If you’re looking for a laugh, the movies on this list have you covered. From broad comedy to sci-fi comedy to social satire, they have many ways of tickling your funny bone.
Flamin’ Hot
There has been a recent trend of ‘brand biopics’, movies that purportedly tell the true story about the origins of ubiquitous products. These movies include Air, Tetris, BlackBerry, and Unfrosted, and contain varying degrees of comedy (and veracity). Flamin’ Hot is the brand biopic of Flamin’ Hot Cheetos.
In the 1980s, Richard Montañez (Jesse Garcia), who had a rough childhood, gets a job as a janitor at the Frito-Lay factory in Rancho Cucamonga, California. He works hard and familiarises himself with the manufacturing equipment.
Richard soon conceives of a new flavour of Cheetos, inspired by the spicy food that he grew up eating, including elotes (Mexican seasoned corn). He pitches the flavour to Frito-Lay’s parent company president, Roger Enrico (Tony Shalhoub), who is puzzled that a janitor is pitching a product idea but quickly gets hooked. As Frito-Lay sales fall during an economic downturn, Richard realises that the way to save the company is to aim his new Cheetos flavour at the Latino market.
While the real-life Montañez’s account has been challenged and was likely heavily embellished, Flamin’ Hot makes for an inspirational, funny, feel-good movie. It also marks the feature film directorial debut of actress Eva Longoria.
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The story of Richard Montañez, the Frito Lay janitor who channeled his Mexican American heritage and upbringing to turn Flamin’ Hot Cheetos into an iconic snack.
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Bad Boys: Ride or Die
Will Smith and Martin Lawrence are back as buddy cop duo Mike Lowrey and Marcus Burnett, respectively, in the fourth instalment of the action-comedy franchise. The two are Miami Police Department lieutenant detectives and lifelong best friends. Mike marries his physical therapist, Christine (Melanie Liburd), and Marcus has a mild heart attack during Mike’s wedding. When Marcus awakes, he and Mike discover a conspiracy to frame their deceased captain Conrad Howard (Joe Pantoliano), tying him to drug cartels to cover for the actual corrupt cops. To clear Captain Howard’s name, Mike and Marcus seek the assistance of Armando Aretas (Jacob Scipio), Mike’s illegitimate son, who was a former cartel hitman and who killed Captain Howard. It turns out that James McGrath (Eric Dane), a DEA agent and Army Ranger-turned criminal mastermind, hired Armando to kill Captain Howard. James frames Mike and Marcus as the duo and Armando go on the run.
Bad Boys: Ride or Die features explosive set pieces and more of the non-stop bickering between the pair that Bad Boys fans love, delivering on both the action and comedy fronts. Much of the humour is derived from Marcus’ questionable ‘enlightenment’ after his near-death experience. Make sure to stick around for a post-credits scene connected to a gag earlier in the movie.
The world's favourite Bad Boys are back with their iconic mix of edge-of-your-seat action and outrageous comedy but this time with a twist: Miami's finest are now on the run.
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The Fall Guy
Action, comedy, and romance: The Fall Guy has it all. In this adaptation of the ’80s TV show, Ryan Gosling stars as Colt Seavers, a veteran stunt performer who quit a year ago after a major injury on the set. Emily Blunt plays Colt’s ex-girlfriend, Jody Moreno, a first-time director who is filming the big-budget sci-fi western Metalstorm in Australia. The movie’s star, Tom Ryder (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), suddenly goes missing, jeopardising the production and Jody’s career. Colt, who formerly doubled for Tom, goes searching for him, uncovering a sinister cover-up in the process.
Directed by former stunt performer David Leitch, The Fall Guy is packed with knowing winks and nods to the film industry. Jean-Claude, Colt’s stunt-trained canine sidekick (played by two female Australian Kelpies), is also sure to make audiences laugh and go aww.
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A stuntman working in movie production is hired to find the missing lead actor; instead, he gets framed for murder and must use his stuntman skills to expose the true killer.
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Hit Man
Glen Powell is the star of the moment. He’s been acting in movies for years, but after performances in Top Gun: Maverick, Devotion, Anyone but You, and Twisters, he’s fast gaining bona fide leading man cred. Directed by Richard Linklater (who collaborated with Powell on 2016’s Everybody Wants Some!!) and co-written by the two of them, Hit Man is the ideal showcase for the actor’s charm and comic timing.
In this critically acclaimed comedy that is very loosely based on a true story, Powell plays Gary Johnson, a professor of psychology and philosophy who provides tech support to the police as a side gig. When cop Jasper (Austin Amelio) is suspended, Gary steps in to pose as a hitman and proves to be adept at the job. He develops various disguises and personas, successfully helping the police apprehend people intent on hiring assassins. When he meets Madison (Adria Arjona), a beautiful woman stuck in an unhappy marriage who wants to have her husband killed, she just might be Gary’s undoing.
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Gary Johnson breaks protocol to help a desperate woman trying to flee an abusive boyfriend. He finds himself becoming one of his false personas and turning into a criminal himself.
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The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare
Director Guy Ritchie is known for movies about tough guys, but he’s also made many films with his tongue firmly planted in his cheek. Equal parts thrilling and silly, The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare is one of them. It sees Ritchie wading into Inglourious Basterds territory, drawing inspiration from history to create an over-the-top revisionist action comedy. Don’t expect historical accuracy, but expect to have a raucously good time.
During World War II, Brigadier Colin ‘M’ Gubbins (Cary Elwes) and Lieutenant Commander Ian Fleming (Freddie Fox) assemble a covert team of special operatives. Gus March-Phillips (Henry Cavill) leads the team, comprising Marjorie Stewart (Eiza González), Anders Lassen (Alan Ritchson), Freddy Alvarez (Henry Golding), Henry Hayes (Hero Fiennes Tiffin), and Geoffrey Appleyard (Alex Pettyfer). Their mission is to sabotage the Italian merchant vessel Duchessa d’Aosta and its tugboats, docked at the Spanish-controlled island Fernando Po (now Bioko). If the ship is unable to supply German U-boats, then the Allies have a fighting chance of crossing the Atlantic. The team must rely on their ingenuity and deadly skills to outsmart and outgun the Nazis.
The true story of the first-ever special forces organisation formed during WWII by UK Prime Minister Winston Churchill and a small group of military officials, including author Ian Fleming.
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Ricky Stanicky
While wrestler John Cena began his film acting career in straightforward action movies, he has, since then, often flexed his comedic chops. Audiences have grown to love him for his sense of humour and ability to poke fun at himself. Cena’s latest comedic turn in Ricky Stanicky might also be his most outlandish yet.
Dean (Zac Efron), Wes (Jermaine Fowler), and JT (Andrew Santino) are three childhood friends who invented the fictional ‘Ricky Stanicky’ as a scapegoat whom they could use to get out of trouble, and they’ve been blaming things on him ever since. When their families and significant others become suspicious, the trio hires washed-up Atlantic City entertainer ‘Rock Hard’ Rod (Cena) to play Ricky and prove that the elusive friend has existed all along. However, Rod becomes obsessively invested in his role, causing chaos for the three friends.
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When three best friends pull a prank gone wrong, they invent the imaginary Ricky Stanicky to get them out of trouble! Twenty years after, Dean, JT, and Wes still use the nonexistent Ricky.
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Lisa Frankenstein
Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel Frankenstein has influenced pop culture for centuries, and this spin on the classic sci-fi horror tale is funny, gory, nostalgic, and heartfelt. Set in 1989, Lisa Frankenstein follows Lisa Swallows (Kathryn Newton), who is lonely and struggling to fit in. She is grieving her mother, who was murdered two years ago. Her popular stepsister Taffy (Liza Soberano) tries to get Lisa to change her style so she can be trendier. While Lisa hangs out at a cemetery, a bolt of green lightning strikes the grave of a young Victorian man who died in 1837. Referred to as ‘the Creature’ (Cole Sprouse), he is reanimated and falls in love with Lisa, committing a murder or two along the way. Lisa Frankenstein is the feature-length directorial debut of Zelda Williams, daughter of the late actor Robin Williams. It is written by Diablo Cody (Juno, Jennifer’s Body), which perhaps explains the Gen-Z twist on the source material and the witty, tongue-in-cheek humour.
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A coming of 'rage' love story from acclaimed writer Diablo Cody about a misunderstood teenager and her high school crush, who happens to be a handsome corpse.
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