Comedy films flourished during the 1980s – a golden age of comedy in American cinema. Following a stretch of dark and gritty films released in the 1970s that reflected the nation’s mood of disillusionment after Vietnam and Watergate, perhaps audiences were ready for something light and fun.

The result was a decade of unforgettable movies about airplanes, golf, time travel, and monsters. Major studios released hundreds of successful comedies throughout the decade, from the legendary “Caddyshack,” released in 1980, to 1989’s “When Harry Met Sally.”

24/7 Wall St. determined the best comedies of the decade by creating an index based on user ratings from the Internet Movie Database and Rotten Tomatoes.

Click here to see the best comedies of the 1980s.

While all of the films featured on the list easily fit within the genre of comedy, they touch on an assortment of other categories, reflecting the vast creativity of the moment. There are mockumentaries, such as “Zelig” and “This Is Spinal Tap;” action movies, like “The Stunt Man” and “Midnight Run;” and even horror films like “Gremlins” and “An American Werewolf in London.” Some films, however, do away with all pretense and go straight for the jokes, such as the supremely silly “Airplane!”

Some directors are more represented than others on this list. Rob Reiner, John Hughes, and John Landis each have three of their films on the list. No one, however, is more represented than the famously prolific Woody Allen, who has the most movies on the list with six.

Some directors represented here are not generally known for their comedic work, yet still managed to create great comedies in the 80s. These include Martin Scorsese, Sidney Lumet, and John Carpenter.

Of course, the 1980s wouldn’t have been such a golden age of humor without so many great comedic actors. The talent that graces our list includes Steve Martin, Bill Murray, John Candy, Lily Tomlin, and Eddie Murphy.

To determine the best comedy movies of the 1980s, 24/7 Wall St. created an index based on each film’s Rotten Tomatoes average critic rating, Rotten Tomatoes’ average audience rating, and Internet Movie Database average user rating. To be considered, each film had to have at least 10,000 total user ratings between IMDb and Rotten Tomatoes, 10 approved Tomatometer critic reviews, and be classified as a comedy by IMDb. Films that were deemed as not sufficiently falling in the genre of comedy were removed.

We averaged the user ratings from Rotten Tomatoes and IMDb and weighted by the number of votes for each. The combined user rating was then averaged with the Rotten Tomatoes critic rating. Box office data is from IMDb and is not adjusted for inflation.

75. Ruthless People (1986)
> Director: Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, Jerry Zucker
> Starring: Bette Midler, Danny DeVito, Judge Reinhold
> Domestic box office: $71.62 million

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74. The War of the Roses (1989)
> Director: Danny DeVito
> Starring: Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner, Danny DeVito
> Domestic box office: $86.89 million

73. Shag (1989)
> Director: Zelda Barron
> Starring: Phoebe Cates, Bridget Fonda, Scott Coffey
> Domestic box office: $6.96 million

72. Eating Raoul (1982)
> Director: Paul Bartel
> Starring: Mary Woronov, Paul Bartel, Robert Beltran
> Domestic box office: N/A

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71. Stripes (1981)
> Director: Ivan Reitman
> Starring: Bill Murray, John Candy, Harold Ramis
> Domestic box office: $85.30 million

70. Real Genius (1985)
> Director: Martha Coolidge
> Starring: Val Kilmer, Gabriel Jarret, Michelle Meyrink
> Domestic box office: $13.00 million

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69. Shirley Valentine (1989)
> Director: Lewis Gilbert
> Starring: Pauline Collins, Tom Conti, Julia McKenzie
> Domestic box office: $6.35 million

68. Pee-wee’s Big Adventure (1985)
> Director: Tim Burton
> Starring: Paul Reubens, Elizabeth Daily, Mark Holton
> Domestic box office: $40.90 million

67. She’s Gotta Have It (1986)
> Director: Spike Lee
> Starring: Tracy Camilla Johns, Tommy Redmond Hicks, John Canada Terrell
> Domestic box office: $7.14 million

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66. My Bodyguard (1980)
> Director: Tony Bill
> Starring: Chris Makepeace, Adam Baldwin, Matt Dillon
> Domestic box office: $22.48 million

65. 48 Hrs. (1982)
> Director: Walter Hill
> Starring: Nick Nolte, Eddie Murphy, Annette O’Toole
> Domestic box office: $78.87 million

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64. Top Secret! (1984)
> Director: Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, Jerry Zucker
> Starring: Val Kilmer, Lucy Gutteridge, Peter Cushing
> Domestic box office: $20.50 million

63. Arthur (1981)
> Director: Steve Gordon
> Starring: Dudley Moore, Liza Minnelli, John Gielgud
> Domestic box office: $95.46 million

62. All of Me (1984)
> Director: Carl Reiner
> Starring: Steve Martin, Lily Tomlin, Victoria Tennant
> Domestic box office: $36.40 million

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61. Little Shop of Horrors (1986)
> Director: Frank Oz
> Starring: Rick Moranis, Ellen Greene, Vincent Gardenia
> Domestic box office: $38.75 million

60. Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982)
> Director: Amy Heckerling
> Starring: Sean Penn, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Judge Reinhold
> Domestic box office: $27.09 million

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59. Big Trouble in Little China (1986)
> Director: John Carpenter
> Starring: Kurt Russell, Kim Cattrall, Dennis Dun
> Domestic box office: $11.10 million

58. Parenthood (1989)
> Director: Ron Howard
> Starring: Steve Martin, Mary Steenburgen, Dianne Wiest
> Domestic box office: $100.05 million

57. Beverly Hills Cop (1984)
> Director: Martin Brest
> Starring: Eddie Murphy, Judge Reinhold, John Ashton
> Domestic box office: $234.76 million

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56. Deathtrap (1982)
> Director: Sidney Lumet
> Starring: Michael Caine, Christopher Reeve, Dyan Cannon
> Domestic box office: $19.28 million

55. Prizzi’s Honor (1985)
> Director: John Huston
> Starring: Jack Nicholson, Kathleen Turner, Robert Loggia
> Domestic box office: $26.70 million

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54. The Goonies (1985)
> Director: Richard Donner
> Starring: Sean Astin, Josh Brolin, Jeff Cohen
> Domestic box office: $61.50 million

53. Caddyshack (1980)
> Director: Harold Ramis
> Starring: Chevy Chase, Rodney Dangerfield, Bill Murray
> Domestic box office: $39.85 million

52. The Sure Thing (1985)
> Director: Rob Reiner
> Starring: John Cusack, Daphne Zuniga, Anthony Edwards
> Domestic box office: $18.14 million

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51. Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (1988)
> Director: Frank Oz
> Starring: Steve Martin, Michael Caine, Glenne Headly
> Domestic box office: $42.04 million

50. Beetlejuice (1988)
> Director: Tim Burton
> Starring: Alec Baldwin, Geena Davis, Michael Keaton
> Domestic box office: $73.71 million

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49. Risky Business (1983)
> Director: Paul Brickman
> Starring: Tom Cruise, Rebecca De Mornay, Joe Pantoliano
> Domestic box office: $63.50 million

48. Gremlins (1984)
> Director: Joe Dante
> Starring: Zach Galligan, Phoebe Cates, Hoyt Axton
> Domestic box office: $148.17 million

47. Something Wild (1986)
> Director: Jonathan Demme
> Starring: Jeff Daniels, Melanie Griffith, George ‘Red’ Schwartz
> Domestic box office: $8.36 million

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46. The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988)
> Director: David Zucker
> Starring: Leslie Nielsen, Priscilla Presley, O.J. Simpson
> Domestic box office: $78.04 million

45. Stardust Memories (1980)
> Director: Woody Allen
> Starring: Woody Allen, Charlotte Rampling, Jessica Harper
> Domestic box office: $10.39 million

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44. Sixteen Candles (1984)
> Director: John Hughes
> Starring: Molly Ringwald, Anthony Michael Hall, Justin Henry
> Domestic box office: $23.69 million

43. Better Off Dead… (1985)
> Director: Savage Steve Holland
> Starring: John Cusack, David Ogden Stiers, Kim Darby
> Domestic box office: $10.30 million

42. Good Morning, Vietnam (1987)
> Director: Barry Levinson
> Starring: Robin Williams, Forest Whitaker, Tung Thanh Tran
> Domestic box office: $123.92 million

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41. National Lampoon’s Vacation (1983)
> Director: Harold Ramis
> Starring: Chevy Chase, Beverly D’Angelo, Imogene Coca
> Domestic box office: $61.40 million

40. The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1988)
> Director: Terry Gilliam
> Starring: John Neville, Eric Idle, Sarah Polley
> Domestic box office: $8.08 million

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39. Torch Song Trilogy (1988)
> Director: Paul Bogart
> Starring: Anne Bancroft, Matthew Broderick, Harvey Fierstein
> Domestic box office: $4.87 million

38. Polyester (1981)
> Director: John Waters
> Starring: Divine, Tab Hunter, Edith Massey
> Domestic box office: .

37. Trading Places (1983)
> Director: John Landis
> Starring: Eddie Murphy, Dan Aykroyd, Ralph Bellamy
> Domestic box office: $90.40 million

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36. Bull Durham (1988)
> Director: Ron Shelton
> Starring: Kevin Costner, Susan Sarandon, Tim Robbins
> Domestic box office: $50.89 million

35. Moonstruck (1987)
> Director: Norman Jewison
> Starring: Cher, Nicolas Cage, Olympia Dukakis
> Domestic box office: $80.64 million

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34. Repo Man (1984)
> Director: Alex Cox
> Starring: Harry Dean Stanton, Emilio Estevez, Tracey Walter
> Domestic box office: $3.57 million

33. Planes, Trains & Automobiles (1987)
> Director: John Hughes
> Starring: Steve Martin, John Candy, Laila Robins
> Domestic box office: $49.53 million

32. The Blues Brothers (1980)
> Director: John Landis
> Starring: John Belushi, Dan Aykroyd, Cab Calloway
> Domestic box office: $57.23 million

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31. An American Werewolf in London (1981)
> Director: John Landis
> Starring: David Naughton, Jenny Agutter, Joe Belcher
> Domestic box office: $30.57 million

30. Tootsie (1982)
> Director: Sydney Pollack
> Starring: Dustin Hoffman, Jessica Lange, Teri Garr
> Domestic box office: $177.20 million

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29. Big (1988)
> Director: Penny Marshall
> Starring: Tom Hanks, Elizabeth Perkins, Robert Loggia
> Domestic box office: $114.97 million

28. Lost in America (1985)
> Director: Albert Brooks
> Starring: Albert Brooks, Julie Hagerty, Sylvia Farrel
> Domestic box office: $10.18 million

27. Raising Arizona (1987)
> Director: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
> Starring: Nicolas Cage, Holly Hunter, Trey Wilson
> Domestic box office: $22.85 million

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26. A Fish Called Wanda (1988)
> Director: Charles Crichton, John Cleese
> Starring: John Cleese, Jamie Lee Curtis, Kevin Kline
> Domestic box office: $63.49 million

 

25. When Harry Met Sally… (1989)
> Director: Rob Reiner
> Starring: Billy Crystal, Meg Ryan, Carrie Fisher
> Domestic box office: $92.82 million

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24. Hairspray (1988)
> Director: John Waters
> Starring: Sonny Bono, Ruth Brown, Divine
> Domestic box office: $6.67 million

23. The Stunt Man (1980)
> Director: Richard Rush
> Starring: Peter O’Toole, Steve Railsback, Barbara Hershey
> Domestic box office: $7.06 million

22. Mystery Train (1989)
> Director: Jim Jarmusch
> Starring: Masatoshi Nagase, Yûki Kudô, Screamin’ Jay Hawkins
> Domestic box office: $0.37 million

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21. Heathers (1988)
> Director: Michael Lehmann
> Starring: Winona Ryder, Christian Slater, Shannen Doherty
> Domestic box office: $1.11 million

 

20. Say Anything… (1989)
> Director: Cameron Crowe
> Starring: John Cusack, Ione Skye, John Mahoney
> Domestic box office: $20.78 million

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19. Ghostbusters (1984)
> Director: Ivan Reitman
> Starring: Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Sigourney Weaver
> Domestic box office: $238.63 million

18. Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)
> Director: Robert Zemeckis
> Starring: Bob Hoskins, Christopher Lloyd, Joanna Cassidy
> Domestic box office: $156.45 million

17. Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986)
> Director: John Hughes
> Starring: Matthew Broderick, Alan Ruck, Mia Sara
> Domestic box office: $70.14 million

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16. Broadcast News (1987)
> Director: James L. Brooks
> Starring: William Hurt, Albert Brooks, Holly Hunter
> Domestic box office: $51.25 million

15. My Favorite Year (1982)
> Director: Richard Benjamin
> Starring: Peter O’Toole, Mark Linn-Baker, Jessica Harper
> Domestic box office: $20.12 million

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14. After Hours (1985)
> Director: Martin Scorsese
> Starring: Griffin Dunne, Rosanna Arquette, Verna Bloom
> Domestic box office: $10.60 million

13. Diner (1982)
> Director: Barry Levinson
> Starring: Steve Guttenberg, Mickey Rourke, Kevin Bacon
> Domestic box office: $14.10 million

 

12. Radio Days (1987)
> Director: Woody Allen
> Starring: Mia Farrow, Dianne Wiest, Mike Starr
> Domestic box office: $14.79 million

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11. Victor Victoria (1982)
> Director: Blake Edwards
> Starring: Julie Andrews, James Garner, Robert Preston
> Domestic box office: $21.93 million

10. Midnight Run (1988)
> Director: Martin Brest
> Starring: Robert De Niro, Charles Grodin, Yaphet Kotto
> Domestic box office: $38.41 million

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9. The Breakfast Club (1985)
> Director: John Hughes
> Starring: Emilio Estevez, Judd Nelson, Molly Ringwald
> Domestic box office: $45.88 million

8. The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985)
> Director: Woody Allen
> Starring: Mia Farrow, Jeff Daniels, Danny Aiello
> Domestic box office: $10.63 million

7. Broadway Danny Rose (1984)
> Director: Woody Allen
> Starring: Woody Allen, Mia Farrow, Nick Apollo Forte
> Domestic box office: $10.60 million

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6. Airplane! (1980)
> Director: Jim Abrahams, David Zucker, Jerry Zucker
> Starring: Robert Hays, Julie Hagerty, Leslie Nielsen
> Domestic box office: $83.40 million

5. Zelig (1983)
> Director: Woody Allen
> Starring: Woody Allen, Mia Farrow, Patrick Horgan
> Domestic box office: $11.80 million

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4. A Christmas Story (1983)
> Director: Bob Clark
> Starring: Peter Billingsley, Melinda Dillon, Darren McGavin
> Domestic box office: $19.29 million

3. Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989)
> Director: Woody Allen
> Starring: Martin Landau, Woody Allen, Bill Bernstein
> Domestic box office: $18.25 million

2. Back to the Future (1985)
> Director: Robert Zemeckis
> Starring: Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson
> Domestic box office: $210.61 million

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1. This Is Spinal Tap (1984)
> Director: Rob Reiner
> Starring: Rob Reiner, Michael McKean, Christopher Guest
> Domestic box office: $0.19 million

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