FILM BUZZLIST: TOP 5 MOVIES 2011 - COMEDY

From 'Bridesmaids' to 'Midnight in Paris,' Something Funny for All

By: Team Buzzine

December 28, 2011

This year saw the breaking of a record: the biggest global blockbuster for a R-rated comedy (The Hangover Part II). While that film is big and loud in every conceivable way, we have five more subtle comedies that tickled our funny bone this year (if you can call defecating women in wedding garb subtle). 

5. Crazy, Stupid, Love
Crazy, Stupid, Love was easily the best romantic comedy this year. The film’s several intertwining stories all touch on the different aspects of love, from a cheating wife (Julianne Moore) to a boy with a crush on his babysitter (Analeigh Tipton). Plus, Crazy, Stupid, Love gives us that glorious scene with Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, and Ryan Gosling’s abs.  More details in our Buzzine Review.
 

4. Cedar Rapids
In the little-known indie hit Cedar Rapids, Helms plays sheltered Tim Lippe, an insurance agent leaving his small town for the very first time. Somehow John C. Reilly’s absurdly over-the-top performance as wildcat Dean Ziegler missed the masses. Eyes ablaze and gut hanging out, Dean shows Tim how to let loose. With a stellar supporting cast of Anne Heche, Isiah Whitlock, Jr., and Alia Shawkat, Cedar Rapids should have garnered much more attention than it did.  More details in our Buzzine Interview.

3. The Guard
On the other hand, The Guard is one of those small films that seemed to have disappeared just after release. With Brendan Gleeson’s Golden Globe nomination (Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy), The Guard popped right back on everyone’s radar. The Irish comedy follows Sgt. Boyl (Gleeson), a crass cop on the last leg of his career, as he takes on an international drug smuggling gang. With straight-laced FBI Agent Everett (Don Cheadle) as his partner in crime, the two make the ultimate dynamic duo. Irreverent and dark, The Guard is a clever film that deserves a second look. More details in our Buzzine Review.

2. Bridesmaids

It’s hard to imagine that Bridesmaids was considered a box office risk when it first came out. Female ensemble comedies are rare, but hopefully this Judd Apatow-produced gamble breaks the mold. Both genders flocked to theaters to see Bridesmaids, which not only appealed to men and women, but it propelled Kristen Wiig, Melissa McCarthy, and the rest of the cast to stardom. Women are finally writing movies about women, and it’s working. More details on the Official Site.

1. Midnight in Paris

Watching Midnight in Paris without any idea of its plot or characters was a dream. Woody Allen spent so much of his artistic career wed to New York, and his playful love affairs with new cities are delicious treats. Opening on different shots of Paris at night, in the rain, mid-morning, and at dusk, Midnight in Paris is a clever take on Allen’s movie career, literary history, and living in the past. Owen Wilson takes on the role of Allen’s psyche with surprising ease, and Marion Cottilard is magnetic as ever as his elusive French paramour. Be transported into Allen's vision of Paris with the funniest film of the year: Midnight in Paris. More details in our Buzzine Interview.