Dir - Michael Curtiz
An almost insultingly patriotic bio-pic made during WWII, Yankee Doodle Dandy might seem like something that would hardly be relevant or held in such high esteem as its same-year, wildly different Michael Curtiz cinematic sibling Casablanca. Most peoples' fondness for Dandy stems almost entirely on James Cagney's against-type performance as George M. Cohan; a real-life, effortlessly optimistic song and dance maverick who in the early 20th century was dubbed "The Man Who Owned Broadway" and for good reason. His plays were everywhere, he starred in most of them, and wrote "Over There" and "You're a Grand Old Flag", amongst oodles more. Though he and his Hollywood-ized counterpart in Cagney are assuredly likeable, I love this movie for its very unique structure as having virtually no conflict and remaining thoroughly positive throughout its two-hour running time.
Dir - Keenen Ivory Wayans
If there was ever a film genre that was thoroughly ripe for parody, blaxplotation is doubtlessly that genre. Two years before launching In Living Color, Keenen Ivory Wayans wrote, directed, and cast himself as Jack Spade in I'm Gonna Git You Sucka which is almost unmistakably the funniest movie on earth. Featuring a slew of genre regulars making fun of their own cinematic history, a hefty amount of future Color cast members, and best of all, Isaac Hayes and Jim Brown, Sucka is on par with the Abraham/Zucker brothers ability to make every frame and line of dialog in a movie both uniformly stupid and piss-yourself-hilarious. It sails through so many moments of comic genius that several views are not only advisable but also mandatory.
Dir - Terry Gilliam
Monty Python co-founder and ergo one of my favorite human beings of all time Terry Gilliam set out to challenge himself with his sixth film and best that he ever directed outside of the Pythons, 1991's The Fisher King. Gilliam chose to work with an existing script from an author besides himself and also wanted to shoot with a far smaller budget than his last several outings, (Time Bandits, Brazil, and The Adventures of Barron Munchausen directly proceeded this). The comparatively stripped down King is still whimsical in a way that Gilliam films persistently are, but the story is emotionally beautiful and benefits from a first-class cast. I will never claim to be the biggest Robin Williams fan, but he practically and pleasantly owns this movie. It also does not hurt that Manhattan is my favorite city and I, (like Harry Nilsson), very much like New York in June.
Dir - George Cukor
Deliberately designed as a comeback vehicle to silence Katherine Hepburn's "box office poison" reputation at the time, The Philadelphia Story likewise scored fired-Gone with the Wind director George Cukor and A-listers Jimmy Stewart and Cary Grant. It also remains a paramount romantic comedy. Part of the "comedy of remarriage" sub-genre of the day, I appreciate the subtle humorous touches, such as Jimmy Stewart silently opening up his jacket to show the butler that he is not a thief. Yet the script, (based of Philip Barry's play which also stared Hepburn), from Donald Ogden Stewart and the hilariously named Waldo Salt is as witty as they come. In particular, Cary Grant hardly seems at a loss for words at any moment, delivering a perfectly timed quip at each and every opportunity.
Dir - Fred Zinnermann
Now THIS is how you dance around homosexuality, army misconduct, venereal disease, and prostitution in a Code-era, A-list cast American novel adaptation. Scripted from James Jones' legendary book of the same name, From Here to Eternity was one of those perfectly sculpted Postwar Hollywood productions that reworked its censorship issues and ended up becoming as iconic as the source material that it was based on. Eternity also features one of the best casts ever assembled. It easily has the ultimate screen performances from both Montgomery Clift and Frank Sinatra, with an odious Ernest Borgnine, plus a rolling around the beach in their swimsuits Burt Lancaster, (in one of the manliest of all film portrays), and Deborah Kerr being just as great.
Dir - Bob Clark
I have debated whether or not this movie "counts" on a list like this since it is exclusively watchable only during the month of December. Yet a lot of people, (not I mind you), only watch horror movies throughout October so, fuck it. There are not many films that I have seen more than Bob Clark's A Christmas Story and fewer still that remain required viewing each and every yuletide season. It would be one thing if Ralphie Parker's longing for a Red Rider bee-bee gun was just an annual trip down nostalgia lane, but the comedy holds up flawlessly. The Night Stalker himself Darren McGavin steals all of his moments here as he and the furnace locked in epic battle can still bring me to hysterics. Plus I of course shall forever shall pronounce "fragile" with an Italian accent.
Dir - Akira Kurosawa
One of the last and certainly MOST epic of all of Akira Kurosawa works, 1985's Ran was also the most expensive film he ever made and surely within the realm of his best. Another re-envisioning of classic Shakespeare, (this time King Lear), Kurosawa's tale of an aging warlord during the Sengoku period who abdicates his rulings to his three sons is the bleakest and most thematic of the director's career. The absence of god, the self-destructive vileness and ego of man, the worst aspects of human nature bringing forth chaos; they all weave beautifully and brutally throughout. Exaggerated and haunting performances, (from Tatsuya Nakadai as the doomed Lord Hidetora Ichimonji in particular), are all generally showcased in long, vast takes, as are Kurosawa's usually incredible battle sequences. The best of these is played out dialog-less over Toru Takemitsu's low-key score that makes for one of the single best moments in world cinema.
Dir - Jonathan Lynn
For his debut outing, (and two films behind My Cousin Vinny), English director Jonathan Lynn worked with a script from 80s comedy guru John Landis that turned the Hasbro board game Clue into a Cold War era, blackmail-themed, whodunit murder mystery. With a cast this good, (including but not limited to Michael McKean, Christopher Lloyd, Madeline Kahn, and Tim Curry in my personal favorite role of his many, many amazing ones), Lynn could almost simply just let the cameras go on his actors doing their shtick. Yet this boasts one of the most convoluted and frantic plots out of any wacky 80s comedy, with enough pratfalls and hilarious set pieces to match the overlapping and confused dialog. Out of any movie from my childhood and without me even realizing it, Clue morphed my tiny brain into understanding and appreciating not only perfect comedic timing, but also how intricate a screenplay could be.
Dir - Jean-Luc Godard
Coupled with a large budget for the first time, the French New Wave's most influential critic-turned director Jean-Luc Godard made a movie about Homer's The Odyssey, a husband and wife's relationship coming to an end, and how much Godard himself did not like to be told what to do by his producers. The title alone is therefor hilariously appropriate. This is also one of Godard's most visually beautiful films and on the long list of his more technically impressive ones. The scenes at the Casa Malaparte in Italy are lovely, even as there are lines of dialog that poke fun at the film within a film's use of CinemaScope and how great it looks. The director's always-present use of really long tracking shots provide Contempt's greatest scene where Brigitte Bardot and Michel Piccoli have a complete communication breakdown in their apartment.
Dir - Harold Ramis
From a plot standpoint, Harold Ramis' Caddyshack hardly stands up as a masterpiece. Yet this may be the best example of how letting top-notch comedic actors loose on set to virtually ignore the script can inadvertently makes the end result far superior. The only moments in Caddyshack that are not laugh-out-loud funny are the ones that follow the "story". Everywhere else from Bill Murry spit-balling whatever came into his head, Ted Knight's endless frustration at everything, made up on the spot scenes between actors, Chevy Chase being a smirking weirdo, and Rodney Dangerfield doing his stand-up act that was already funnier than any film script could ever be, make this one of the most essential comedies of that entire decade.
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