Jack Black names the greatest comedy movie of all time: “That’s the gold standard”
Jack Black has been making audiences laugh for more than two decades. Like Jim Carrey, his particular brand of high-energy scene-stealing might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but he’s starred in enough projects to hit most demographics. If, somehow, you are not a School of Rock person (alarming, but possible), you might enjoy the all-out madness of Nacho Libre. If you prefer things a little more family-friendly, you might enjoy the ever-expanding Kung Fu Panda series. Or maybe you like rom-coms and can’t watch The Holiday too many times.
For those who like their comedy to come packaged in small-town intrigue, there is Bernie, which features one of Black’s greatest performances and demonstrates that, no matter how defined he might be by his humour, he can do pathos just as flawlessly. Anyone seeking showbiz satire can, of course, turn to Tropic Thunder, while those who would prefer to get the comedian in small, potent doses can watch him in any number of Hollywood blockbusters, including the Jumanji reboot, the King Kong remake, or The Super Mario Bros. Movie.
As if that weren’t enough, however, the actor is also a musician. His band, Tenacious D, is a hybrid comedy act and rock group, and he and bandmate Kyle Gass take the music deadly seriously.
With all of this background, it should come as no surprise that when Entertainment Weekly asked Black in 2006 to name the greatest music comedy film of all time, his answer was such a foregone conclusion that he almost didn’t call it out. In fact, he loves the film so much that he doesn’t even just consider it the greatest comedy about music, but the greatest comedy, period.
” They’re so fucking funny, they changed comedy.”
jack black
“I mean, it’s so obvious I shouldn’t even say it,” he said. “Nah, I’m not going to say it. I’m not going to say Spinal Tap… Yes, I am! That’s the gold standard. Forget music comedy — that’s the one that all comedians point to as the great ‘What the fuck was that?'”
Rob Reiner’s 1984 cult classic hardly needs an introduction. Starring Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, and Harry Shearer as the lead members of the fictional British band Spinal Tap, it is one of the first mockumentaries and easily the most influential. Reiner plays a documentary filmmaker tasked with filming the band’s release of their latest album, Smell the Glove, and all the in-fighting, technical challenges, and miniature bread catastrophes that go with it.
It also features some truly spectacular music because, like Black himself, the actors are musicians who could more than hold their own on stage. The songs they perform in the film include ‘Tonight I’m Gonna Rock You Tonight,’ ‘Big Bottom,’ ‘Listen to the (Flower People),’ and, of course, ‘Stonehenge,’ all of which skewer various aspects of rock music.
“It’s not just a comedy,” Black said, echoing the sentiments of millions of fans, “That’s like one for the ages. They’re so fucking funny, they changed comedy. And the songs were so clever.” Over the years, countless musicians have either come forward to express their adoration for Spinal Tap or, like U2 guitarist The Edge and Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler, to admit that it hit too close to home to be funny.
