Comedy is the hardest genre to get right and the easiest to get wrong. What's hilarious in 2005 can feel painfully dated by 2015 — jokes are tied to their moment in a way drama isn't. But every so often a comedy comes along that's built on something sturdier than topical gags: perfect timing, great characters, jokes constructed like clockwork.
These twelve have survived. Some are sixty years old and still funnier than anything on streaming this week. When you need a guaranteed laugh, start here.
The Golden Oldies
Some Like It Hot (1959)
Billy Wilder's masterpiece about two musicians (Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon) hiding from the mob disguised as women in an all-female band. Lemmon's performance is a clinic in commitment. The final line is the greatest closing joke in film history — I won't spoil it, but you'll quote it forever.
Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)
Made for almost nothing, quotable in its entirety. The Pythons took the Arthurian legend and filled it with killer rabbits, rude Frenchmen, and the Knights Who Say Ni. Absurd, silly, and smarter than it looks. If you don't laugh at the Black Knight scene, we can't be friends.
The 80s and 90s Peak
Airplane! (1980)
The Zucker brothers took the dead-serious disaster movie and played it completely straight — which is exactly why it's so funny. Leslie Nielsen delivering absurd lines with total sincerity invented a whole style of comedy. The joke density is unmatched: there's a gag in literally every shot, including the background.
Groundhog Day (1993)
Bill Murray reliving the same day over and over shouldn't work as well as it does. It's hilarious (the early montage of suicide attempts played for laughs is dark genius), but it sneaks up on you emotionally — by the end it's genuinely moving. The rare comedy that's also a philosophy lesson.
The Big Lebowski (1998)
The Coen brothers' shaggy-dog noir about the Dude, the laziest man in Los Angeles, stumbling through a kidnapping plot he doesn't understand. Jeff Bridges was born to play this role. It flopped on release and became a cultural phenomenon anyway. The Dude abides.
Modern Classics
Hot Fuzz (2007)
Edgar Wright's action-comedy about a London super-cop exiled to a sleepy village is the most tightly constructed comedy of the century. Every throwaway line in the first act pays off in the third. Watch it twice — the second viewing, when you catch all the setups, is even funnier than the first.
Superbad (2007)
The definitive teen comedy of its era, and it holds up because the friendship at its center feels real. Jonah Hill and Michael Cera have perfect chemistry, but it's Christopher Mintz-Plasse as McLovin who steals every scene he's in. Crude, sweet, and painfully accurate about being seventeen.
Step Brothers (2008)
Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly as two middle-aged men still living with their parents who become stepbrothers and declare war on each other. Completely stupid. Completely brilliant. The drum-set scene and the Catalina Wine Mixer are all-timers. Turn your expectations off and surrender.
The Hangover (2009)
A mystery structure (what happened last night?) wrapped around escalating chaos in Vegas. The first one is a genuinely great comedy — tight, surprising, and quotable. Ken Jeong's emergence from the trunk remains one of the great surprise entrances. Pretend the sequels don't exist.
Bridesmaids (2011)
Kristen Wiig's broke maid of honor slowly coming apart while planning her best friend's wedding. Proved — to anyone still doubting — that women-led comedies could be raunchy, heartfelt, and massive hits all at once. The airplane scene and the dress-shop scene are instant classics.
What We Do in the Shadows (2014)
Taika Waititi and Jemaine Clement's mockumentary about vampire flatmates in New Zealand. Ancient, petty, hilariously out of touch with the modern world. It's the rare comedy with zero wasted scenes. The vampire council cameo alone is worth the watch.
The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)
Wes Anderson's most complete film: a caper, a tragedy, and a comedy all at once. Ralph Fiennes as the concierge M. Gustave gives one of the great comic performances — fussy, vain, and unexpectedly heroic. Every frame is gorgeous, every line lands. Anderson at his absolute peak.
The Prescription
Bad day? Go Step Brothers or Superbad for pure silliness. Want something clever? Hot Fuzz or Groundhog Day. Feeling classic? Some Like It Hot never misses. Comedy this good doesn't expire — that's the whole point.