Monday, June 4, 2018

Junesploitation 2018 Day 4: '80s Comedy!

You won't believe what goes on...and what comes off!

88 comments:

  1. Jonathan Demme's MARRIED TO THE MOB (1988, 104 min.) on Hulu for the first time.

    Jonathan Demme's exploitation-cinema-shaped mise-en-scène is all over this studio picture, restrained but clear as a bell. From the way the closing credits use extensions of scenes in the movie to fill little backstory details to the international flavor of live music performances in New York nightclubs and corner streets, "Married to the Mob" is a comedy that I can appreciate better today knowing the care that Demme and his regulars (cinematographer Tak Fujimoto, Talking Head frontman David Byrne composing the score, etc.) put into making it. It's also packed with stars big (Michelle Pfeiffer, baby-faced thin Alec Baldwin), up-and-comers (Oliver Platt, Joan Cusack, Matthew Modine, Colin Quinn), veterans (Dean Stockwell, Mercedes Ruehl, Al Lewis) and what-the-frack-are-you-doing-here cameos (Chris Isaac with an unusual hitman disguise, Joe Spinell, etc.). You know you're in for a good time when manly Charles Napier shows up for a hot second playing a hairdresser of mobster wives. :-)

    While the premise is firmly anchored in romcom "high concept" territory (FBI agent falls in love with the widow of a mobster killed by the family boss the bureau is trying to bring down, a boss who is also in love with the same woman), Demme performs the same high wire act he pulled off in 1986's "Something Wild": alternating between moments of laugh-out loud hilarity (Connie Russo and her fellow mob wives cornering Angela at the supermarket... EGG-SPLOITATION!) and sudden bursts of violence (Nancy Travis at The Fantasia suite). "Married to the Mob" is not as violent as "Something Wild," but the tension of the chance that it might go there (which comes to a head inside a Honeymoon Suite at a Miami hotel) is classic Demme. Come for the pre-"Sopranos" Hollywood cartoon version of a mafia comedy, stay to see box office poison Matthew Modine be charming (and perform a dangerous stunt jumping off a bus) to a great-with-the-comedic-timing ageless Pfeiffer. Recommended.

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  2. The first day for two movies. Recently, my interest in movies has turned toward the 1980s, so this day really suits me.

    REVENGE OF THE NERDS (1984)

    Nerds!!!! Although PORKY’S (an old favorite) was my first choice, I decided to go with a film I have not seen in a long time. I must say that ROTN holds up. I like the characters- Poindexter is my favorite – and appreciated that the comedy fits in with the story and the setting. Tri Lambda’s musical show is probably the most eighties scene in it. The ”proud to be a nerd” speech at the end is strangely endearing. As with any film approaching forty years of age, there are elements that are not acceptable in modern society (the Asian guy stereotype) or are completely dated. I do not think nerds are outsiders to the extent they were in the 1980s.

    Gilbert and Lewis most likely made quite a nice life for themselves in the computer industry after graduation.

    HARDBODIES (1984)

    I thought about saving this for beach day, but I sensed that it fit the '80s comedy label better. And it does. This is certainly on the raunchy side of the era's comedy, and it is not always on the good side of that. Despite that, the film has an infectious energy to it. I admit to being amused.

    Three "older" men, of different ages, come to the California seaside to, in no uncertain terms, get laid. To learn how to woo the "hardbodies" around them, they recruit a young man, Scotty, with the knack for picking up girls. In no time, the men are throwing a party that starts to get results for them. The rest of the movie is a hedonistic ride, yet, as it is in in life, the ride is not complete fun. It at least ends on a pleasant note.

    For a beach sex comedy, there are far worse films you can watch. It just might cheer you up, too.

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  3. Beach Balls (1988, dir. Joe Ritter)

    Teenage guy (played by a 25-year-old) organizes a rock concert at his ultra-religious parents' beach house to impress a girl. Everything goes smoothly, the end. Nah, I'm only kidding ya. You know what happens.

    Nothing special to report here but it's exactly as advertised. A couple of supporting characters are funny and the band playing isn't bad (here's their big song). For most of the movie, I was wondering where I knew the sidekick's actor from, until I figured out he's the guy who Bill Murray shocks in his psychic test in Ghostbusters.

    Before this, I tried watching Strange Brew, but quickly decided it's not for me. Saying "eh" and "hoser" a lot just isn't funny.

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    1. I find comedy to be the hardest genre to watch, Mikko. It is hard to take a neutral position with a comedy. You either connect with it or not.

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    2. Oh, absolutely. I can watch a bad action or scifi movie any day, but a bad comedy is harder to get through.

      And I don't mean to shit on a movie or characters some people love, I just didn't connect with it, like you said.

      Maybe comedy is also more subjective than other genres. If I see a beloved movie of any other genre for the first time, they're almost always at least good if not great, but with comedy that's not always the case.

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    3. I agree on how subjective comedy can be. For Zombie day I watched Zombieland, which everyone says is hilarious, but I don't think I broke a smile the whole time.

      However, I'm sad that you didn't connect with Strange Brew. It's very beloved in Canada. Although, many people my age were already familiar with the characters from a TV sketch show SCTV, so a lot of the love comes from having "more" of those characters.
      It probably works better as a 10 minute sketch, but I still love that movie a lot.

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  4. Weekend at Bernie's (1989)
    Could the movie that came out in July '89 be the MOST 80's movie? Even down to the brief gay panic/transphobic joke with the suicide note. Honestly, I love this movie, and think it still works as a high-concept hang out film. I truly believe bad rep it gets is from people conflating it with the brainless cash-grab sequel. Jonathan Silverman and Andrew McCarthy absolutely POP as a Catskills comedy duo, and if those words doesn't convince you, here are three more: Catherine. Mary. Stewart.

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    1. I really loved Silverman & McCarthy’s chemistry in this. It’s weird that it’s barely evident in the second one.

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  5. Trading Places (1983 - dir John Landis)

    I have not seent this movie since I was a kid. All I remembered from it was Jamie Lee Curtis' boobs and Eddie Murphy with no legs (I can see, I have legs! I can walk!). Of course the movie is so much more than that. The social commentary is no where near the land of subtle, but I like how it uses it, even if it is too long and the third act turns into everything wrong with 1930s comedy. What are we doing with the train sequence?

    However the first two acts are brilliant; like the Dickensian feel to the whole thing (though I read it was more Mark Twain and Marriage of Figero). Eddie Murphy is on fire, and Jamie Lee Curtis is everything that is good in the world, she has so much moxie, I love it. She owns Aykroyd and this movie. Though, Denholm Elliot is the secret assassin of this movie, every movement and movement kills. Well at least for me anyway.

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  6. 9 To 5 (1980):

    Happy to cross this longstanding Movie Shame off my list! My crush on Lily Tomlin knows no bounds, and I'm really glad that none of the workplace issues at the center of this film are at all applicable in our advanced, refined, modern society.

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  7. Joysticks (1983 - dir Greydon Clark)

    This movie ended up winning me over. At first it was too many boob, fart and 'joystick' jokes. The little by little, I started to become fascinated with the handmade ashtray quality to it. A relic of a different time, it's uneven, slopes oddly to the left, and the collection of buttons you now use it for keep falling out. But someone made it, and it makes the world that little bit more interesting.

    It's a fun movie, which feels like it is making it up as it goes along. It won me over.

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    1. I saw Joysticks last June and the theme song is still stuck in my head. "Totally awesome videogames!"

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    2. Even though I didn't find it particularly funny, it does have that engaging 80s formula...a bunch of kids trying to have fun, the Man trying to shut them down (Joe Don Baker!), etc...and Jon Gries is wild as King Vidiot.

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    3. King Vidiot is insane! And good to know I'll be spending time with Totally Awesome Videogames, it's still in my head having just dislodged Everything is Awesome 😁

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  8. She's Gotta Have It (1986)

    Peppy, very nouvelle-vague indie dramedy. Picked because of my low tolerance for goofy comedies.

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  9. Twins (1988, dir. Ivan Reitman)

    A comfort movie if there ever was one, loved this since I was a kid. I've also loved Kelly Preston ever since I was a kid.

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    1. Haven't seen it in a long time, but when i was young, i lived this movie. I need to rewatch it

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  10. The Adventures of Ford Fairlane (1990, dir. Renny Harlin, First Time Viewing) Ok, I cheated here but can justify it because this movie has one foot planted in the '80's. I really enjoyed it. Dice is so good as the guy who is so impossibly cool he's actually not cool at all. I appreciated little throwaway stuff, such as him being so oblivious, he's literally knocking people over as he walks down a hallway and doesn't even notice. This movie expertly satirizes some of the excesses of the '80s (and I'm glad the Koala made it!).

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  11. So I decided to switch today's 80s comedy theme with tomorrow's blacksploitation theme for my girlfriend's sake.

    Dolemite (1975)

    This is the second movie starring Rudy Ray Moore I've watched, the first being Disco Godfather. The man knows how to pick his cheese. This was a lot more fun than Disco Godfather. Pretty much everything you'd want in a blacksploitation; drugs, big afros, a female karate foece, even a nice conspiracy plot. Foxy Brown is still the best of the few I've watched but this was a lot of fun and worth the watch. Should I do Human Tornado at some point or is it best to end on this high note?

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    1. I think you should definitely watch any Blacksploitation movie called Human Tornado. Then again, I've made some terrible life choices over the years.
      Good luck!

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  12. Weekend at Bernie's (1989, dir: Ted Kotcheff)

    I used to love this flick growing up, but I was apparently a simple kid who loved a simple necrophilia gag. Revisiting this was a mistake. Almost none of the jokes are funny in the least, and the culture reflected in this film is just so out of touch with modern day. Jonathan Silverman and Andrew McCarthy are not nearly as charming as the 80s would like you to believe. I haven't felt this disappointed in nostalgia since I revisited Mannequin.

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  13. Used Cars (1980, dir. Robert Zemeckis)

    Patrick put it well in his article today about '80s comedies being about "snobs vs slobs". Most I've seen have this real irreverent attitude towards any kind of rich, high class establishment and always side with the low class slob. I love it, and Used Cars is no exception. I've only recently started really diving into '80s comedies and this one just furthered my love for the genre. It's a really fun movie and Kurt Russell sells the shit out of it.

    It's amazing how this movie turns into a Mad Max style car chase brawl at the end. You heard it here first folks, Used Cars is Road Warrior before Road Warrior!

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    1. That one stunt where Gerrit Graham is walking backwards into the road, and the car comes roaring up behind him, only to swerve at the last second takes my breath away. It looks way scarier than any stunt I've seen Tom Cruise do. Props to Gerrit Graham.

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    2. No kidding. I can't believe they let him do that, but the movie is better for it. There are several cool stunts in the third act, which is nice for a comedy!

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  14. The Blues Brothers (1980, dir. John Landis)

    One of my favorite comedies. One of my favorite movies, period. Funny comedy, great music, ridiculous car chases... What more could you want?

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    1. That movie is easily in my top of all time, not only comedies. I could watch it 5 times in a row. I love everything about it

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    2. I enjoyed it a great deal. One of those movies that makes you feel the characters had a relationship prior to this two hour story.

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    3. @Cole Hall,

      technically they did, in Saturday Night Live sketches ;)

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    4. Hahaha touche. Think if Belushi was still alive wedwbe looking at him the same way we look at Adam Sandler now?

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    5. @Cole Hall, maybe, there's something to discuss there

      @Brent Peterson, yes Blues Brothers is a comedy

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    6. There's something to be said for always being remembered for gold and not having a fat Elvis stage.

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    7. So many great laughs in this movie - The Penguin scene alone! Otherwise, the music keeps a stupid grin on my face for the rest of the movie. The Blues Brothers is my “happy place” of movies. Great pick!

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    8. I died laughing when she beats the shit out of him for swearing.

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  15. The Return Of The Living Dead (1985)

    Great fun with some really good zombie effects. Works really well as a comedy and a horror.

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  16. I'm Gonna Git You Sucka (1988)

    I absolutely adore this movie. I knew nothing about blaxploitation films when it first came out but I was a fan of the band Fishbone and I knew they were in it. I remember how hard my friends and I laughed at the scene in the rib joint before we ever even knew who Chris Rock was. Now, I understand and appreciate all the casting choices, and I'm amazed how well the jokes still hold up thirty years later.

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    1. Fishbone played here a couple years ago. I was super surprised to learn that they were still at it.

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  17. From John Carpenter double feature yesterday to Kurt Russell double feature today.

    Used Cars (1980)

    Zemeckis directing a movie that not only has Kurt Russell in it but also features Gerrit Graham? Appearances from Michael McKean and David Lander? Of course I had fun with this one.

    The Best of Times (1986)

    Kurt Russell and Robin Williams trying to relive the point where their lives took a downturn but replaying the high school football game they lost against their rivals. It's got some sports movie cliches in there towards the end, but there's some heart and charm in this movie too, especially in a dinner scene where the men try to reconnect with their wives. I liked this one more than I was expecting.

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  18. The Sure Thing (1985)

    I've only ever saw bits and pieces of The Sure Thing over the years. Yes, it's embarrassing to admit. I know that now even more having seen it finally from beginning to end. The film has left me with two things: it reinvigorated my crush on Daphne Zuniga, for one. And second, it makes me wonder: what in the hell happened to OG John Cusack?

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  19. Zapped! (1982)

    I know that Scott Baio is a bag of fermented dicktips, but I was hoping I could separate the person he is now from the guy who I loved on Charles in Charge back in the 80s. That might have worked if the movie hadn’t been such an odious shitpile.

    Baio (assisted by Charles in Charge co-star and future Bible Man Willie Aames) is a high school science nerd who (through a convoluted lab accident, natch) gains telekinetic powers, which basically means he opens his eyes wide and makes girls clothes fly off. That’s pretty much it. It’s a comedy with no jokes, and I felt actively embarrassed for Scatman Crothers who plays Baio’s baseball coach and features in a dream sequence where he and Albert Einstein are bicycling away from his shrewish (because of course she is) wife. There are plenty of fun 80s sex comedies (Patrick provided a list of 10 great ones earlier today), but this sure as hell ain’t one of them. There’s even a sequel (Zapped Again!) which I can assure you will remain unseen by me.

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  20. Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982)

    Really fun high school comedy. It feels a lot like the American Grafiti or the Dazed and Confused of its era. Cameron Crowe's first screenplay and he creates a handful of really great memorable characters here.

    Jennifer Jason Leigh is an adorable lead and obviously Sean Penn's character became a stoner legend. This was the first time I watched this movie and I'm sure I'll come back to it again multiple times.

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    1. I watched this one a week ago for the first time and just wow. I'd put it up there with Breakfast Club and Ferris Bueller as the best high school comedies. Some of it ages a little poorly but not too bad. Seeing a young Jennifer Jason Leigh after her current resurgence is so cool.

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    2. A comedy that also manages to handle serious issues pretty deftly; it's aged pretty well (not often the case from 80s comedies).

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  21. Hot Resort (1985, dir. John Robins)

    Pretty sure the title for this was generated by the '80s Movie Title Generator. Bronson Pinchot and possible sex criminal Dan Schneider are among the four NEW YAWKUHS who take a job working at a vacation resort in the Caribbean. There's even a boat race shoehorned in! The same day that I said I can watch any of these movies at any time, along comes Hot Resort to call my bluff.

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  22. Bomber (1982)

    I go into every movie I haven't seen thinking this could be one of those gems. Is this one of them? Nope. But that's okay. I've gotten to the point that bad movies don't bother me and I could pretty much watch anything. An Italian Paul L. Smith clone comes ashore and immediately is thrust back into the life he left behind. Which is some sort of backyard wrestling but in a ring with announcers? There is entirely too much boxing in this movie but the bar fights are kind of funny. There are a few anti-gay jokes which makes certain parts pretty cringe-worthy. And I hope you like the opening song because they play it about every 5 minutes. It's not bad or good enough to fully recommend but there are worse things you could watch.

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  23. The 'Burbs (1989)

    I struggle with a lot of the sex comedies of the 80s so I went with a favorite of mine. What a great little adventure with tons of laughs coming from Hanks and crew. Love it.

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    1. The ‘Burbs is a fantastic choice! Love that movie. As much as I love Tom Hanks in “American hero” mode, I wish he would return to movies like this.

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    2. If it's not the best comedy of all time, it's at least in the top 5.

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    3. Hank's physical comedy is incredible. Just the way he eats the sardines and how he gets into the ambience makes me giggle only thinking about it.

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    4. Best comedy of the '80s? I might say so.

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  24. Little Shop of Horrors (1986), dir. Frank Oz

    One of my favourite movies by one of my favourite directors. Frank Oz comedies are perpetually underrated, but that’s a conversation for another time. Alan Menken’s peppy music is matched brilliantly with the wry book by Howard Ashman. The puppet work on Audrey II never ceases to amaze me.

    The Audrey II is not a healthy girl.

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    1. 🎶Little Shop, little shop of horrors, little shop, little shop of terrors🎶. Its a more macabre Sesame Street I love it. Have you seen the director's cut?

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    2. Yep. I love how the blu-ray prompts you to choose which “ending” you want to see. I like either ending - depends on the mood I’m in.

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  25. Johnny Be Good (Bud S. Smith, 1988)

    First time viewing, Prime

    Serviceable, but not memorable. Cool to see Uma in her first role. Anthony Michael Hall and Robert Downey Jr are obviously 80s staples, so keeps it from being too bad. From what I can gather, still a pretty accurate take on how colleges recruit HS athletes :) Grade: C-

    I also happened to see Bachelor Party a week ago, another first time viewing, and I've realized that when watching these movies without the nostalgia factor (meaning, having seen them before/loved them from childhood), they can be pretty tough to swallow. The comedy hasn't aged well...the behavior towards women, the F word (not Fuck), etc...I know that with any decade there's a certain amount of stuff you just have to accept as "it's the way it was", but man, in comedies, it's so upfront, and expected to be taken lightly or for a punch line, it makes it especially tough. Anyone else experience this?

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    1. Only those of us that lived through it (aka middle-aged and up). :'(

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  26. Joysticks (1983)

    What I love about Junesploitation is it gives me an opportunity to marathon a series of films on my To Watch list. Joysticks is one of those films that got by me in the '80s. It's got that familiar '80s comedy template, it's got Jon Gries, it's got Corinne Bohrer, it's got Joe Don Baker... what's not to like?

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  27. Basic Training (1985, dir. Andrew Sugerman)

    Ann Dusenberry plays a motivated optimist who relocates to Washington D.C. to stay with her friend Rhonda Shear (the reason I watched this movie) and get a job with the U.S. government. Pretty quickly, she learns that being a woman in government means having to put up with a whole lot of awful behavior. I might say that watching this movie now is oddly appropriate given the #MeToo movement, but what charmed me about it was that it's a sex comedy told from the perspective of women. Most of these movies are about men/boys trying to get laid, but this movie is about women trying to live their lives and putting up with all the men trying to get laid. It's not especially funny, but it feels progressive and has something to say, which is not true of most of these Up All Night comedies.

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  28. SCREWBALLS (1983)
    A bunch of horny dudes meet while in detention and enact a series of pranks and schemes, mostly involving the prettiest girl in school. Unlike a lot of these ‘80s boob comedies, actions have consequences in this one, so that the guys end up the butt of the jokes, and are punished for their bad behavior. Except that is undone with the movie’s abrupt ending. I just don’t know.

    SCREWBALLS 2: LOOSE SCREWS (1985)
    Four more horny party dudes are sent off to summer school, for more naughty pranks and sexy shenanigans. It's the first movie all over again, although this one has a somewhat of a cohesive plot, and it gives the female characters a little bit more to do. I know that’s not much, but it’s better than nothing.

    SCREWBALL HOTEL (1988)
    A third group of horny party dudes drop out of school and get jobs a hotel filled with tawdry characters. It’s like 1932’s GRAND HOTEL, only with less Greta Garbo and more Andrew Zeller. It ends with a beauty pageant spoof that’s more tacky than funny. That kind of describes the movie as a whole, actually. This one’s neither hilariously bad nor fascinatingly bad, it’s just mediocre-bad.

    SCREWBALL ACADEMY (1989)
    How do I even describe this? A fraudulent evangelist hides out at the beach, where he runs into a group of women making a “feminist sleaze” movie. Also there’s a romance between one of the beach girls and a Mennonite boy for some reason. You can tell the filmmakers are patting themselves on the back for sticking it to organized religion, as if no one had ever done so before. Mostly I was just bored with this one. Also, there’s no academy.

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    1. I applaud your thoroughness with all these franchises you're going through.

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  29. Repo Man (1984)

    Maybe I'm just not in the mood, but I didn't love Repo Man.

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  30. playing it safe tonight with UNCLE BUCK. one of my all time favorite (must have seen it 50 times). even today i laugh at the same jokes and i find all the characters very good. Uncle Buck's girlfriend particularly is awesome. and Laurie Metcalf as a bonus. timeless classic.

    next up, FLETCH, mainly because it's part of a blu-ray 2-pack with Uncle Buck, but also because it's very good and very funny.

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  31. Graham the Haunted MarshmallowJune 4, 2018 at 6:27 PM

    The King of Comedy (1982, dir. Scorcese)

    First time watch. Definitely squirmed more than laughed, but that's okay. I love movies that can provoke a continuous feeling in me throughout the entire runtime. Movies that can continuously stay relevant thirty years after their release are just as impressive. Sandra Bernhard is a treasure.

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    1. i watched it for the first time a couple of weeks ago. it's not straight up comedy, but it was a good surprise. i really liked it. all i knew about it was that it was directed by Scorcese and with Robert DeNiro.

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    2. Rupert Pupkin scares me more than Travis Bickle.

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  32. UHF (1989)

    I’m not sure there’s anything I need to say about this amazing piece of cinema that hasn’t been said better by others. Weird Al is the best in this movie. He’s so sincere, dedicated, and authentic as George in everything he does throughout the movie. The humor is so broad and dumb in the best surreal way and it compounds on itself over the course of the movie to a delirious point, finally ending with a truly heartwarming victory for the underdogs. This movie was a huge staple in our family growing up and there are tons of in-jokes between my brothers and I that came from this goof fest. I was super excited when the fantastic Shout Factory Blu Ray arrived and to my surprise my wife asked to watch it that evening. I was immediately worried she would despise this movie since this flavor of humor is not at all her bag. To this day, I’ve never seen her laugh as fucking hard as she did at the firehose scene. Again, I love this movie in all it’s pure, wholesome insanity.

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  33. The Toxic Avenger (1984)
    Such a weird mess of sex comedy and ultra gore. That restaurant scene is disgusting. Don’t get me wrong, it’s pretty good, but really really weird.

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  34. Airplane (1980)

    First time watch. It's funny. Probably put myself at a disadvantage seeing it too many years later though.

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    1. Disadvantage because of the hype, or because it looks dated?

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    2. Disadvantage that I can never see the movie like an audience in 1980 saw the movie where it was a new brand of comedy that influenced dozens of other comedies for years later.

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  35. Bachelor Party (1984)

    A gross-out sex comedy frankensteined from parts of other, better movies. Tom hanks channels Bill Murray, Adrian Zmed is Tim Matheson and Barry Diamond is Belushi in Animal House, George Grizzard is playing Judge Smails in Caddyshack, etc...

    Best line: “Your wrists will be so smooth and kissable.”

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  36. Better Off Dead (1985)

    This movie never stops trying to make you laugh.

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    1. Graham the Haunted MarshmallowJune 5, 2018 at 1:04 AM

      Does it ever succeed?

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  37. Hot Pursuit (1987, dir. Steven Lisberger)

    This is a weird little '80s curiosity. John Cusack plays Danny, a college (I think?) student, who goes through multiple misadventures in the Caribbean while trying to catch up to his girlfriend and her family on vacation. And it turns into Die Hard in the end. It's very strange.

    The movie is obviously a comedy, but isn't really ever funny. Still I was mostly charmed and entertained throughout. Something about the decade and the amazing cast. Cusack, Robert Loggia (unsurprisingly the MVP), Keith David, Ben Stiller (in a very strange role for him), Monte Markham, and the adorable Wendy Gazelle.

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  38. The Beach Girls (1982)

    So the plot is a romance between a sweet girl and a block of wood. But you'd barely notice between all the scenes of P-A-R-T-Y!
    This movies is loads of fun. As Patrick wrote, it's loaded with jokes, which are either corny, or really corny. I was laughing a lot, more so once I settling into "oh, it's this kind of movie".
    There is so much nudity, but a lot of male nudity too, and everyone seems to be having a blast and it doesn't feel sleezy in the least (it's mostly the girls taking advantage of pizza boys and repair men). Besides the multiple breasts, there is some side dong and abundant, rear-buttocks-between-the-legs-balls-and-dong, so there is something for everyone.
    Is this a perfect movie? Maybe. During the month of June, most certainly.

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    1. Haha, awesome; and glad to hear it, as it's in my queue for Beach Day!

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  39. ‬Police Academy 4: Citizens on Patrol (1987)‬

    ‪The Police Academy movies were on constant rotation in my house when I was young. I haven’t revisited any of them in probably 20 years. ‬
    It’s amazing how the first was an R rated raunchy comedy, then the rest PG.
    Truly a case of a studio realizing who their audience was for the franchise.
    Part 4 is still a fun watch. Like all of them, it’s basically a slapstick sketch comedy that doesn’t bother with plot till the last 10 mins when a crime needs to be solved.
    Seeing these characters again is like spending time with old friends I haven’t visited in ages.

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    1. I haven't seen any of those since I was a teenager. All I remember is laughing and laughing..

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    2. The rap song for Police Academy 4 is all I remember about it. So catchy.

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  40. Moving (1988, dir. Alan Metter)

    Inspired by Elric's recommendation on the new Pure Cinema, I squeezed in one more '80s comedy today. It's weird how many movies made Richard Pryor the straight man, but he at least gets to have some funny reactions here and he's surrounded with some really good supporting performances/cameos. A couple of the jokes made me legit laugh, which rarely happens with these kinds of comedies. I'm glad to have been pushed to finally check it out.

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  41. Coming To America (1988)
    “You ain’t never met Martin Luther the king”

    God i love this movie.

    After a garbage day at work Junespoitation’s 80’s comedy day couldn’t have come at a better time.

    Thank you Patrick for this wonderful creation.

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  42. Back to School (Alan Metter, 1986)

    First time viewing, Prime

    This far exceeded my (admittedly low) expectations. Fairly funny and charming throughout. Great to see a young Lt. Dax (for my Star Trek nerds), plus 80s staples like RDJ, M Emmet Walsh and Ned Beatty. Also: KURT VONNEGUT JR IS IN THIS MOVIE. Grade: B

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  43. Better Off Dead (1985)

    First time viewing and I really loved it. Just the right amount of zaniness. I think the best way to enjoy this movie is as a prequel to Gross Pointe Blank...

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  44. Bad Taste (1987)

    Peter Jackson's directorial debut did not disappoint. He's even in the movie eating out of the top of a severed head. It feels like it starts out with a bang and never lets up. I would say this has heavy gore but it's a little tame compared to Dead Alive and Meet the Feebles. But don't worry, it's pretty fucking gross. There is a death scene with a chainsaw near the end that blew my mind. And it's hilarious. I loved this movie.

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  45. Bachelor Party (1984)

    This is one I've always known about but have never seen. I have seen clips of it, though. I think it was on I Love the 80s. This movie has moments but I was kind of disappointed. I probably would have loved this when I was young but not now, not like this. I actually found Tom Hanks so unfunny that it seemed like it was on purpose. I recently revisited The Money Pit and it made me question myself as a person it was so bad. I feel like David S. Pumpkins has put a spell on us and I'm the only one who's starting to see through the cracks. Of course this is all nonsense and I think I should probably go to bed.

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  46. Uncle Buck (1989)

    Quite good. I like John Candy as the big hearted uncle trying to get his life together. But for me It really is about the kids. The casting is perfect, and I enjoy every moment with them even Jean Louisa Kelly as the moody teenage girl.

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  47. Roxanne (1987)

    I have never seen a movie with Steve Martin that I didn't like. (Nope, I even liked that one) This sappy update of Cyrano de Bergerac is just pleasant. Everything about it is sweet, even when characters are being crass it doesn't come off too badly.

    Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (1988)

    This might be my favorite comedy. I love every single second of it. Micheal Caine and Martin twisting every moment to try to get one over on the other is just so enjoyable, and its even better once you know how it ends.

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  48. Loose Screws Aka Screwballs II (1985)

    I have not seen Screwballs so clearly much of the subtle plot nuances in this sequel were lost on me. Barely can be described as a movie, filled with actors who play characters that are barely recognizable as actual human beings. BUT it comes and goes in the blink of an eye and there is abundant amounts of nudity and names like Tracy Greathead, Steve Hardman, and Hugh G. Erection.

    What a time it was to be alive in the 80's and going to school at an establishment called Beaver Hall.

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