laraine Day; Underrated comedy concerning an aspiring young writer (Laraine Day) hired as the new secretary for a top author (Kirk Douglas) who is bitterly…
My Friend Irma (1949): Dir. George Marshall
Feat. Jerry Lewis, Dean Martin; Clown–prince Jerry Lewis first teamed with Dean Martin in this airheaded comedy based on a hit CBS radio–show.
Passport to Pimlico (1949): Dir. Henry Cornelius
Feat. Stanley Holloway, Hermione Baddeley, Margaret Rutherford; To avoid licensing laws, a district of London declares itself an independent kingdom. Sounds like a premise for a classic Ealing satire!
Quartet (1949): Dir. Ken Annakin, Arthur Crabtree, Harold French
Feat. Dirk Bogarde, Basil Radford, Honor Blackman; Four W Somerset Maugham stories are given exemplary treatment by the best of British, incl. Dirk Bogarde, Basil Radford and Honor Blackman. Unlike…
Sorrowful Jones (1949): Dir. Sidney Lanfield
Feat. Bob Hope, Lucille Ball, William Demarest…; Buddy comedy with Bob Hope as an inveterate gambler who fins himself the guardian for a young girl.
Whisky Galore! (1949): Dir. Alexander Mackendrick
Feat. Joan Greenwood; When villagers on a dry Scottish isle 'rescue' a cargo of shipwrecked whiskey, a classic Ealing comedy ensues. Generous doses of sly humour help this…
Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House (1948): Dir. H.C. Potter
Feat. Cary Grant, Myrna Loy, Melvyn Douglas; Reliably entertaining comedy has newlywed city slickers Cary Grant and Myrna Loy attempt to live in the quiet countryside.
Paleface, The (1948): Dir. Norman Z. McLeod
Feat. Bob Hope, Jane Russell, Robert Armstrong…; One of Bob Hope's most popular comedies is a western spoof in which he stars as a hapless dentist who through a series of misfortunes winds up…
Rachel and the Stranger (1948): Dir. Norman Foster
Feat. William Holden, Loretta Young, Robert Mitchum; Western 'rom–com' with husband William Holden and 'stranger' Robert Mitchum competing for the affections of Loretta Young ('Rachel') towards…
State of the Union (1948): Dir. Frank Capra
Feat. Katharine Hepburn, Spencer Tracy, Angela Lansbury; An idealistic industrialist is urged to run for President, but finds uncomfortable compromises are required on both a political and marital level.…
Unfaithfully Yours (1948): Dir. Preston Sturges
Feat. Rex Harrison, Linda Darnell, Barbara Lawrence…; Rex Harrison plays an irascible, paranoid orchestra conductor who comes to suspect his devoted wife's infidelity. Anchored around a memorable…
Adventures of Ma and Pa Kettle, The (The Egg and I, Further Adventures, Go to Town, On the Farm) (1947-1951): Dir. Chester Erskine, Charles Lamont, Edward Sedgwick
Feat. Claudette Colbert, Fred MacMurray, Marjorie Main…; The first four movies about the homespun, cornpoke hillbilly couple, drawn from Betty MacDonald's bestselling book 'The Egg and I'. Cheaply made, but…
Bachelor and the Bobby Soxer, The (1947): Dir. Irving Reis
Feat. Cary Grant, Myrna Loy, Shirley Temple…; Playboy bachelor Cary Grant is ordered by Judge Myrna Loy to escort her teenage sister (Shirley Temple), so that the ‘bobby–soxer’ might…
Down To Earth (1947): Dir. Alexander Hall
Feat. Rita Hayworth, Larry Parks, James Gleason…; Musical comedy sequel to HERE COMES MR. JORDAN starring Rita Hayworth as Greek Goddess Terpsichore who comes down to Earth to join a Broadway…
Farmer's Daughter, The (1947): Dir. H.C. Potter
Feat. Loretta Young, Joseph Cotten, Ethel Barrymore…; Congressman Joseph Cotton's maid, Loretta Young, decides to run against him in the next election. A perceptive comedy that won an Oscar for Young.
Ghost and Mrs. Muir, The (1947): Dir. Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Feat. Gene Tierney, Rex Harrison; A whimsical tone pervades this mildly spooky tale of widow Gene Tierney being haunted by phantom sea–captain Rex Harrison. Music by Bernard…
Hue and Cry (1947): Dir. Charles Crichton
Feat. Alastair Sim, Valerie White, Jack Warner; The first Ealing comedy is an affable yarn about kids who detect criminal information encoded in comic books. Shot on the post–war streets of…
Jour De Fete (1947): Dir. Jacques Tati
Feat. Jacques Tati; Jacques Tati established himself as a major new comic as a postman who attempts to modernise his mail service. Such precise visual humour had not…
My Favourite Brunette (1947): Dir. Elliott Nugent
Feat. Bob Hope, Peter Lorre, Lon Jr. Chaney; A spoof of Chandler–style detective novels with Bob Hope as a photographer who gets mixed up with mobsters. With Peter Lorre, Lon Chaney.
Perils of Pauline, The (1947): Dir. George Marshall
Feat. Betty Hutton, John Lund, Billy DeWolfe…; Showbiz melodrama in which Hutton plays true–life actress Pearl White, who graduated from being a lowly–paid seamstress to queen of the…
Sin of Harold Diddlebock, The (Mad Wednesday) (1947): Dir. Preston Sturges
Feat. Harold Lloyd; Harold Lloyd’s last film transplants his go–getting character from the silent film ‘The Freshman’ into the rather different comic…
Song of the Thin Man (1947): Dir. Edward Buzzell
Feat. William Powell, Myrna Loy, Keenan Wynn…; The Thin Man legacy is stretched out to a sixth film, with Nick and Nora busting one last case involving a dispute over owed money to a two–bit…
Cluny Brown (1946): Dir. Ernst Lubitsch
Feat. Jennifer Jones, Charles Boyer, Sir C. Aubrey Smith…; Jennifer Jones is radiant (and a hoot, to boot) as the makeshift plumber to a leaky high society household. Ernst Lubitch’s splendid…
It's a Wonderful Life (1946): Dir. Frank Capra
Feat. James Stewart; A down–on–his–luck Jimmy Stewart is rescued from suicide by a Guardian Angel who shows him the virtues of his life gone by. This…
Night in Casablanca, A (1946): Dir. Archie Mayo
Feat. The Marx Brothers; The Marx Brothers bring their revered and anarchic energy to this "post–war spoof of wartime intrigue" set in the Hotel Casablanca. Though it…
Road to Utopia (1946): Dir. Hal Walker
Feat. Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Dorothy Lamour; The final and perhaps wackiest of the "Road to...' series, this time in the Klondike goldrush. Many goofy gags and a few cliches too.
Abbott & Costello: The Naughty Nineties, The Time of Their Lives (1945-1946): Dir. Jean Yarbrough, Charles Barton
Feat. Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Alan Curtis…; A double feature of slapstick shenanigans "Naughty Nineties": A captain is swindled out of his riverboat by a trio of gamblers and stage show…
Blithe Spirit (1945): Dir. David Lean
Feat. Rex Harrison; Novelist Rex Harrison jestingly arranges a seance, and inadvertently conjures up the ghost of his first wife, who then wittily haunts his new…
Captain Kidd (1945): Dir. Rowland V Lee
Feat. Charles Laughton, Randolph Scott, Barbara Britton…; Charles Laughton has a great time playing the 17th century English pirate, who swindles King William III. Rollicking production is a nicely comic…
Harvey Girls, The (1945): Dir. George Sidney
Feat. Judy Garland, John Hodiak, Ray Bolger…; A much–loved, if rather formless musical about the heyday of the railroad in the Old West and the Harvey House restaurants which sprang up…
I Know Where I'm Going! (1945): Dir. Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger
Feat. Dame Wendy Hiller, Roger Livesey, George Carney; A headstrong Wendy Hiller seeks marriage and wealth on the Scottish Hebrides, but is sidetracked by true romance. The powerful landscapes and lyrical…
Thin Man Goes Home, The (1945): Dir. Richard Thorpe
Feat. William Powell, Myrna Loy, Lucile Watson…; Nick and Nora's reputation precedes them as they wrap up another murder mystery while visiting Nick's parents. The penultimate film in the popular…
Wonder Man (1945): Dir. Bruce Humberstone
Feat. Danny Kaye, Virginia Mayo, Vera-Ellen…; A typically zany fairy–tale for Danny Kaye, as a mild–mannered student persuaded by the ghost of his dead twin to seek out his murderer.…
Can't Help Singing (1944): Dir. Frank Ryan
Feat. Deanna Durbin, Robert Paige, Akim Tamiroff; Sugary sweet technicolour western musical based on the book "Girl of the Overland Trail" by Samuel J. and Curtis B. Warshawsky. Set during the…
Hail The Conquering Hero (1944): Dir. Preston Sturges
Feat. Eddie Bracken, Ella Raines, William Demarest…; Crazed comedy from dir. Sturges, with Bracken starring as a WW2 soldier, who never actually saw any action because of his hay fever, but who upon…
Miracle of Morgan's Creek, The (1944): Dir. Preston Sturges
Feat. Eddie Bracken, Betty Hutton, Diana Lynn…; Madcap screwball comedy from genius writer–director Preston Sturges (THE LADY EVE), following a small–town girl from the Midwest (Betty…
Pin Up Girl (1944): Dir. H. Bruce Humberstone
Feat. Betty Grable, John Harvey, Martha Raye…; Betty Grable, America's #1 pin–up during WWII, strikes a pose as a canteen girl who pretends to be broadway star in order to stay close to her…
Ghost on the Loose (1943): Dir. William Beaudine
Feat. Bela Lugosi, Ava Gardner, Leo Gorcey; At the 'Ed Wood' end of the horror–comedy canon, this has Lugosi haunting the suburban house of some newlyweds. Also stars screen…
Heat's On, The (Tropicana) (1943): Dir. Gregory Ratoff
Feat. Mae West; Famous Mae West flop, with the screen vamp playing a Broadway star torn between rival producers. Once the talk of the town, she wouldn't make another…
Heaven Can Wait (1943): Dir. Ernst Lubitsch
Feat. Don Ameche, Gene Tierney, Charles Coburn; Amusing comic fantasy in which playboy Don Ameche recalls his life of sin for the devil, to find he wasn't such a bad guy after all.
Presenting Lily Mars (1943): Dir. Norman Taurog
Feat. Judy Garland, Van Heflin, Fay Bainter…; MGM Musical comedy starring Judy Garland in an early grown–up role as the titular small–town girl who heads to Broadway but struggles to…
Goose Steps Out, The (1942): Dir. Basil Dearden, Will Hay
Feat. Will Hay, Frank Pettingell, Charles Hawtrey…; British war comedy with Hay as a bumbling teacher conveniently turns out to be the double of a German general. In the true spirit of wartime…
I Married A Witch (1942): Dir. Rene Clair
Feat. Veronica Lake, Fredric March, Robert Benchley…; Charming screwball comedy sees a smoldering Veronica Lake play a reincarnated witch, who torments Fredric March's uptight politician for being a…
Major and the Minor, The (1942): Dir. Billy Wilder
Feat. Ginger Rogers, Ray Milland, Rita Johnson…; Billy Wilder’s first film is a dexterous screwball gem: the delectable Ginger Rogers plays a spunky woman posing as a child so she can afford a…
Palm Beach Story, The (1942): Dir. Preston Sturges
Feat. Joel McCrea, Claudette Colbert, Mary Astor…; Another fine Preston Sturges comedy, this concerns a gifted but struggling architect (McCrea), whose wife (Colbert) abandons him for the hope of…
Road to Morocco (1942): Dir. David Butler
Feat. Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Dorothy Lamour; Bob Hope, Bing Crosby and Dorothy Lamour do their bit for the war effort by enchanting the public with mad–cap (rom)antics on the North African…
Roxie Hart (Chicago) (1942): Dir. William A. Wellman
Feat. Ginger Rogers, Adolphe Menjou, George Montgomery…; Comedy adapting the 1926 play Chicago by Maurine Dallas Watkins, which was the inspiration for the hit Broadway musical. Ginger Rogers plays the…
Tales of Manhattan (1942): Dir. Julien Duvivier
Feat. Charles Boyer, Rita Hayworth, Ginger Rogers…; A star–studded portmanteau of five tales of life in the Big Apple. Runs the gamut from film noir, to romantic comedy, to high melodrama.
Talk of the Town, The (1942): Dir. George Stevens
Feat. Cary Grant, Ronald Colman, Jean Arthur; Vaguely radical factory–worker Cary Grant goes on the run after being framed for arson and manslaughter by a corrupt establishment, and hides…
To Be or Not to Be (1942): Dir. Ernst Lubitsch
Feat. Jack Benny, Carole Lombard; Wonderful black comedy about a Polish theatre group who in the face of a German invasion, become involved in a covert operation that masquerades them…
Woman of the Year (1942): Dir. George Stevens
Feat. Spencer Tracy, Katharine Hepburn; Spencer Tracy and Katharine Hepburn's endearing screen partnership ignited as disparate newspaper reporters whose personalities at once clash and…
Ball of Fire (1941): Feat. Barbara Stanwyck, Gary Cooper, Dana Andrews…; Screwball comedy with Gary Cooper playing a professor working hard on a new encyclopedia with his colleagues, who meets a nightclub performer…
Big Store, The (1941): Dir. Charles Riesner
Feat. Groucho Marx, Chico Marx, Harpo Marx; Marx Bros. let loose in a department store.
Black Cat, The (1941): Dir. Albert S. Rogell
Feat. Basil Rathbone, F. Hugh Herbert, Broderick Crawford…; A curious genre hybrid for the time, both haunted house movie and comedy (with the help of comedy actor Bob Hope), adapting the Edgar Allan Poe story…
Bride Came C.O.D., The (1941): Dir. William Keighley
Feat. James Cagney, Bette Davis, Stuart Erwin…; Slapstick rom–com with Cagney as cash–strapped charter pilot who is hired to kidnap a tycoon's daughter to prevent her marrying a vapid…
Devil and Miss Jones, The (1941): Dir. Sam Wood
Feat. Charles Coburn, Jean Arthur; Tycoon Charles Coburn goes undercover to investigate union activities, and instead falls for shopgirl Jean Arthur. Well–regarded social comedy.
Hellzapoppin' (1941): Dir. H.C. Potter
Feat. Ole Olsen, Chic Johnson; Batty and rambunctious comedy classic runs a gamut of slight gags and inspired slapstick lunacy, with wild pair Olsen and Johnson guiding the…
Laurel and Hardy Collection, The (The Bullfighters; The Dancing Masters; Great Guns; A-Haunting We Will Go; The Big Noise; Jitterbugs) (1941-1945): Feat. Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy; Six late–period comedy gems from Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy, available to buy as a box–set or for rental as separate titles. Great…
Mr. & Mrs. Smith (1941): Dir. Alfred Hitchcock
Feat. Carole Lombard, Robert Montgomery, Gene Raymond…; An interesting departure for Alfred Hitchcock, this airy screwball comedy follows a happily married couple in New York who are shocked to learn that…
Road to Zanzibar (1941): Dir. Victor Schertzinger
Feat. Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Dorothy Lamour; The second in the 'Road to...' series sees the classic trio (Hope, Crosby and Lamour) down Africa–way in darkest Zanzibar.
Shadow of the Thin Man (1941): Dir. W.S. Van Dyke
Feat. William Powell, Myrna Loy, Donna Reed…; Yet another relaxing weekend for sweethearts Nick and Nora turns into a head–scratcher, as the crime–stopping couple divert from a day at…
Strawberry Blonde (1941): Dir. Raoul Walsh
Feat. James Cagney, Olivia de Havilland, Rita Hayworth…; Winning 40's rom–com based on the play "One Sunday Afternoon" by James Hagan. Set in 1890's New York City, with James Cagney playing a…
You'll Never Get Rich (1941): Dir. Sidney Lanfield
Feat. Fred Astaire, Rita Hayworth, John Hubbard…; Generally amusing showbiz comedy has Fred Astaire play a star Broadway dancer who helps his boss (Benchley) out of trouble with his wife over a…
Bank Dick, The (1940): Dir. Edward Cline
Feat. W.C. Fields, Una Merkel, Cora Witherspoon; W.C. Fields last great outburst of lunatic humour, playing a not–particularly–interested–in–the–job bank–guard,…
Best of Abbott and Costello, The - Volume 1 (One Night in the Tropics, Buck Privates, In the Navy, Hold that Ghost, Keep 'Em Flying, Ride 'Em Cowboy, Who Done It?, Pardon My Sarong) (1940-1942): Dir. A. Edward Sutherland, Arthur Lubin, Erle C. Kenton
Feat. Bud Abbott, Lou Costello; The first eight movie comedies with duo Bud Abbott and Lou Costello in their patented roles. After careers in variety, silent films and radio, they…
Christmas in July (1940): Dir. Preston Sturges
Feat. Dick Powell, Ellen Drew, Raymond Walburn…; Dir. Sturges second film is a short, sweet and sharp satire on 'success', in which a gullible office clerk (Powell) is fooled by his colleagues into…
Down Argentine Way (1940): Dir. Irving Cummings
Feat. Carmen Miranda, Betty Grable, Don Ameche; A horse mad New Yorker falls for a wealthy Argentine rancher in this fluffy technicolor musical, but is hampered by the longstanding feud between…
Go West (1940): Dir. Edward Buzzell
Feat. Groucho Marx, Chico Marx, Harpo Marx; The Marx Brothers take on the Wild West armed with one–liners and slapstick in a tamer effort from their later career.
Great Dictator, The (1940): Dir. Charles Chaplin
Feat. Charles Chaplin; Chaplin's brave subversive satire in which he inhabits dual roles – dictator Adenoid Hynkle and a Jewish barber – for his damning…
Great McGinty, The (1940): Dir. Preston Sturges
Feat. Brian Donlevy, Akim Tamiroff, William Demarest…; The first film with Preston Sturges both scripting and directing, this dryly wacky political satire sees cynical bum Donlevy rise to the heights of…
His Girl Friday (1940): Dir. Howard Hawks
Feat. Cary Grant, Rosalind Russell, Ralph Bellamy; Fast and furious comic masterpiece with Cary Grant in superb form as a conniving newspaper editor whose ex–wife happens to be his star…
It All Came True (1940): Dir. Lewis Seiler
Feat. Ann Sheridan, Jeffrey Lynn, Humphrey Bogart; A crime–themed musical comedy featuring Ann Sheridan as a fledgling singer in her first starring role as well as Humphrey Bogart as a fugitive…
Let George Do It! (1940): Dir. Marcel Varnel
Feat. George Formby, Phyllis Calvert, Garry Marsh; Ealing Studios comedy sees George Formby star as a ukulele player who unwittingly takes the wrong boat and finds himself mistaken for a British…
Little Nellie Kelly (1940): Dir. Norman Taurog
Feat. Judy Garland, George Murphy; Filmed version of the hit Broadway musical comedy from 1922 about Irish–American immigrants starring Judy Garland, who was fresh to…
My Favourite Wife (1940): Dir. Garson Kanin
Feat. Irene Dunne, Cary Grant, Randolph Scott; Witty marital mixup comedy with the seven–years–shipwrecked Irene Dunne returning home to discover husband Cary Grant about to embark on…
My Little Chickadee (1940): Dir. Edward Cline
Feat. Mae West, W.C. Fields; Mae West and W.C. Fields profitably co–exist in this formula story of marital shenanigans in the Wild West, garlanded with lunatic gags, dirty…
Philadelphia Story, The (1940): Dir. George Cukor
Feat. Katharine Hepburn, Cary Grant, James Stewart; A second marriage for a stuffy heiress is threatened by scandal. A witty, sparkling romantic farce with golden trio – Katharine Hepburn, Cary…
Remember the Night (1940): Dir. Mitchell Leisen
Feat. Barbara Stanwyck, Fred MacMurray, Beulah Bondi…; Preston Sturges scripted this forgotten yuletide gem, about an assistant D.A. (MacMurray) who, feeling sorry for a glamorous jewel thief (Stanwyck),…
Road to Singapore (1940): Dir. Victor Schertzinger
Feat. Bing Crosby, Bob Hope, Dorothy Lamour; The first of half a dozen 'Road to' films has Bing Crosby and Bob Hope as clowning, crooning rivals vying for the affections of Dorothy Lamour.
Torrid Zone (1940): Dir. William Keighley
Feat. James Cagney, Ann Sheridan, Pat O'Brien; Caribbean–set adventure–comedy in which a fruit company executive (Pat O'Brien) has his plantation plagued by revolutionaries so he…
Another Thin Man (1939): Dir. W.S. Van Dyke
Feat. William Powell, Myrna Loy, Otto Kruger…; Nick and Nora, with newborn baby in tow, spend a weekend on Long Island, sleuthing out a shady character whose death threats lead to murder. Adapted…
At the Circus (1939): Dir. Edward Buzzell
Feat. Groucho Marx, Chico Marx, Harpo Marx; Ring–side high–jinx with the Marx Brothers, one of the high–lights being Groucho's rendition of 'Lydia the Tattoed lady'.
Cat and the Canary, The (1939): Dir. Elliott Nugent
Feat. Bob Hope, Paulette Goddard; Bob Hope lends his charm to this playful remake of 1927 expressionist silent film about siblings who inherit an uncle's fortune but must first prove…
Divorce Of Lady X (1939): Dir. Tim Whelan
Feat. Laurence Olivier, Merle Oberon, Ralph Richardson…; Sprightly Technicolor story has Olivier playing a barrister who falls in love with the woman he thinks his client will soon be divorcing.
Eternally Yours (1939): Dir. Tay Garnett
Feat. Loretta Young, David Niven, Broderick Crawford…; A woman leaves stability and a wealthy fiancée behind to travel the globe as a magician's assistant after she is swept off her feet. However 'The…
Midnight (1939): Dir. Mitchell Leisen
Feat. Claudette Colbert, Don Ameche, John Barrymore…; Vintage romantic comedy, with a glamorous Claudette Colbert stranded in Paris and chased by two potential suitors: a modest taxi driver who's really…
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939): Dir. Frank Capra
Feat. James Stewart, Jean Arthur; Another brilliant comic parable from Frank Capra, in the wake of MR. DEEDS. The endearing Jimmy Stewart plays a young idealist who discovers the…
Story of Vernon and Irene Castle, The (1939): Dir. H.C. Potter
Feat. Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Edna May Oliver…; Fred & Ginger star in the story of the dancing team who taught the world to two–step, based on the stories "My Husband and My Memories of…
Women, The (1939): Dir. George Cukor
Feat. Norma Shearer, Joan Crawford, Rosalind Russell…; They gossip! They bitch! They cackle! What does one expect with a cast of 135 women. Norma Shearer, Joan Crawford and Rosalind Russell head the…
Bank Holiday (Three on a Weekend) (1938): Dir. Carol Reed
Feat. Margaret Lockwood, John Lodge, Hugh Williams…; Minor drama with nurse Lockwood heading to the seaside for an illicit weekend only to have her enjoyment tempered by her job.
Carefree (1938): Dir. Mark Sandrich
Feat. Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, Ralph Bellamy; The eighth of the ten films that Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers did together, this screwball comedy features only four musical numbers, and is…
Holiday (1938): Dir. George Cukor
Feat. Cary Grant, Katharine Hepburn; Sparkling Cary Grant/Katharine Hepburn duet stands as tall as its famous successor, THE PHILADELPHIA STORY. The drawbacks of life in high society are…
Lady Vanishes, The (1938): Dir. Alfred Hitchcock
Feat. Margaret Lockwood, Michael Redgrave, Dame May Whitty…; Prime British Hitchcock, tracks a brilliantly–plotted mystery of an old lady's disappearance on a trans–Europe train, with…
Love Finds Andy Hardy (1938): Dir. George B. Seitz
Feat. Mickey Rooney, Lewis Stone, Judy Garland…; Mickey Rooney stars in this early teenage rom–com as a ruddy–faced youth who becomes entangled with three different girls (Garland,…
Pygmalion (1938): Dir. Anthony Asquith, Leslie Howard
Feat. Leslie Howard, Dame Wendy Hiller; Leslie Howard trains Wendy Hiller to be a lady, in an excellent version of the G B Shaw play.
Room Service (1938): Dir. William Seiter
Feat. Groucho Marx, Chico Marx, Harpo Marx…; Marx Bros cause chaos in a hotel frequented by Broadway producers.
St Martin's Lane (Sidewalks of London) (1938): Dir. Tim Whelan
Feat. Vivien Leigh, Charles Laughton, Rex Harrison…; Vivien Leigh stars in this oddball comedy–drama as a talented pickpocket who forms an alliance with street performer Laughton.
You Can't Take It with You (1938): Dir. Frank Capra
Feat. James Stewart, Jean Arthur; Sentimental comedy from the James Stewart/Frank Capra camp, and something of a classic. Wealthy, straight–laced Jimmy falls for Jean Arthur,…
Angel (1937): Dir. Ernst Lubitsch
Feat. Marlene Dietrich, Herbert Marshall, Melvyn Douglas; Love triangle between a distracted husband, a neglected wife and an ardent suitor set amid the rigid social norms of the…
Damsel in Distress, A (1937): Dir. George Stevens
Feat. Fred Astaire, George Burns, Joan Fontaine…; A wealthy American entertainer (Astaire) must win the heart of a lovely English lady (Fontaine). His efforts to woo are drastically hindered by her…
Day at the Races, A (1937): Dir. Sam Wood
Feat. Groucho Marx, Chico Marx, Harpo Marx…; Marx Brothers' flamboyantly staged comedy in which unabridged lunacy never lets up at a sanitarium and then a racecourse. Contains some of cinema's…
Easy Living (1937): Dir. Mitchell Leisen
Feat. Jean Arthur, Edward Arnold, Ray Milland…; A breathless screwball comedy from the pen of Preston Sturges that almost rivals the writer–director's best work. Spunky Jean Arthur is the…
Keep Fit (1937): Dir. Anthony Kimmins
Feat. Kay Walsh, Guy Middleton, George Formby; Snappy–yet–slight musical–comedy sees Formby play a skinny wimp who faces off against a stocky Middleton in a 'keep fit' contest in…
Nothing Sacred (1937): Dir. William A. Wellman
Feat. Carole Lombard, Fredric March; Top comedy–farce rests on the charms of Carole Lombard, here at her mercurial best playing a screwy smalltown gal. Pretending to have an…
Oh! Mr Porter (1937): Dir. Marcel Varnel
Feat. Will Hay; One of the best British comedies of the 1930s, this predates Ealing in its winning blend of whimsy, slapstick and inventiveness. Will Hay plays a…
Shall We Dance (1937): Dir. Mark Sandrich
Feat. Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers; Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers pretend to be married in this last notable musical of their partnership. Features the classic roller–skate…
Storm in a Teacup (1937): Dir. Victor Saville
Feat. Vivien Leigh, Rex Harrison, Cecil Parker…; Capra–lite comedy set in Scotland with Harrison as a journalist falling for a local politicians daughter.
Three Stooges Collection, The (1937-1946): Feat. The Three Stooges; A collection of approximately one sixth of the Three Stooges prolific output, encompassing 29 shorts and a feature–length outing, SWING PARADE…
Topper / Topper Returns (1937): Dir. Norman Z. McLeod
Feat. Cary Grant, Constance Bennett, Roland Young…; Once classic comedy concerns a deceased young couple (Grant and Bennett) who as ghosts haunt the dull life of a banker. Spawned several sequels…
Way Out West (1937): Dir. James W Horne
Feat. Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy; One of Laurel and Hardy's best features, spreading their brand of chaos into the Old West.
After the Thin Man (1936): Dir. W.S. Van Dyke
Feat. William Powell, Myrna Loy, James Stewart…; That great American screen coupling, William Powell and Myrna Loy, forgo their New Year's celebrations to wittily dissect another murder mystery. A…
As You Like It (1936): Dir. Paul Czinner
Feat. Laurence Olivier, Elisabeth Bergner, Sir Felix Aylmer…; Early cinematic adaptation of the bard's comedy is stagey and very mannered, but boasts an exceptional cast with a young Olivier a stand out.
Chronological Donald, The (1936-1941): An excellent archive collection of all the early shorts starring Walt Disney's most successful cartoon character – Donald Duck. Includes an…
Desire (1936): Dir. Frank Borzage
Feat. Marlene Dietrich, Gary Cooper; Cooper and Dietrich make a spellbinding duo in this highly entertaining tale of an automotive engineer bound for a holiday in Spain who becomes…
Gay Desperado, The (1936): Dir. Rouben Mamoulian
Feat. Ida Lupino, Leo Carrillo, Nino Martini…; A light comedy with operatic tenor Nino Martini playing a singer who works as a live entertainer in a movie theatre, and is kidnapped by a trigger…
Jacques Tati Shorts (1936): Dir. Jacques Tati; Three rare short comedies for those that can't get enough of the French funnyman. Watch your Left! (1936), School for Postmen (1947), and Evening…
Keep Your Seats, Please (1936): Dir. Monty Banks
Feat. George Formby, Florence Desmond, Gus McNaughton; An endearing Formby is at his gormless best in this musical comedy, where he must find his aunt's inheritance sewn up in 12 chairs that have…
Klondike Annie (1936): Dir. Raoul Walsh
Feat. Mae West, Victor McLaglen; Star–centric comedy based on the play by Mae West with the steamy starlet taking the lead role as a club entertainer dabbling in romantic…
Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936): Dir. Frank Capra
Feat. Gary Cooper, Jean Arthur; Archetypal screwball comedy stars Gary Cooper as Mr. Deeds, a country hick who arrives in New York to collect a 20 million dollar inheritance, which…
Princess Comes Across, The (1936): Dir. William K. Howard
Feat. Carole Lombard, Fred MacMurray, Douglas Dumbrille…; Carole Lombard, playing a Swedish princess on the sly, falls for Fred MacMurray on board an ocean liner. Romance–cum–murder mystery is…
Devil Is A Woman, The (1935): Dir. Josef von Sternberg
Feat. Marlene Dietrich, Lionel Atwill, Cesar Romero; Set during Carnival in turn on the century Seville where a temptress comes between a young revolutionary and his old friend.
Le Crime De Monsieur Lange (1935): Dir. Jean Renoir
Feat. Rene Lefevre, Florelle , Jules Berry; One of the dir.’s early classics. Rene Leferve rises to newsprint fame as the author of the serial “Arizona Jim” after his boss, a…
My Man Godfrey (1935): Dir. Gregory La Cava
Feat. Carole Lombard, William Powell, Gail Patrick…; Breathlessly nit–witty comedy from the screwball era with society dame Carole Lombard plucking William Powell out of skid–row for a…
Night at the Opera, A (1935): Dir. Sam Wood
Feat. Groucho Marx, Chico Marx, Harpo Marx…; A Marx brothers extravaganza with the three sibling buffoons in top form as they wreak havoc on an opera company. As good as they get.
No Limit (1935): Dir. Monty Banks
Feat. George Formby, Florence Desmond, Howard Douglas; The template for all the Ealing Studio comedies to follow, this follows 'George' (Formby), a chimney sweep with dreams of winning the Isle Of Man TT…
She Married Her Boss (1935): Dir. Gregory La Cava
Feat. Claudette Colbert; Pleasant romantic comedy stars Claudette Colbert, who just may regret her marital decision.
Sylvia Scarlett (1935): Dir. George Cukor
Feat. Katharine Hepburn, Cary Grant; Katharine Hepburn looks smashing as a boy in this cross–dressing flop that was reappraised in the 1960s as a lost classic, with a unique style…
Whole Town's Talking, The (1935): Dir. John Ford
Feat. Edward G. Robinson, Jean Arthur, Arthur Hohl…; Edward G. Robinson stars in a duel role as a meek office clerk who bares a resemblance to Public Enemy Number One. Entertaining mix of farce and…
Belle of the Nineties (1934): Dir. Leo McCarey
Feat. Mae West; Mae's first post–production code outing: she plays a sultry cabaret singer lusted after by a myriad of Missippian males. Duke Ellington also…
Harold Lloyd Collection - Disc 2 (The Cat's Paw, The Milky Way) (1934-1936): Dir. Sam Taylor, Leo McCarey
Feat. Harold Lloyd; Two classic Harold Lloyd features. Includes THE CAT'S PAW, with Lloyd entangled in local body politics; and THE MILKY WAY, in which the silent…
March of the Wooden Soldiers (Babes In Toyland) (1934): Dir. Gus Meins, Charles R. Rogers
Feat. Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy; Imaginative musical fantasia also makes the most of Laurel and Hardy's comic genius – as dim–witted toymakers whose mistaken order for…
Merry Widow, The (1934): Dir. Ernst Lubitsch
Feat. Maurice Chevalier, Jeanette MacDonald; Out of cold–blooded patriotism to his homeland Marshovia, gadabout Maurice Chevalier attempts to seduce millionairess Jeanette MacDonald into…
Thin Man, The (1934): Dir. W.S. Van Dyke
Feat. William Powell, Myrna Loy; Taken from Dashiell Hammett's novel, this near–perfect comedy–thriller virtually invented the genre, with William Powell and Myrna Loy as…
Twentieth Century (1934): Dir. Howard Hawks
Feat. John Barrymore, Carole Lombard; Cracking good comedy staged aboard a luxury express–train, where egomaniac theatre producer John Barrymore attempts to win back…
Devil's Brother, The (1933): Dir. Hal Roach
Feat. Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy; Laurel and Hardy become fearless highwaymen in 1700s Italy but meet their match in a notorious highwayman. Funny spoof of Auber's operetta.
Dinner at Eight (1933): Dir. George Cukor
Feat. John Barrymore, Lionel Barrymore, Jean Harlow; Impeccably directed version of the popular Broadway play boasting an all–star cast of the early talkie era – distinguished New York…
Duck Soup (1933): Dir. Leo McCarey
Feat. Groucho Marx, Chico Marx, Harpo Marx…; A commercial bomb when released, this has since emerged as The Marx Brothers' tour–de–force, and the most popular among fans on account…
Hallelujah, I'm a Bum (1933): Dir. Lewis Milestone
Feat. Al Jolson, Madge Evans, Frank Morgan…; Freewheeling musical comedy set (and made) during the Great Depression, with Al Jolson playing a hobo in New York who falls in love with the mayor's…
I'm No Angel (1933): Dir. Wesley Ruggles
Feat. Mae West, Cary Grant; Man–eater and circus performer Mae West digs for gold, settling on (and suing!) the loaded Cary Grant, only to fall in love for…
She Done Him Wrong (1933): Dir. Lowell Sherman
Feat. Mae West, Cary Grant; A raucous comedy success, debuting Mae West as a bawdy bar room entertainer with a penchant for vulnerable men (namely, Cary Grant).…
Sons of the Desert (Fraternally Yours) (1933): Dir. William A. Seiter
Feat. Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy; A 24–carat Laurel and Hardy classic sees the boys wanting to attend a fraternal organisation shindig, but having to deceive their wives to do…
Boudu Saved from Drowning (1932): Dir. Jean Renoir
Feat. Michel Simon, Charles Granval, Marcelle Hania; Renoir's joyfully anarchic attack on the bourgeoisie in which vagrant Michel Simon wreaks emotional havoc in the orderly household that have offered…
Harold Lloyd Collection - Disc 8 (Movie Crazy, Welcome Danger) (1932): Dir. Clyde Bruckman
Feat. Harold Lloyd; Two classic Harold Lloyd features. Includes MOVIE CRAZY, arguably the comedian's best sound film, about making it in Hollywood; and WELCOME DANGER,…
Horse Feathers (1932): Dir. Norman Z. McLeod
Feat. Groucho Marx, Chico Marx, Harpo Marx…; Marxist malarkey in which the crazy quartet engage in a college football conspiracy. Their wildest screen outing.
Trouble in Paradise (1932): Dir. Ernst Lubitsch
Feat. Herbert Marshall, Miriam Hopkins, Kay Francis; Perhaps dir. Lubitsch's most celebrated comedy, this concerns a pair of endearing swindlers (Marshall and Hopkins) whose partnership in romance and…
A Nous la Liberte (1931): Dir. Rene Clair
Feat. Henri Marchand, Raymond Cordy; Pre–dating – and disputedly influencing – Chaplin’s MODERN TIMES by some years, this is both more lyrical and whimsical in its…
City Lights (1931): Dir. Charles Chaplin
Feat. Charles Chaplin, Hank Mann, Jean Harlow; Chaplin's most melancholy and beautiful film revolves around his love for a blind flower girl and his on–off relationship with a drunkard…
Marius (1931): Dir. Alexander Korda
Feat. Raimu, Pierre Fresnay, Orane Demazis…; Based on the play by revered French writer Marcel Pagnol, this is the first film in the Marseille Trilogy featuring the characters of Marius (Pierre…
Monkey Business (1931): Dir. Norman Z. McLeod
Feat. Groucho Marx, Chico Marx, Harpo Marx…; The four Marx Brothers stowaway, crash a society party and manage to hatch a few crooks in the process. Another exercise in breathlessly sustained…
Parlour, Bedroom & Bath (1931): Dir. Edward Sedgewick
Feat. Buster Keaton; Buster Keaton is mistaken for a rich playboy in one of his rare 'talkies'. Not in the same league as his silent classics, but an interesting curio.
Platinum Blonde (1931): Dir. Frank Capra
Feat. Jean Harlow, Loretta Young, Robert Williams…; Breezy comedy about a young woman from a very rich family impulsively marries a reporter, but each assumes the other is the one whose lifestyle must…
Sally in Our Alley (1931): Dir. Maurice Elvey
Feat. Gracie Fields; Gracie Fields debuted in this lightweight English comedy as a heartbroke girl who, on moving to London, hits it off splendid with the Cockneys.…
Animal Crackers (1930): Dir. Victor Heerman
Feat. Groucho Marx, Harpo Marx, Chico Marx…; Pre–Hollywood Marx Brothers, a little stagey yet with a glorious abundance of gags.
Madam Satan (1930): Dir. Cecil B. DeMille
Feat. Kay Johnson, Reginald Denny, Roland Young; A genuine oddity (and second talkie) from Cecil B. DeMille, this typically extravagant pre–Code musical comedy stars Kay Johnson as a jealous…
Cocoanuts, The (1929): Dir. Robert Florey, Joseph Santley
Feat. Groucho Marx, Zeppo Marx, Chico Marx…; The first feature–length Marx Brothers is probably one for completists only, with much of the film's running time devoted to mediocre musical…
Circus, The (1928): Dir. Charles Chaplin
Feat. Charles Chaplin; Chaplin's Little Tramp stumbles into a travelling circus where he falls in love and finds work as a circus clown and high–wire artist. Hasn't…
Show People (1928): Dir. King Vidor
Feat. Marion Davies, William Haines, Dell Henderson…; A satire of Hollywood life in the last of the silent years, this rom–com from director King Vidor (THE FOUNTAINHEAD) has Marion Davies playing…
Steamboat Bill Jr (1928): Dir. Charles Riesner
Feat. Buster Keaton, Ernest Torrence, Tom McGuire; One of Buster Keaton's best films begins as sly farce, with his wimpish city–slicker meekly tussling with a thuggish steamboat–captain…
College (1927): Dir. James W. Horne
Feat. Buster Keaton; Buster Keaton goes to college where he tries to win the girl of his dreams by proving himself in the sports arena. An ideal set up for 'Stoneface' to…
Battling Butler (1926): Dir. Buster Keaton
Feat. Buster Keaton; Buster Keaton's seventh feature film is based on a Broadway play in which he plays a love–struck weakling who must masquerade as a boxer in…
General, The (1926): Dir. Buster Keaton, Clyde Bruckman
Feat. Buster Keaton; Buster Keaton risks life and limb to pursue his beloved rail engine, hijacked by Union spies at the time of the U.S. Civil War. Hilarious…
Tramp, Tramp, Tramp (1926): Dir. Harry Edwards
Feat. Harry Langdon, Joan Crawford; An overlooked silent oddity from Harry Langdon, whose boyish innocence contrasted sharply against the likes of contemporaries Chaplin and Keaton.…
Gold Rush, The (1925): Dir. Charles Chaplin
Feat. Charles Chaplin, Georgia Hale, Mack Swain; Immortal comedy with Charlie Chaplin at his clownish best. The Little Tramp is a lone gold prospector who through a series of adventures, strikes it…
Seven Chances (1925): Dir. Buster Keaton, Edward F. Cline
Feat. Buster Keaton; Another of Buster Keaton's masterpieces is this romantic comedy in which he plays a man who is offered a seven million dollar fortune if he marries…
Navigator, The (1924): Dir. Buster Keaton, Donald Crisp
Feat. Buster Keaton; One of Buster Keaton's most evocative silent comedies, playing a naive youth who becomes marooned upon a gigantic yacht drifting out to…
Our Hospitality / Sherlock Jr. (1923): Dir. Buster Keaton
Feat. Buster Keaton; A pair of classic cinematic comedies from deadpan master Buster Keaton. 'Our Hospitality' – Keaton plays the youngest member of a Southern…
Harold Lloyd Collection - Disc 3 (Why Worry?, Dr. Jack, Feet First) (1922-1930): Dir. Fred Newmeyer, Sam Taylor, Clyde Bruckman
Feat. Harold Lloyd; Three classic Harold Lloyd features/shorts. Includes, WHY WORRY?, the tale of a hypochondriac whose retreat to a Paradise island lands him in the…
Wizard of Oz, The (1922): Dir. Larry Semon
Feat. Oliver Hardy, Larry Semon; Original adaptation of the L Frank Baum story, conjures up more laughs than the Judy Garland version, with Oliver Hardy as the Tin–Man, and…
Kid, The (1921): Dir. Charles Chaplin
Feat. Charles Chaplin, Jackie Coogan, Edna Purviance; Silent comedian Chaplin's first full–length feature has him teaming with lovable scamp Jackie Coogan for a life of crime.
Buster Keaton Shorts (1920-1923): Feat. Buster Keaton; A selection of early Buster Keaton short comedies, dating from just after his period as sidekick to Roscoe 'Fatty' Arbuckle and prior to his classic…
Harold Lloyd Collection - Disc 1 (Safety Last!, An Eastern Westerner, Girl Shy) (1920-1924): Dir. Fred Newmeyer, Sam Taylor
Feat. Harold Lloyd; Three classic Harold Lloyd features/shorts. Includes dazzling comedy SAFETY LAST! (co–written by Hal Roach), with Lloyd's justly famous…
Harold Lloyd Collection - Disc 5 (Hot Water, Now or Never, High and Dizzy, Get Out and Get Under) (1920-1924): Dir. Fred Newmeyer, Hal Roach, Sam Taylor
Feat. Harold Lloyd; Four classic Harold Lloyd features/shorts. Includes the hilarious marriage farce, HOT WATER, and three underseen shorts.
Harold Lloyd Collection - Disc 6 (Speedy, Never Weaken, Haunted Spooks, Grandma's Boy) (1920-1928): Dir. Ted Wilde, Fred Newmeyer, Hal Roach
Feat. Harold Lloyd; Four classic Harold Lloyd features/shorts. Includes Lloyd's last silent film, SPEEDY, about a baseball–obsessed no–hoper (with a cameo…
Harold Lloyd Collection - Disc 7 (Number Please?, A Sailor Made Man, I Do, Among Those Present, For Heaven's Sake) (1920-1926): Dir. Fred Newmeyer, Hal Roach, Sam Taylor
Feat. Harold Lloyd; Five classic Harold Lloyd features/shorts. Includes the comedian's first feature–length film, A SAILOR MADE MAN, about the misadventures of…
Laurel and Hardy's Laughing 20s (1920-1929): Feat. Stan Laurel, Oliver Hardy; A Robert Youngson compilation of shorts from the formidable comedy duo.
Saphead, The (+ The High Sign, One Week) (1920): Dir. Herbert Blaché, Winchell Smith
Feat. Buster Keaton; The film that launched Buster Keaton's career as a leading man features his debut starring role in a feature film as the simple–minded son of a…
Arbuckle and Keaton - Volume 1 (1919): Dir. Fatty Arbuckle
Feat. Buster Keaton, Fatty Arbuckle; Five rare ‘two–reelers’ from the 1910s display two genius comedians in fine style: the mature routines of Roscoe…
Harold Lloyd Collection - Disc 4 (The Kid Brother, Bumping into Broadway, Billy Blazes Esq.) (1919-1927): Dir. Ted Wilde, J A Howe, Hal Roach
Feat. Harold Lloyd; Three classic Harold Lloyd features/shorts. Includes THE KID BROTHER, one of Lloyd's best comedies; he plays an unappreciated sibling in a family…
Harold Lloyd Collection - Disc 9 (Ask Father, From Hand to Mouth, The Freshman) (1919-1925): Dir. Fred Newmeyer, Sam Taylor, Hal Roach
Feat. Harold Lloyd; Three classic Harold Lloyd features. Includes THE FRESHMAN, one of Lloyd's best films, about the trials of campus life; and two shorts.
Harold Lloyd Collection, The (The Definitive Collection) (1919-1936): Feat. Harold Lloyd; Ample remastered collection from the versatile and much–loved silent era comedian. A visual feast for fans of the silent movie era and the…
Chaplin Revue, The (1918-1923): Feat. Charles Chaplin; A collection of comic shorts from Charlie Chaplin, playing his 'Tramp' character. Featured are 'Shoulder Arms', 'The Idle Class', 'The Pilgrim',…
Harold Lloyd Collection, The (1918-1922): Dir. Hal Roach, Fred Newmeyer, Sam Taylor
Feat. Harold Lloyd; An outstanding comedian of the silent era, Harold Lloyd forged a prolific oeuvre in the shadow of Chaplin and Keaton, films that were characterised…
Genius of Buster Keaton, The (The Short Films Collection) (1917-1923): Dir. Buster Keaton
Feat. Buster Keaton; A stunning, near–complete collection of 33 "two–reelers" from Buster Keaton's formative years before his run of successful feature…
Burlesque On Carmen (1916): Dir. Charles Chaplin
Feat. Charles Chaplin, Edna Purviance, Ben Turpin; A twist ending highlights Chaplin's second 'feature' in which his forlorn soldier is loved and left by a gypsy girl.
Keystone Komedies (1915-1926): Dir. Mack Sennett
Feat. Fatty Arbuckle, Mack Swain, Al St. John…; A bevy of comic shorts from silent film legends the 'Keystone Production Company' founded by Mack Sennett. Featuring incredibly exaggerated slapstick…
Laffing Gas (1914-1929): Dir. Various
Feat. Charles Chaplin; Prime comic–narcotic from the early days of the movies and the heyday of Chaplin, Fatty Arbuckle, Harold Llyod, Laurel and Hardy, Abbott and…
Britain's Greatest Comedy Heroes: Feat. Ronnie Barker, Kenneth Williams, Sid James…; Healthy tribute to Britain's late kings of comedy relives some of their funniest skits, spoofs and sketches, with added commentary from friends and…
Laugh with the Carry On's: Dir. Gerald Thomas
Feat. Barbara Windsor, Kenneth Williams, Sid James; Best of the Laugh with the Carry On's TV–Series which starred the same cast as the films.

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