Best Comedy Movies Available to Stream Right Now

Ellen Page and Michael Cera star in this comedy from writer Diablo Cody (“Jennifer’s Body”) and director Jason Reitman (“Up in the Air”) about a 16-year-old girl dealing with an unplanned pregnancy. The quirky comedy — which only cost an estimated $7.5 million to make and was described by NPR’s Bob Mondello as “a feminized version of ‘Knocked Up'” — received positive ratings from 94% of critics on Rotten Tomatoes and 88% of site users.

“Beverly Hills Cop” launched the highly successful buddy cop franchise starring Eddie Murphy about a policeman from Detroit who encounters a culture shock in Beverly Hills while investigating a friend’s murder. The film received an 82% approval rating from critics and audiences on Rotten Tomatoes. Murphy was box-office gold in the 1980s and 1990s, and according to Box Office Mojo, his movies have grossed more than $3.8 billion.

John Landis directed this 1980 comedy that was based on a “Saturday Night Live” sketch. The film follows Jake Blues (John Belushi) and his brother Elwood (Dan Akroyd) as they put their blues band back together to save their Catholic school with hijinks and numerous musician cameos (including a famous appearance by Aretha Franklin) along the way. “The Blues Brothers” has a 92% positive rating from Rotten Tomatoes users, with critics falling just slightly behind at 84%.

The second feature directed by Wes Anderson was a massive indie film hit, winning Independent Spirit awards for Best Director and Best Supporting Male in 1999, the latter for Bill Murray. The movie about an eccentric private school student — played by Jason Schwartzman — received a 89% Freshness rating from critics and a 91% rating from users, with People Magazine’s Leah Rozen describing it as “a gloriously inventive little comedy.”

“Little Miss Sunshine,” directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris, is about a family determined to take the youngest member of their clan to a beauty pageant in California in a Volkswagen microbus that is almost as dysfunctional as they are. Alan Arkin, who plays the grandfather, won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. Critics Consensus on Rotten Tomatoes cited the “strong ensemble cast,” and the film received approval ratings from 91% of critics and audiences on Rotten Tomatoes.

John Cleese, an alum from the Monty Python comedy troupe, wrote and starred in this zany film about four very different people who conspire to commit a jewel heist and end up double crossing each other. Kevin Kline received a Best Actor Oscar for his role as a dimwitted criminal. Jonathan Rosenbaum of the Chicago Reader said of the film, “Like many of the best English comedies, much of the humor here is based on character, good-natured high spirits, and fairly uninhibited vulgarity.” Critics on Rotten Tomatoes gave the movie a 94% Freshness rating, and 84% of audiences found the film amusing.

Movie fans looking to stream a more recent movie may be interested in last year’s “Knives Out,” which boasts an ensemble cast featuring Daniel Craig, Chris Evans, Jamie Lee Curtis, Toni Collette, and more. The modern whodunit — in which a detective investigates the death of a wealthy family’s patriarch — received, on Rotten Tomatoes, an exceptional 97% Freshness rating from critics, who found it clever, fun, and funny.

The Bollywood comedy “Monsoon Wedding” helmed by Mira Nair (director of “Mississippi Masala” starring Denzel Washington) is about the stress of an arranged wedding as told through the experiences of a father, a wedding planner, the bride-to-be, and relatives arriving to the event from around the world. Critics Consensus hailed the film as an “exuberant celebration of modern-day India, family, love, and life.” “Monsoon Wedding” holds a 95% Freshness rating among critics on Rotten Tomatoes, and 87% of audiences enjoyed the film.

“Animal House” — about a fraternity house occupied by misfits and troublemakers — set new standards for vulgar and subversive comedy and helped launch John Belushi into movie stardom. Directed by John Landis and written by Harold Ramis and Douglas Kenney, the film remains one of the most quotable movies of all time. It holds a 90% Freshness rating among Rotten Tomatoes critics, and 89% of audiences liked the movie.

The film about various students on the last day of school in Texas, 1976, won over 92% of critics and 90% of users on Rotten Tomatoes. The site’s Critics Consensus calls it “a funny, affectionate, and clear-eyed look at high school life.” The movie is also the feature film debut of Texas native Matthew McConaughey.

The Coen Brothers directed this comedy about a down-and-out man known as “The Dude” who is mistaken for a millionaire who owes gangsters money. With strong performances by Jeff Bridges, John Goodman, and Steve Buscemi and crackling dialogue, “The Big Lebowski” has a Freshness rating among critics on Rotten Tomatoes of 83%, and 94% of the 356,000 audience members who voted liked the movie. The cult film holds an 8.1 rating out of 10 among more than 703,000 IMDb users.

Ice Cube and Chris Tucker star in this comedy about two young men, who after smoking a dope dealer’s marijuana have to figure out how to pay for it by that evening. Critics Consensus of Rotten Tomatoes lauded the exuberant performances of the two lead actors. Critics on Rotten Tomatoes gave the comedy a Freshness rating of 78%, while audiences liked it better, with more than 265,000 audience members giving it an approval rating of 91%.

John Hughes’ “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” one of the 80s’ iconic comedies, is about a high school student’s adventures when he skips school. The movie launched Matthew Broderick into movie stardom as the charmingly scheming Ferris Bueller. Among the film’s most joyous moments is when Ferris, riding a float in a parade, gets a crowd to dance to the song “Twist and Shout.” The film has an 80% Freshness rating among critics, while 92% of audiences loved the lightheartedly subversive tone of the film.

“Groundhog Day” is the perfect comedy vehicle for Bill Murray. The “Saturday Night Live” alum plays a cynical weatherman covering Groundhog Day for a local television station, an assignment he detests. He finds himself reliving the same day over and over, and in the process rediscovers his humanity. Critics Consensus on Rotten Tomatoes calls the film “Smart, sweet, and inventive.” Critics gave the film a Freshness score of 96%. More than 564,000 IMDb users gave the film a ranking of 8.0 out of 10.

Mel Brooks lampooned Western film tropes in the farce “Blazing Saddles,” one of a string of successful comedies he helmed in the 1970s and ’80s. Besides casting well-known Western character actor Slim Pickins to give the film some authenticity, Brooks added football star Alex Karras in the role of Mongo, a hulking brute who punches a horse in one of the film’s more famous scenes. “Blazing Saddles” is “daring, provocative, and laugh-out-loud funny,” according to Critics Consensus on Rotten Tomatoes, with 91% of more than 218,000 audience members enjoying the movie.

This zany send-up of disaster films directed by Jim Abrahams and David and Jerry Zucker contains memorable lines and sight gags. The film’s humor is accentuated by the inspired casting of macho actors like Robert Stack and Lloyd Bridges as well as basketball star Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in comedic roles. Critics Consensus on Rotten Tomatoes said the film was “unabashedly sophomoric,” and critics gave it a Freshness rating of 97%.

Robert Zemeckis’ sly animated take on the noir genre mixes animation and live action and has a cast that includes Bob Hoskins, Christopher Lloyd, and Joanna Cassidy. The story is about a rabbit wrongly accused of murder trying to prove his innocence. The comedy delighted critics, who gave it a 97% Freshness rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and 84% of nearly 443,000 audience members liked the movie. Dave Kehr of the Chicago Tribune said the film was “brilliantly funny, bracingly smart and surprisingly moving.”

Filmmaker Wes Anderson scored a major hit with this comedy about a lobby boy in a luxury hotel. The stylish film won four Oscars and a Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical. Critics gave it a 91% Freshness rating, finding it “deceptively thoughtful.”

Film adaptation of the Jerzy Kosinski novel of the same name stars comic genius Peter Sellers as a sheltered, simple-mind gardener who only knows what he knows from watching television. He eventually becomes a trusted Washington political insider. Melvyn Douglas won his second Academy Award, this time for Best Supporting Actor. Critics Consensus on Rotten Tomatoes said of the film, “Smart, sophisticated, and refreshingly subtle.” Both critics and audiences on Rotten Tomatoes gave the film at least a 92% approval, and IMDb users rated it 8.0 out of 10.

“This Is Spinal Tap” is Rob Reiner’s hilarious mockumentary about a British heavy metal group’s attempt to resurrect their career. Janet Maslin of The New York Times said, “It stays so wickedly close to the subject that it is very nearly indistinguishable from the real thing.” The sharply directed and highly quotable film holds a 95% Freshness rating among critics on Rotten Tomatoes, and a 92% rating among audiences.

“Young Frankenstein” is Mel Brooks’ affectionate homage to the James Whale-directed Frankenstein series of films from the 1930s. Alan Jones of the Radio Times said, “This loopy send-up of classic chiller clichés from Universal’s monster heyday is one of director Mel Brooks’s best comedies.” Critics and audiences alike on Rotten Tomatoes gave the film an approval rating of at least 92%. IMDb users rated the film an 8.0 out of 10.

“Richard Pryor: Live in Concert” is the first concert movie made by the funny and volatile Pryor, one of the most influential comedians ever. Andrew Husband of Uproxx said the film “set the blueprint for all comedy specials to follow.” The film received a 92% Freshness rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes and a 93% rating from audiences. The movie holds a rating of 8.2 out of 10 among IMDb users.

“Some Like It Hot” topped a BBC Culture poll in 2017 as the funniest movie of all time. Maybe it’s because stars Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon spend much of the movie in drag, as members of an all-female band trying to evade mobsters after witnessing a killing. Or maybe it’s because of Curtis’ over-the-top imitation of Cary Grant as a lonely millionaire seeking love. Critics Consensus on Rotten Tomatoes appreciated the movie as a “quick-witted farce that never drags.” The movie has an 8.2 rating out of 10 among nearly 235,000 IMDb users.

Comedy is mixed with adventure and sci-fi in this classic 1980s flick from director Robert Zemeckis. Michael J. Fox stars in the iconic role of time-traveling teenager Marty McFly who finds himself back in the 1950s in his small town of Hill Valley, California. On Rotten Tomatoes, 96% of critics and 94% of more than 1 million users liked the movie.

Stanley Kubrick’s black comedy is about a deranged U.S. general who orders a nuclear attack against the Soviet Union. The movie is famous for the three roles played by Peter Sellers and the scene of American pilot Slim Pickens riding a bomb down to its target as if he was on a bucking bronco. “Dr. Strangelove” has long been a critics’ favorite, and the Cold War satire holds a 98% Freshness rating among critics on Rotten Tomatoes. Among users on the site it has a 94% rating, and on IMDb it has an 8.4 rating out of 10 with more than 436,000 votes.