Read Bill Hader's List of 200 Movies Every Comedy Writer Should See
Posted: Sunday, August 31, 2014 by Tyler Durden in Labels: entertainment
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Read Bill Hader's List of 200 Movies Every Comedy Writer Should See
Now you don't have to be a comedy writer to appreciate great comedic filmmaking, but "Saturday Night Live" veteran Bill Hader has an impressive list of 200 Essential Movies Every Comedy Writer Should See. Thankfully, this is also just a great list of comedies that any cinephile with a penchant for good comedy should check out. The list comes from Mike Sacks' book Poking A Dead Frog: Conversations With Today’s Top Comedy Writers, which sounds like a great read for anyone with more than a passing interest in the art of comedy. But we know you came here for the movie list, so keep reading for the goods. Read on!
Bill Hader's (alphabetical) 200 Essential Movies Every Comedy Writer Should See from XO Jane:
1. 9 to 5 (1980)
2. 1941 (1979)
3. Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948)
4. Ace in the Hole (1951)
5. The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1988)
6. After Hours (1985)
7. Airplane! (1980)
8. Amarcord (1973)
9. American Graffiti (1973)
10. An American in Paris (1951)
11.Animal Crackers (1930)
12. Annie Hall (1977)
13. The Apartment (1960)
14. Army of Darkness (1992)
15. Arsenic and Old Lace (1944)
16. Back to the Future (1985)
17. The Bad News Bears (1976)
18. Bananas (1971)
19. The Band Wagon (1953)
20. The Bank Dick (1940)
21. Barton Fink (1991)
22. Beetlejuice (1988)
23. Being There (1979)
24. Best in Show (2000)
25. Better Off Dead (1985)
26. Big Deal on Madonna Street (1958)
27. The Big Lebowski (1998)
28. The Birdcage (1996)
29. Blazing Saddles (1974)
30. The Blues Brothers (1980)
31. Boogie Nights (1997)
32. Born Yesterday (1950)
33. Bottle Rocket (1996)
34. Boudu Saved from Drowning (1932)
35. Brazil (1985)
36. Broadway Danny Rose (1984)
37. Bullets Over Broadway (1994)
38. The ‘Burbs (1989)
39. Cabin in the Sky (1943)
40. Caddyshack (1980)
41. Catch-22 (1970)
42. The Circus (1928)
43. City Lights (1931)
44. A Clockwork Orange (1971)
45. Closely Watched Trains (1966)
46. The Cocoanuts (1929)
47. Coming to America (1988)
48. The Court Jester (1956)
49. Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989)
50. Dames (1934)
51. A Day at the Races (1937)
52. Dazed and Confused (1993)
53. Design for Living (1933)
54. Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (1988)
55. Down by Law (1986)
56. Dr. Strangelove (1964)
57. Drag Me to Hell (2009)
58. Duck Soup (1933)
59. Ed Wood (1994)
60. Election (1999)
61. The Evil Dead (1981)
62. Evil Dead 2 (1987)
63. Eyes Wide Shut (1999)
64. Fargo (1996)
65. Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986)
66. The Firemen’s Ball (1967)
67. A Fish Called Wanda (1988)
68. The Foot Fist Way (2006)
69. The Fortune (1975)
70. Four Lions (2010)
71. Gates of Heaven (1978)
72. The General (1926)
73. Get Shorty (1995)
74. Ghostbusters (1984)
75. The Gold Rush (1925)
76. Good Morning (1959)
77. The Goonies (1985)
78. The Graduate (1967)
79. Grand Illusion (1937)
80. The Great Race (1965)
81. The Groove Tube (1974)
82. Groundhog Day (1993)
83. Hail the Conquering Hero (1944)
84. Heaven Can Wait (1943)
85. His Girl Friday (1940)
86. Horse Feathers (1932)
87. The Hudsucker Proxy (1994)
88. I Vitelloni (1953)
89. I Wanna Hold Your Hand (1978)
90. I’m Gonna Git You Sucka (1988)
91. The Incredibles (2004)
92. It Happened One Night (1934)
93. It’s a Gift (1934)
94. It’s Always Fair Weather (1955)
95. The Jerk (1979)
96. Jules and Jim (1962)
97. The Kentucky Fried Movie (1977)
98. The King of Comedy (1983)
99. Kung Fu Hustle (2004)
100. L’Atalante (1934)
101. The Ladykillers (1955)
102. The Last Detail (1973)
103. The Lavender Hill Mob (1951)
104. Let It Ride (1989)
105. The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004)
106. The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943)
107. Little Murders (1971)
108. Lolita (1962)
109. The Long Goodbye (1973)
110. Lost in America (1985)
111. Love and Death (1975)
112. Loves of a Blonde (1965)
113. M*A*S*H (1970)
114. The Man in the White Suit (1951)
115. The Man with Two Brains (1983)
116. A Matter of Life and Death (1946)
117. The Merry Widow (1934)
118. Midnight Run (1988)
119. The Miracle of Morgan’s Creek (1944)
120. Modern Romance (1981)
121. Mon Oncle (1958)
122. Monkey Business (1931)
123. Monsters, Inc. (2001)
124. Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)
125. Monty Python’s Life of Brian (1979)
126. Mr. Hulot’s Holiday (1953)
127. Mr. Mom (1983)
128. Mystery Train (1989)
129. The Naked Gun (1988)
130. Nashville (1975)
131. National Lampoon’s Animal House (1978)
132. Never Give a Sucker an Even Break (1941)
133. A Night at the Opera (1935)
134. Noises Off (1992)
135. One, Two, Three (1961)
136. Orgazmo (1997)
137. Our Hospitality (1923)
138. Out of Sight (1998)
139. The Palm Beach Story (1942)
140. Parenthood (1989)
141. Pee-wee’s Big Adventure (1985)
142. Play Time (1967)
143. The Player (1992)
144. The Princess Bride (1987)
145. The Producers (1968)
146. Punch-Drunk Love (2002)
147. Radio Days (1987)
148. Raising Arizona (1987)
149. Real Life (1979)
150. The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)
151. Ruggles of Red Gap (1935)
152. Rushmore (1998)
153. Safe Men (1998)
154. Salesman (1968)
155. Schizopolis (1996)
156. A Serious Man (2009)
157. Shaolin Soccer (2001)
158. Shaun of the Dead (2004)
159. Sherlock Jr. (1924)
160. Shoot the Pianist (1960)
161. The Shop Around the Corner (1940)
162. Short Cuts (1993)
163. Singin’ in the Rain (1952)
164. Sixteen Candles (1984)
165. Songs from the Second Floor (2000)
166. South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (1999)
167. The Squid and the Whale (2005)
168. Stranger Than Paradise (1984)
169. Stripes (1981)
170. Sullivan’s Travels (1941)
171. Take the Money and Run (1969)
172. Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (2006)
173. Team America: World Police (2004)
174. This is Spinal Tap (1984)
175. Three Amigos! (1986)
176. Time Bandits (1981)
177. To Be or Not to Be (1942)
178. Toy Story (1995)
179. Toy Story 2 (1999)
180. Toy Story 3 (2010)
181. Trading Places (1983)
182. Trouble in Paradise (1932)
183. Twentieth Century (1934)
184. Unfaithfully Yours (1948)
185. Up (2009)
186. Used Cars (1980)
187. Vernon, Florida (1981)
188. Waiting for Guffman (1996)
189. A Wedding (1978)
190. Wet Hot American Summer (2001)
191. What’s Up, Doc? (1972)
192. What’s Up Tiger Lily? (1966)
193. The White Sheik (1952)
194. Withnail and I (1987)
195. You Can’t Cheat an Honest Man (1939)
196. You Can’t Take It with You (1938)
197. You the Living (2007)
198. Young Frankenstein (1974)
199. Zelig (1983)
200. Zero for Conduct (1933)
Thanks to The Dissolve for bringing this to our attention. Check out Mike Sacks' book right here.
Bill Hader isn't just a great comedic actor, because when you're a cast member on "Saturday Night Live," you're also a writer (if you want to survive anyway). Hader also worked as a writer on "South Park," dishing out episodes in just six days, as has become customary for Trey Parker and Matt Stone. Otherwise, Hader has just become a great comedy star, with roles ranging from Tropic Thunder to Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and lead roles in this fall's indie The Skeleton Twins (he's fantastic in it) and next summer'sTrainwreck, the latest film from Judd Apatow.
What's awesome is his range of films here from silent films like The General to much more recent films like Toy Story 3. Some of his choices aren't even straight-up comedies with films like Punch-Drunk Love, Eyes Wide Shut, A Clockwork Orange and Drag Me to Hell making the list. And then there's foreign films like Federico Fellini's The White Sheik, Amarcord and I Vitelloni, which should be required viewing anyway. This is truly an eclectic collection of films with a wide range of different kind of humor, which is what makes it a great study for comedy writers and cinephiles alike. Go watch them now!
