The greatest comedies of all time, according to Quentin Tarantino
Before Quentin Tarantino became one of the industry’s most notable filmmakers, he worked in a video store, teaching himself everything he needed to know about the medium of film. Thus, he discovered obscure B-movies, classic westerns and action-packed martial arts movies, all of which came to influence his own cinematic style.
“When people ask me if I went to film school, I tell them, ‘No, I went to films,’” Tarantino once told the BBC. Before he was able to create his debut feature, Reservoir Dogs, Tarantino wrote and directed an unfinished film called My Best Friend’s Birthday, which allowed him a chance to hone his dialogue-writing skills.
Tarantino demonstrated this talent for penning witty conversations and monologues in Reservoir Dogs, something he has prioritised in all of his movies. From Pulp Fiction to Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, the filmmaker has used phrases that have become well-remembered, adding an idiosyncratic sense of humour to his work.
Tarantino’s work typically blends comedy with genres such as crime drama or westerns – humour is intrinsic to the foundation of his movies. He has frequently discussed the movies that have inspired him or that he simply loves, and unsurprisingly, many of these are comedies.
His favourites range from acclaimed classics to critically planned comedies that Tarantino believes have been wrongly snubbed. In 2009, he revealed that Anything Else is one of his favourites, despite it being one of Woody Allen’s less celebrated works. Yet it appears that Tarantino greatly admires the controversial director’s movies, also calling his seminal rom-com Annie Hall a “perfect” film.
No subgenre of comedy is off-limits for Tarantino – from comedy horror like Young Frankenstein and Shaun of the Dead to romantic dramas like Lost in Translation. Discussing the latter, he explained, “This is a crush movie. And somewhere around halfway through watching it, I got an incredible crush on the actual movie – every time I’ve seen it since, I’ve had a little date with myself.”
Tarantino also likes some older Hollywood comedies, like Preston Sturges’ Unfaithfully Yours, released in 1948. The movie follows a man, played by Rex Harrison, as he plots three different ways to cope with his wife’s infidelity. The screwball comedy was once listed by Tarantino as his ninth favourite movie of all time.
Another screwball comedy that Tarantino loves is Howard Hawks’ His Girl Friday, which was released in 1940. He once told The Guardian, “I remember how I came across Howard Hawks; I saw His Girl Friday and I thought that it was the best movie I ever saw.” Starring Rosalind Russell and Cary Grant, the Hollywood classic remains one of the definitive entries to the screwball genre.
Quentin Tarantino’s favourite comedies:
- Friday (F. Gary Gray, 1995)
- Anything Else (Woody Allen, 2003)
- Young Frankenstein (Mel Brooks, 1974)
- Back to the Future (Robert Zemeckis, 1985)
- Unfaithfully Yours (Preston Sturges, 1948)
- Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (Charles Barton, 1948)
- Lost in Translation (Sofia Coppola, 2003)
- The Bad News Bears (Michael Ritchie, 1976)
- Boogie Nights (Paul Thomas Anderson, 1997)
- Dazed and Confused (Richard Linklater, 1993)
- Frances Ha (Noah Baumbach, 2012)
- His Girl Friday (Howard Hawks, 1940)
- Police Story 3: Super Cop (Stanley Tong, 1992)
- Shaun of the Dead (Edgar Wright, 2004)
- Team America: World Police (Trey Parker, 2004)
- Toy Story 3 (Lee Unkrich, 2010)
- Annie Hall (Woody Allen, 1977)
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