As the world continues to fall apart, don’t you just want to something to make you laugh? Netflix is becoming the country’s biggest source for a laughter after a long week at work, but it can be hard to find exactly what you’re in the mood for when you log on to the service. So we’re here to help.
With everybody mainlining Netflix over the last few weeks, we’ve had to rethink our monthly list of the best comedies the streamer has to offer.
This post is updated frequently as movies leave and enter Netflix.
The Other Guys
The 2010 comedy The Other Guys may not be on the level of pitch-perfect hilarity of Adam McKay’s other films like Step Brothers or Anchorman, but it’s still good for a number of laughs and fascinating when viewed as a step-ladder to McKay’s more dramatic films like The Big Short and Vice. This movie is ostensibly an action movie in which “the other guys” are the stars—in this case a mild-mannered forensic accountant (Will Ferrell) and a hot-tempered detective who mistakenly shot Derek Jeter (Mark Wahlberg).
The two become embroiled in a case involving corporate maleficence, with McKay blending his passion for politics with an incredibly silly comedy. There are a number of insane gags here that are great, like Ferrell’s character’s past as a pimp for McKay’s own cameo as Dirty Mike of Dirty Mike and the Boys. And again while not as satisfying as some of McKay’s other films, this one certainly isn’t bad.
Brooklyn Nine-Nine
Truly one of the most binge-able, easy-going series you’re likely to find anywhere.
Brooklyn Nine-Nine is hardly a deep-dive into the psyche of police detectives and the criminal underworld – instead, it’s a terrific playful comedy following the misadventures of the boyish, immature Detective Jake Peralta (Andy Samberg), eager-to-impress Amy Santiago (Melissa Fumero) and a host of other wacky individuals under the stoic, often despairing stewardship of Captain Raymond Holt (Andre Braugher).
Each of the characters brings something special to the table, whether it’s Charles Boyle (Joe Lo Truglio) the loveable try-hard or super-sarcastic lone wolf Gina Linetti (Chelsea Peretti). There’s a vibe of The Office (US version) throughout as the 99th precinct engages in just about every activity possible outside of their professional remit.
It’s hard not to fall for the show’s bouncy charm with some hilarious recurring themes and very cleverly written episodes, including the must-watch annual Halloween Heists.
The Naked Gun
The final hoorah from the comedy trio David Zucker, Jim Abrahams and Jerry Zucker—ZAZ for short—The Naked Gun is so stupid it’s hilarious. This, of course, was ZAZ’s secret weapon in films like Airplane!, and in Leslie Nielsen’s stone-faced imbecility they found their muse. A former dramatic actor, Nielsen rejuvenated his career by playing Frank Drebin, a hapless L.A. police detective trying to prevent the assassination of Queen Elizabeth. (And in his courting of possible femme fatale Priscilla Presley, he taught us the importance of wearing full-body condoms.) A wonder of slapstick and deadpan silliness, The Naked Gun makes jokes about terrorists, gay panic, boobs, even “The Star-Spangled Banner.” There’s a character named Pahpshmir. Good lord, it’s all so gloriously idiotic.
Arrested Development
This show is the definition of a cult hit. Either you’re obsessed with it and like to go round making chicken noises when you discuss it, or it has passed you by. This is the time to catch up, though, as TV’s most dysfunctional family has made its home on Netflix.
The series, starring Jason Bateman and Portia De Rossi, was the brainchild of Hollywood director Ron Howard and originally ran on Fox for three seasons from 2003 to 2006. It’s the story of a spoilt, once-wealthy family who continue their lavish lifestyle despite the fact they can no longer afford it.
After its cancellation there was a long wait before Netflix revived the show in 2013, much to the excitement of its loyal fanbase. But the show’s return to screen has not always been smooth, and the controversy surrounding Jessica Walters and Jeffrey Tambor in the run-up to season five certainly coloured fans’ expectations and left us wondering what the future of the show would be. But it doesn’t change the ground-breaking impact the series once had.
Between Two Ferns: The Movie
Scott Aukerman directs a Netflix Original movie version of his own web series starring the king of awkward interviews, Zach Galifianakis. Believe it or not, they did find a way to string together the hysterical shorts into a movie with a story, although the highlights are still the mean questions asked to people like Benedict Cumberbatch, Will Ferrell, Gal Gadot, Tiffany Haddish, Jon Hamm, Matthew McConaughey, and many more.
Just Friends
Now that Ryan Reynolds is a bona fide action hero, let’s not forget the guy is also an incredibly talented comedic actor. Roger Kumble’s underrated romantic comedy Just Friends is a terrific showcase for Reynolds’ skills, as the dichotomy between his impossibly good looks and goofy comedic sensibility is put to good use as he plays a formerly chubby, sensitive-type who is now a trim, successful music producer. Anna Faris also turns in phenomenal work here as a play on a Britney Spears-esque pop star, and she and Reynolds have fantastic chemistry.
The story is a pretty standard “home for the holidays” type deal—Reynolds’ character gets unexpectedly stranded in his hometown with Faris in tow, and is forced to confront his former BFF who is also the girl he was in love with in high school. But the whole thing is really just elevated to another comedic level courtesy of its A+ performances. Sneakily great? Chris Klein as a stereotypical “nice guy.”
Ferris Bueller's Day Off
John Hughes’ zeitgeist-y, fourth wall-busting ode to rich, entitled suburban youth vs. killjoy authority announced Matthew Broderick as a bona fide star, and gave us a chillingly prescient glimpse at Charlie Sheen’s future in an admittedly funny bit role. Breakfast Club aside, out of all Hughes’ decade of teen-centric movies set in the Chicago area, Bueller has almost certainly endured the best, and without all that tortured pretentiousness.
Kung Fu Hustle
Stephen Chow is probably the biggest name in martial arts comedy since the days of Sammo Hung, and Kung Fu Hustle will likely remain one of his most well-regarded films both as a director and performer. Gleefully kooky, it combines occasional song and dance with extremely exaggerated kung fu parody in telling the tale of a young man who ends up overthrowing a large criminal organization, the “Deadly Axe Gang.”
This is not a complex film—rather, it’s simply intended as popcorn entertainment at its most absurd. The action has no basis in reality, being closer to a real-world depiction of Looney Tune physics. The characters are broad pastiches and references to famous actors from the genre’s history abound.
With comedy that teeters decidedly on the juvenile or inscrutable side, it’s a film that some will dismiss off-hand, but Chow’s style has always and will probably always be “entertain first, make sense later.” That’s what he does, and he does it better than anyone else.
Friends
It only seems right to start with the most popular TV show ever made. Gen Z might turn their noses up because of a few outdated jokes, but for most of us this series has a special place in our hearts. Whether you were watching for Ross and Rachel’s will-they-won’t-they love affair, Joey’s silliness or Phoebe singing about smelly cats, it’s a series that defined a generation and can be rewatched over and over again. While we’ve just about quelled the urge to ask for ‘The Rachel” at the hairdressers, we’ll never stop wanting to be mates with this lot.
Although it’s never hard to find this series somewhere on the telly (we’re not complaining, these are the kind of repeats we love!), Netflix gives us the chance to either binge a series from start to finish or hand-pick our favourite episodes – the one with Ross’s sandwich, the one with the apartment swap, the one where Ross and Rachel were on a break – whichever one you fancy. The dream.
Chasing Amy
Kevin Smith’s best film is also one of his most personal, the story of a man who falls in love with a lesbian and destroys his friendship in the process. Smith has never been better than he is here at capturing believable, funny human relationships, and he gets his best acting work of his career as well from Ben Affleck, Joey Lauren Adams, and Jason Lee. It won the Independent Spirit Award for Best Screenplay for a reason.
Dolemite is My Name
Eddie Murphy is back! It’s been a long time since we saw this version of Eddie, who reminds us how funny and charismatic he can be with the right part. That part is the flashy personality that was Rudy Ray Moore, a washed-up musician who transformed himself into the character of Dolemite. Like The Disaster Artist and Ed Wood, this is an ode to DIY filmmaking with not just a great performance from Murphy, but Wesley Snipes and Keegan Michael Key too.
The Good Place
Kristen Bell stars in this fantasy comedy US TV series. She plays the role of Eleanor Shellstrop, who is welcomed to the afterlife, the Good Place, by Ted Danson’s “Michael”. The Good Place is essentially a highly selective, cherry-picked utopian society designed by Michael.
Eleanor quickly realises she was sent to the Good Place accidentally as it is exclusively reserved for those who have lived “righteous” lives. She is forced to conceal her dubious ways as she adapts to the new way of life – or death.
The single-camera sitcom is surprisingly sophisticated in its exploration of morals and ethics, weaving in philosophy with varying degrees of subtlety throughout. It’s hard not to be sucked into wonderment at times while soaking up The Good Place, but at its heart this is a deft comedy.
The Edge of Seventeen
Great comedies about those harrowing days of late teenage life, especially from a female perspective, are few and far between. So it’s a shame that more people didn’t see this one with Hailee Steinfeld, Haley Lu Richardson, and Woody Harrelson. It’s truthful, hysterical, and anchored in reality in a way that most of the movies don’t even try to be.
Sex Education
You might think that revisiting teenage sexual experiences would be no laughing matter, but this hilarious, intelligent show proves otherwise. Otis (Asa Butterfield) is a teenage boy unable to spend his evenings doing what a lot of teenage boys might be doing, and while he’s struggling to get any satisfaction, his mother Jean – played to perfection by Gillian Anderson – couldn’t be more relaxed about the whole thing. She’s a sex therapist after all, and every time she tries to talk to her son about intimacy, he becomes more repressed about it.
But life changes when Otis realises he can sell his mum’s advice to his fellow pupils, all of whom are facing their own sexual insecurities. As we see Otis become more confident we also follow his best friend Eric, as he becomes more open about his sexuality and Maeve, the coolest girl in school who is facing her own demons. One of the biggest shows of the decade, and rightly so.
A Serious Man
Working with few recognizable stars, the Coens have made a funny but odd and inquisitive film about guilt. It’s also their most Jewish film to date, a film about physics professor Larry Gopnik and the Jewish subculture of a medium-sized late-’60s American town. Larry’s life begins to fall apart when his wife says she wants a divorce, and in the great unraveling that follows, the Coens have made Kafka’s implications explicit.
The K word is often slapped onto any old symbolic nightmare, but Kafka’s own work was actually very funny, even though he could slip into gray areas without much warning. The Coens can, too. A Serious Man is one of the most fascinating, maybe even heartfelt, renderings of a Kafkaesque sensibility that I’ve seen.
Grace and Frankie
Everything about this show is a treat. Firstly, reuniting Nine to Five legends Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin – amazing idea! Secondly, getting to watch the two of them on fiercely funny form in a sitcom, incredible. And then of course the show itself.
The concept is fresh and hilarious: two 70-something women are plunged into chaos when their husbands announce that they are gay and in love with each other. As they set up a new life together, Grace and Frankie are left wondering what the future holds for them. Although they are very different women, who have never been that keen on one another, they find solace in their shared frustrations and begin to form a friendship when they are forced to move in together.
The show has proved such a hit that it has now become the longest-running Netflix original show, with a seventh and final season on its way soon.
Young Adult
This 2011 film was hotly anticipated given that it marked a reunion from the writing/directing team behind Juno, but Young Adult is a very different kind of movie. Charlize Theron anchors this comedy/drama as a divorced, alcoholic ghost writer of a series of young adult novels who up and decides to go back to her hometown and strike up a relationship with her now-married high school boyfriend.
Theron doesn’t shy away from the prickly aspects of this hard-to-love protagonist, but that’s what makes Young Adult special. A mix of cringeworthy comedy and heartbreaking drama, this one probably isn’t for everyone, but if it’s for you, you’ll love it.
Derry Girls
If you’ve seen and adored The Inbetweeners, Derry Girls will be right up your street. It holds back on the all-out crudeness of the English #lads adventures, which probably boosts Derry Girls’ appeal. The show follows the girl gang, loosely led by Erin Quinn (Saoirse-Monica Jackson), through life as Catholics living in Northern Ireland during the early 90s.
Clare (Nicola Coughlan), Michelle (Jamie-Lee O’Donnell) and Orla (Louisa Harland) are joined by Michelle’s bewildered English cousin James (Dylan Llewellyn) at Our Lady Immaculate Girls’ School led by deadpan nun Sister Michael (Siobhan McSweeney).
Lisa McGee has produced an absolute gem in Derry Girls, with truly poignant, emotional moments threaded through overwhelming daft comedy in seamless fashion. Special shout-out to Granda Joe – played by Game of Thrones’s Ian McElhinney – for his jibes at the expense of son-in-law Gerry (Tommy Tiernan). You’d expect his relentless pursuit to grow tiresome, but with each passing sparring session, their fractious relationship just escalates.
Get Him to the Greek
In the wake of the insane success of Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Universal tasked writer/director Nicholas Stoller with creating a spinoff revolving around Russell Brand’s character Aldous Snow. The resulting film, Get Him to the Greek, is far better than expected and packed with hilariously catchy songs written by Jason Segel himself.
The conceit of this comedy finds Jonah Hill playing a record label talent scout who’s tasked with making sure the notoriously unreliable Snow gets from London to L.A. in time for a concert. Chaos ensues in a Planes, Trains, and Automobiles-esque adventure, and as ever Stoller finds time to inject some genuine heart into the film as well.
BoJack Horseman
You’ve no doubt seen a cartoon horse parading about your Netflix home screen at some point over the last few years, but BoJack Horseman is actually an adult animated comedy series and has garnered a cult reputation online for its black comedy and surreal humour. The brainchild of Raphael Bob-Waksberg, BoJack ran for six seasons before drawing to an ambiguous close, typical of the show.
Some critics have genuinely hailed BoJack as one of the greatest TV series of all time – including non-animated shows. It tells the story of an anthropomorphic horse, voiced by Will Arnett, a has-been star from a 90s sitcom who intends to return to the public eye with an autobiography. Far from a child-friendly cartoon, the series covers a diverse range of topics from depression, addiction, racism and sexism to name but a few.
It’s a truly unique, league-of-its-own dark comedy that should command great respect for the way in which it handles huge topics in its own quirky manner.
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