Funny, I don’t know what would be my favourite purely comic movie ever. I don’t watch a whole lot of them! Certainly nothing springs to mind. There’s various things I love - the Naked Gun trilogy, maybe? But they don’t stick with me like my other favourites do.

I just prefer narrative films with a decent story arc that can still make me laugh. Mid-period Bill Murray, Hollywood CG animated features, drier, slightly bittersweet arthouse stuff like Sideways… or the golden age Hong Kong stuff that switches into comedy without warning. Peking Opera Blues is one of my favourite films ever, not least given certain set-pieces in it always leave me creased up laughing.

Not so much complete films, but certain scenes make me burst out in laughter. Usually seriously over-the-top stuff like Dead Leaves or some Miike weirdness (a few good ones in Yokai Wars - The Wall character). Fast-Food Grifters and Mini-Pato were awesome, so was Red Spectacles. Oshii has a cool sense of humor tucked away in there.

SS5+ was lovely, Party 7 and Shark Skin Man has some seriously funny stuff. Mah Nakorn is another such lovely title. I appreciate milder stuff too. Yamada-kun is superb, Blessing Bell and Monday also, Cha no Aji was cool. And of course the darker stuff, like Calvaire, Brain Dead or Man Bites Dog! I also eat stuff like Happiness.

As for the dry kind, there is nothing that beats Big Man Japan. So dead-pan it is actually morbid.

Bur somehow I usually like comedy that isn’t 100% comedy. Naked Gun and such is nice enough, but never so funny as to entertain me for a whole movie.

But if you ask me to pick one, I’d take Fastfood Grifters. The joke is so broad and deliberate ... I’m still chuckling about that one.

Worst comedies: Groundhog Day and about every big American CG animation film from the last 10 years.

Thing is I loved every thread of SS5+ apart from the one that was obviously intended to be the funniest. The teenage housebreakers’ story was so appallingly bad I had to struggle not to fast-forward through it - hated the characters, hated the hook, didn’t find it funny, didn’t like watching it. Ick. Nothing wrong with the basic premise, but I didn’t enjoy anything about the way they chose to tell it. The ad exec/hypnotist thread grated at times, but nowhere near as much, and was always watchable at the very least.

But then the ending single-handedly redeemed the film. Could still have been a masterpiece all the way through, though. Oh well.

Actually, if we’re including unintentionally funny films, The Swarm is a comic masterpiece.

Bio-Zombie is hilarious!

I agree with Bringing Up Baby and Dr. Strangelove. Kind Hearts And Coronets and Some Like It Hot also make me laugh…

But at the end of the day, for me there is nothing as funny as Life Of Brian and The Holy Grail…

in no particular order:

Raising Arizona
Blues Brothers
Borat
This Is Spinal Tap
Stripes
I’m Gonna Get You Sucka!
Better Off Dead