Emmy Snubs by the Emmys: 5-1

If you need a refresher of what I'm doing, read this.

#16-20
#11-15
#6-10


#5
Pushing Daisies - Season 1

Year: 2008
Nominations: Lead Actor (Lee Pace), Supporting Actress (Kristin Chenoweth), Writing
Wins: Directing
Snubbed by: HBO Comedies

I get it's all moot since 30 Rock dominated the night, but Pushing Daisies had so many noms, it really deserved a spot over the HBO trinity of Entourage, Flight of the Conchords, or Curb which got successively fewer noms.



#4

The Shield - Season 1
Year: 2002
Nominations: Directing, Writing
Wins: Lead Actor (Michael Chiklis)
&
Alias - Season 1
Year: 2002
Nominations: Lead Actress (Jennifer Garner), Supporting Actor (Victor Garber), Writing, Costumes, Hairstyling, Makeup, Picture Editing, Stunts
Wins: Art-Direction, Cinematography

Snubbed by: Law & Order, CSI

It's really the combination of snubs here that puts it so high on this list. Two procedural like Law & Order and CSI with no major nominations getting the Outstanding Drama nominations while Alias' 10 nominations and The Shield's big three nominations (acting, writing, directing) getting snubbed is a sign of major snubbage. I can't  say I understand how this happens.



#3
Six Feet Under - Season 5

Year: 2006
Nominations: Lead Actor (Peter Krause), Lead Actress (Frances Conroy), Directing, Writing, Guest Actress (Joanna Cassidy), Art Direction for Single-Camera Series, Hairstyling
Wins: Guest Actress (Patricia Clarkson), Makeup
Snubbed by: Everyone

Six Feet Under's final season appears to be a last hurrah with the Emmys based on nomination count. To have this many nominations in such a variety  of categories and not get an Outstanding Drama (we won't even mention how it should've then won) is really a black mark on the Emmys. If I'm gonna pick on a specific show, House, as much as I love it, had no business being here over SFU based on nomination account.


#2
Roseanne
Year: 1993-1995

Season 5
Nominations: Lead Actor (John Goodman), Supporting Actress (Sara Gilbert), Lighting Direction
Wins: Lead Actress (Roseanne Barr), Supporting Actress (Laurie Metcalf)

Season 6
Nominations:Lead Actor (John Goodman), Lead Actress (Roseanne Barr), Supporting Actress (Sara Gilbert), Lighting Direction
Wins: Supporting Actress (Laurie Metcalf)

Season 7
Nominations:Lead Actor (John Goodman), Lead Actress (Roseanne Barr), Supporting Actress (Laurie Metcalf), Hairstyling
Wins: None

This snub goes back before 1993, but that's where my list starts. This show was a powerhouse in the acting nominations for years, pulling numerous wins and occasional other nominations as well. There is absolutely no reason for this show to not have a single Outstanding Comedy series nomination to it's name. Specifically, in '93 and '94, Home Improvement, with only one lead acting nomination each year, probably shouldn't've edged Roseanne out for a Comedy nom.


#1
Malcolm in the Middle
2000-2003

Season 1
Nominations: Lead Actress (Jane Kaczmarek), Guest Actress (Beatrice Arthur), Casting
Wins: Writing, Directing

Season 2
Nominations: Comedy Series*, Directing, Lead Actor (Frankie Muniz), Lead Actress (Jane Kaczmarek), Guest Actor (Robert Loggia), Guest Actress (Cloris Leachman)
Wins: Directing, Writing

Season 3
Nominations:Lead Actress (Jane Kaczmarek), Supporting Actor (Bryan Cranston), Directing, Guest Actress (Susan Sarandon)
Wins: Guest Actress (Cloris Leachman)

Season 4
Nominations: Lead Actress (Jane Kaczmarek), Supporting Actor (Bryan Cranston), Guest Actress (Cloris Leachman)
Wins: None

*Yes, yes. It did pull off one Outstanding Comedy nomination. Look at that though. Does that look like the credentials of a single-time nominee?

You know, I said this would be as objective a list as possible. A strong argument could be made for Roseanne to be in the top spot, especially considering Malcolm was nominated one year. I'm keeping it at the top though due to diversity of the nominations and number of big wins. For a show with this much Emmy love to not be a perennial nominees for Outstanding Comedy is, by the numbers, mind you, the biggest Emmy oversight of the past two decades. And, I'll just go ahead and say, yes, Malcolm in the Middle is one of my all-time favorite shows, so there may have been some home cooking going on.

Movie Reaction: Hope Springs

Formula: Any Romantic Comedy relationship + 31 years
Something's Gotta Give - the young people.
It's Complicated / (1 male suitor)
I don't know, what the mathematical way to say "It's the antithesis of How High"?)

Cast: If you put Meryl Streep and Tommy Lee Jones in front of a camera, you are getting quality. Plain and simple. Add in Steve Carrell playing it completely straight and I like what I'm getting. Beyond those three, there isn't much more to the cast. It's surprisingly small in scope in that way.

Plot: It's a plot about 60-somethings with sex problems. But, it's funny, so, yeah. No surprises in this one. The beginning, middle, and end are all exactly what you expect. This is not said in a diminishing way. It's just, you know if this is your kind of movie already. It won't turn you. It's a sweet movie though.

Elephant in the Room: It's a plot about 60-somethings with sex problems. How can I say this nicely?...Eww. Sure, that might be mean, but it's true. I was a little out of my element there. Still probably better than Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (or whatever it's called).

To Sum Things Up:
Your parents will like it. You will sort of enjoy it. Your kids will be sad you didn't see Ice Age instead. I only saw it because I like to make an unexpected pick every once in a while and I was also curious to confirm the audience of this movie (btw, I was the youngest person by about 20 years in a fairly full theater). I don't regret seeing it, but I do sort of regret seeing it when there were a lot of other things I wanted to see more.

Verdict (?): Weakly Recommend

Emmy Snubs by the Emmys: 10-6

If you need a refresher of what I'm doing, read this.

#16-20

#11-15

#10

Homicide: Life on the Street - Season 1

Year: 1993
Nominations: Guest Actress (Gwen Verdon)
Wins: Writing, Directing
Snubbed by: Homefront

Homicide: Life on the Street not only got nominations for Writing and Directing, it won those categories. To win both of those and not even make the cut for the overall nomination really makes me question the Emmy voting process.


#9

Parks & Recreation - Season 4
Year: 2012
Nominations: Lead Actress (Amy Poehler), Writing (two)
Wins: TBD
&
Louie - Season 2
Year: 2012
Nominations: Lead Actor (Louis C.K.), Directing, Writing
Wins: TBD

Snubbed by: Veep (and arguably Curb Your Enthusiasm)

I'm grouping these two together because neither make sense and could be hurt or helped on award night. Parks and Rec. got the nomination for Outstanding Comedy series in season 3, gains two nominations, still has more than half the nominees, yet gets bumped from the field. That's confusing.
Let me tell you a story about a show with a star, director, writer, showrunner, producer that is set in New York city. That description applies to both Girls and Louie, but Louie got snubbed. The major difference: Girls is on HBO...kind of like Veep and Curb which both make a weaker case for the overall nom. based on other nominations.
The case for either show could be helped or hurt by the results on Emmy night.


#8

Huff - Season 1

Year: 2005
Nominations: Lead Actor (Hank Azaria), Supporting Actor (Oliver Platt), Guest Actress (Swoosie Kurtz), Director
Wins: Supporting Actress (Blythe Danner)
&
Boston Legal - Season 1
Year: 2005
Nominations: None
Wins: Lead Actor (James Spader), Supporting Actor (William Shatner)

Snubbed by: Six Feet Under, 24...any show other than Lost

Huff got more nominations in major categories than any show other than Lost, so it doesn't make sense that it wouldn't get an Outstanding Drama nomination. Boston Legal didn't get many more nominations than any other nominee (although it was a pretty wide-open year), but pulling wins in all the fields in had nominations is a sign it probably should've been in the running.


#7
My Name is Earl - Season 1

Year: 2006
Nominations: Supporting Actress (Jaime Pressly)
Wins: Directing, Writing, Casting, Single-Camera Picture Editing
Snubbed by: Scrubs specifically, but it was a weak overall field that year

You know, looking at this year, there was a major distribution of nominations. There were at least 10 comedies with legit claims to a nomination for Outstanding Comedy series. I'll say that My Name is Earl, with it's win in Directing and Writing wins, should've been one of the nominees for comedy. It obviously could've won.


#6
Deadwood - Season 1

Year: 2004
Nominations: Supporting Actor (Brad Dourif), Supporting Actress (Robin Weigert), Writing, Art Direction, Casting, Costumes, Hairstyling, Makeup
Wins: Directing, Sound-Editing
Snubbed by: CSI

CSI gets no major nominations. Deadwood gets supporting, directing, casting, and writing noms, including a win. That's doesn't make sense, right?

Emmy Snubs by the Emmys: 15-11

If you need a refresher of what I'm doing, read this.

#16-20

#15
Friday Night Lights - Season 4

Year: 2010
Nominations: Lead Actor (Kyle Chandler), Lead Actress (Connie Britton), Writing, Casting
Wins: None
Snubbed by: True Blood

At the time, everyone was just happy to see this beloved show getting any Emmy attention. In hindsight, it makes no sense that it didn't get more love. Writing is probably the best indicator of an Outstanding Drama winner and any show pulling in two lead acting nominations is doing something right. Considering True Blood didn't pull any major nominations, it's really obtuse of the Emmys not to show FNL more love.


#14
Homicide: Life on the Street - Season 6

Year: 1998
Nominations: Guest Actor (Charles Durning, Alfre Woodard, James Yoshimura), Writing
Wins: Lead Actor (Andre Braugher), Casting
Snubbed by: Law & Order

Look, the Emmys didn't love Homicide every year. In '98 they sure felt some love. Saying that it deserved an Outstanding Drama nomination of the last year's winner, Law & Order is too easy. It could even be said it was more deserving of a nomination over eventual winner, The Practice due to sheer nomination count.


#13
Entourage - Season 2

Year: 2006
Nominations: Directing (two), Writing, Casting
Wins: Supporting Actor (Jeremy Piven)
Snubbed by: Scrubs

It's weird to list Entourage as a snub considering all the years of undeserved nominations. In it's second season, it was still shiny and new and undiscovered by Emmy voters. As happy as it made me to see Scrubs nominated for Outstanding Comedy series, with its lone Lead Actor nomination, it seemed to deserve it less than Entourage that year.


#12
Murder One - Season 1

Year: 1996
Nominations: Supporting Actor (Stanley Tucci), Supporting Actress (Barbara Bosson), Directing, Writing, Cinematography
Wins: Art Direction
Snubbed by: Law & Order

Truth be told, I've never heard of this show before. It's first season earned a bevy of nominations though in nearly every major category. Once again, on paper, this looks a lot more deserving of a nomination over Law & Order's zero major noms.


#11
Lost - Season 3

Year: 2007
Nominations: Supporting Actor (Michael Emerson), Directing, Writing, Sound Editing, Single Camera Picture Editing
Wins: Supporting Actor (Terry O'Quinn)
Snubbed by: Heroes

Sure, Heroes was shiny and new, but Lost deserved to be there more. Acting, writing, and directing nominations and a win. Heroes had fewer and less variety. This is the same show that lost it's nomination a year after it won for Outstanding Drama, so, to call Emmy voters' love of Lost fickle would be an understatement.

Emmy Snubs by the Emmys: 20-16

If you need a refresher of what I'm doing, read this.

#20
Mad About You - Season 6

Year: 1998Nominations: Lead Actor (Paul Reiser), Guest Actor (Hank Azaria, Nathan Lane, Carol Burnett)
Wins: Lead Actress (Helen Hunt), Guest Actor (Mel Brooks)
Snubbed by: Seinfeld

The more shocking thing here isn't Mad About You dropping out the nomination field even though it pulled a ton of acting noms. (and wins). It's really the fact that it deserved a spot over Seinfeld of all shows which nearly fell entirely out of Emmy love in it's final season. Objectively speaking, Seinfeld needed more nominations to deserve the spot over Mad About You.


#19
The Good Wife - Season 3

Year: 2012
Nominations: Lead Actress (Julianna Margulies), Supporting Actress (Archie Panjabi, Christine Baranski), Guest Actress (Martha Plimpton), Guest Actor (Dylan Baker, Michael J. Fox), Casting
Wins: TBD
Snubbed by: Boardwalk Empire and Game of Thrones

The Good Wife got a ton of acting nominations again. To me, that seems more deserving to stay in the field than Boardwalk Empire or Game of Thrones which were hemorrhaging nominations from the year before. This isn't a quality judgment but a numbers one. We will see how this plays out at this year's awards ceremony.


#18
Ellen - Season 3

Year: 1997
Nominations: Lead Acress (Ellen DeGeneres), Guest Actress (Laura Dern), Directing,
Wins: Writing, Editing for a Series - Multi-Camera
Snubbed by: 3rd Rock from the Sun

I want to call Ellen's snub from the field, despite acting, directing, and writing noms indefensible, but the weak show on the list, 3rd Rock from the Sun, pulled two wins in it's only two major nominations (Lead Actor and Supporting Actress). Otherwise, I'd put this snub a lot higher up on the list.


#17

The Killing - Season 1
Year: 2011
Nominations: Lead Actress (Mireille Enos), Supporting Actress (Michelle Forbes), Directing, Writing, Casting, Single-Camera Picture Editing
Wins: None
&
Justified - Season 2
Year: 2011
Nominations: Lead Actor (Timothy Olyphant), Supporting Actor (Walton Goggins), Guest Actor (Jeremy Davies)
Wins: Supporting Actress (Margo Martindale)

Snubbed by: Dexter

The Killing may not have been great, but the noms don't lie. It certainly got the nominations to be considered. It clearly deserved it. Justified also raked in acting nominations. Either would've been excellent picks over Dexter that year with it's acting nominations for Michael C. Hall and Julia Stiles.


#16
My So-Called Life - Season 1

Year: 1995
Nominations: Lead Actress (Claire Danes), Directing, Writing
Wins: None
Snubbed by: Law & Order

My So Called Life had acting, directing, and writing noms. but Law & Order got the last Outstanding Drama nomination with no other major nominations. That's a load of bullshit if you ask me, and that's even ignoring the cult status My So-Called Life has gained over the years. 2012 should be a redeeming year for Claire Danes.

Emmy Snubs by the Emmys: Intro

The word "snub" gets thrown around a lot in award shows and, generally it's a matter of opinion. Then again, sometimes it's not. Sometimes, the nominations and awards don't match up. In the case of the Emmys, it would be fit to reason that a show with nominations across the field (acting, writing, directing, etc.) probably deserves a nomination for Outstanding series, over a show with only a Guest Acting nomination. Of course, the Emmys are a fallible bunch not even bound to their own rules.

So, I got bored and compiled a big list of the biggest Emmy-induced snubs of the past 20 years. That means, these are the shows that, on paper, got all the big nominations, but still weren't picked for the big list (usually in favor of Law & Order: a fine show that never looked like it belonged there). I did my best to leave personal preference at the door and go with equal parts nomination count and weak nomination field.

I'm only going back 20 years. The reason, other than it taking a long time to compile this list as is, is because I chose the 1993 ceremony as the beginning of a more modern era of TV. Since The Larry Sanders Show pulled the Outstanding series nomination that year, cable has been a strong presence in the nominations.

Lastly, one other thing I will note. Reality TV doesn't have enough nomination categories to determine a "snub" by my metrics. Variety shows have been dominated by two shows (Late Night with David Letterman and The Daily Show) for almost this entire window and there is barely any turnover in the nominations anyways. TV Movie and Mini-series are being left out for a few reasons: 1) Not enough variety. 2) Weird BBC series rules. 3) Fusing of the categories. 4) No year-to-year turnover. 5) Mostly though, I've watched about 3% of the nominees and it feels disingenuous to comment on them. That leaves Outstanding Drama and Comedy Series.

Time to start the countdown, starting with the honorable mention.


Touched by an Angel - Season 3

Year: 1997
Nominations: Lead Actress (Roma Downey), Supporting Actress (Della Reese), Guest Actor (Louis Gossett Jr.), Guest Actress (Diane Ladd)
Wins: None
Snubbed by: Law & Order

For some reason, it took the Emmys a few seasons to notice this series existed. In 1997, it picked up a boatload of acting nominations. At first glance, it makes more sense for this to be nominated for Outstanding Drama series over Law & Order, but they redeemed that pick by giving Law & Order the win for the night (shockingly) and sending Touched by an Angel home empty handed.


Alias - Season 2

Year: 2003
Nominations: Lead Actress (Jennifer Garner), Supporting Actor (Victor Garber), Supporting Actress (Lena Olin), Art-Direction, Cinematography Single-Camera Series, Costumes, Hairstyling, Single-Camera Picture Editing
Wins: Makeup, Stunts
Snubbed by: CSI

Sure, CSI pulled off an acting nom. but Alias pulled three and a host of technical awards. I call that a discrepancy.


Just Shoot Me! - Season 2

Year: 1999
Nominations: Supporting Actor (David Spade), Supporting Actress (Wendie Malick), Writing, Multi-Camera Picture Editing
Wins: None
Snubbed by: Sex and the City

I know, I know. It sounds weird to call Just Shoot Me! a snub, especially over future winner, Sex and the City, but check the nominations. It was before Sex and the City's time in the sun and Just Shoot Me! had at least one year in Emmy's good graces.


Extras - Season 2

Year: 2007
Nominations: Guest Actor (Ian McKellen), Directing, Writing
Wins: Lead Actor (Ricky Gervais)
Snubbed by: Entourage

I get the feeling that HBO has to have a series comedy nomination and I think the Emmys picked the wrong show. Extras pulled "the trinity" (Writing, Directing, Acting noms). Entourage didn't. Simple as that.

Movie Reaction: Total Recall

Formula: (Minority Report + The Game + I, Robot + The Sixth Day + Blade Runner + Total Recall) / Originality
...This is an alarmingly common story.

Cast: Oh August, you never surprise me. We've reached that point in the summer where every week brings a throwaway movie of some kind. I get the feeling that the studio that made this didn't put it's full weight behind it. The cast is comprised of a lot of people that seem like 2nd or 3rd choices for the roles. They dusted of Colin Farrell for the Arnold Schwarzenegger role and he does a good but not particularly memorable job. Kate Beckinsale plays an attractive antagonist who kicks ass. Jessica Biel plays an attractive protagonist who kicks ass less well. Bryan Cranston plays a character that is disappointingly stale given the range he's shown on Breaking Bad. No one else matters all that much in the cast as they are given about 10 lines each. 

Plot: Truth be told, I don't remember ever seeing the original so I came to this with fresh eyes.Largely, this was uninspired. It felt small in virtually every way. For a two hour movie, there was little sense of depth. Most of the speeches were trope-tacular. The world as it was built looked lived in but wasn't very well explained. For a movie that means to play on subjective perception of reality, there is very little questioning what it real and what isn't. You seen this plot done before and done better.

Elephant in the Room: Why would I see this instead of checking out that movie that's been out for a while that I haven't seen yet? You wouldn't. Simple as that. There's probably six movies in limited release I'd see over this. Granted, I saw this instead of those, so I'm pretty inconsistent, huh?

To Sum Things Up:
Don't bother. This movie was burned off not even as counter-programming in the shadow of The Dark Knight Rises for a reason. It's a 7pm Tuesday on TBS kind of movie. See Take This Waltz. See Moonrise Kingdom. See Beasts of the Southern Wild. Watch The Dark Knight Rises again. "Bland" is the best word to describe it, overall. Not bad. Just, not interesting.

Verdict (?): Weakly Don't Recommend

Bottom Comedy Movies of 2011

A quick recap of what I'm doing here.


1. Just Go With It/Jack and Jill
It was a bad year for Adam Sandler. I mean, profitably, it was ok, but if That's My Boy's box office numbers are any indication, these two quite awful comedies hurt even his drawing ability.

2. Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star
I refuse to see this movie (another Happy Madison production. Coincidence?). There is also no need to. I want to like Nick Swarsdon. He's making it hard.

3. Medea's Big Happy Family
Tyler Perry can always find a spot on this list.

4. Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son
The second cross dressing black man movie in a row. Maybe it's a cultural or racial thing, but I don't like it. Also, was anyone asking for another one of these? The first was ok. Why push it?

5. The Hangover Part II
People loved the first one a lot more than I did. Still, I went into this with an open mind. If this movie didn't rehash the same jokes, go bigger and broader with the humor when it should've refined it, and churn out a script that felt lazy and uninspired at best, I probably would've kept in limbo instead of moving it to dregs of comedy ranks.

INCOMPLETE LIST

Attack the Block
I watched this with split focus. That's a horrible idea when dealing with British accents. I barely remember it. I need to give it a rewatch because I've heard good things, and I liked what I remember.

The Smurfs
I think my list only has room from one 70s throwback kids movie. While I doubt this could knock off The Muppets, until I've seen it, I won't say it's not possible.

Win Win
I hear good things. Until I've seen it, I don't know. It could be great.

Past Years:
Bottom Comedy Movies of 2010
Bottom Comedy Movies of 2009
Bottom Comedy Movies of 2008
Bottom Comedy Movies of 2007
Bottom Comedy Movies of 2006
Bottom Comedy Movies of 2005
Bottom Comedy Movies of 2004
Bottom Comedy Movies of 2003
Bottom Comedy Movies of 2002
Bottom Comedy Movies of 2001
Bottom Comedy Movies of 2000
Bottom Comedy Movies of 1999

Top Comedy Movies of 2011

I think that eight months into 2012, I've seen enough of the comedies from 2011 to bring back my Top and Bottom movies list. To recap, unlike most things I make into ranked lists, there's absolutely no metric used to make this list beyond what I think is the subjective "best" or "worst comedy movie of the year. That said, if you disagree, that's because you are wrong.

A quick recap of what I'm doing here.

Top
1. Bridesmaids

Certainly the most high profile comedy of the year and rightfully so. Hilarious from beginning to end. I love me an Apatow production and I'm glad to see a group of TV actors stepping up so commandingly. It got a lot of praise for the female dominated cast, but I think that diminishes the comedic achievement. This is a quality comedy, no qualifiers needed.

2. Crazy, Stupid Love

No RomCom since Nine Months has had a singular scene as funny as the shit-hits-the-fan scene in this movie. Something I find really impressive is how few of the actors are known for comedies in this. It pretty much solidified my opinion of both Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling.

3. The Muppets

I really expected this to be a bigger hit with it's broadly appealing cavalcade of cameos, nostalgia factor for the adults, and, well, puppets for the children. Regardless, it is almost impossible to not smile from beginning to end. A lot of the humor is punny and obvious in the most endearing way. This is a transparent labor of love for Jason Segel in the best way.

4. A Very Harold and Kumar 3D Christmas

I am shamelessly infatuated with this franchise, I admit. The third outing is easily the weakest of the series, but it is still immensely enjoyable. The decision to take on Christmas had me giddy since pre-production began.

5. Bad Teacher

Hey look, it's Jason Segel again, although I shouldn't kid myself. This was a Cameron Diaz vehicle and she knocked it out of the park. Before this movie, I never would've believed she could evoke the same pathos that Billy-Bob Thorton did in Bad Santa, a close cousin of this movie, even if it didn't have any of the same people in common (I checked and find that fact remarkable).

6. Horrible Bosses

Probably the best premise of any movie in 2011. I question the execution of concept, and Kevin Spacey kind of took over too much of the movie, but Jason Bateman, Charlie Day, and Jason Sudeikis are all names that put me in a seat and it had enough laughs throughout.

7. Tucker and Dale vs. Evil *

It's rare that a one joke concept can effectively be stretched out into a feature film, but they did it effectively. Tyler Labine and Alan Tudyk use their broadly comedic chops wonderfully. I even give Katrina Bowden credit for trying to do comedies even if she is far from developed as an actress. And, I should mention, this easily has 2 or 3 of the funniest scenes of the year.

* Boxofficemojo lists it as 2011, IMDB lists it as 2010. I hadn't seen it till after I made the last list, so STFU.

HONORABLE MENTION

Our Idiot Borther
Paul Rudd, Zooey Deschanel, Rashida Jones, Adam Scott, Elizabeth Banks, Emily Mortimer, Kathryn Hahn. How could you go wrong with a cast like that? As it turns out, you can. Still, all the talent on screen powers through the material and still leaves you with a greatly endearing, albeit simple, movie.

Midnight in Paris
When a Woody Allen movie works, it works. And, Owen Wilson plays a good Woody Allen.

Your Highness
A movie so bad that it's good and then bad again but never unwatchable. I feel like I need to see it stoned.

30 Minutes or Less
It wasn't bad. It just wasn't all that great.

Young Adult
It isn't a greatly funny movie, but it has some good moments, and Charlize Theron is dynamite in this. Love her or hate her, you're going to hate her...and love it

50/50
Honestly, I want to list this because I like the cast and respect Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg for using their Superbad and Pineapple Express goodwill to make it.

Everything Must Go
Ok, it's not a comedy, really. However, it has Will Ferrell so that's what it's called, I like him going dramatic, and this is my list.

Hesher
It's a shame Rainn Wilson can't attach himself to a successful bigger-budget movie. He's solid in this and Super.


Past Years:
Top Comedy Movies of 2010
Top Comedy Movies of 2009
Top Comedy Movies of 2008
Top Comedy Movies of 2007
Top Comedy Movies of 2006
Top Comedy Movies of 2005
Top Comedy Movies of 2004
Top Comedy Movies of 2003
Top Comedy Movies of 2002
Top Comedy Movies of 2001
Top Comedy Movies of 2000
Top Comedy Movies of 1999

Rant: Funeral Processions

Funeral processions are a funny thing. And that's ignoring the rest of the funeral customs because it's all pretty crazy for the uninitiated. So, you have a dead body that you need to move from point A to point B, and everyone needs to come along. The odd part is, they get priority on the road. Why? Their condition isn't changing. Meanwhile, I miss my turn because Grandpa's death crew gets to drive down the median at 15 mph. What's the point in giving the procession priority on the road if it's only moving 10 mph BELOW the speed limit? One time I was going down the road and a funeral procession actually caused traffic to get backed up. I was pissed and cursing to myself until I saw what was causing it. There's really not a way to not feel like an ass after that. When I think about it though it's probably for the best funeral processions get rule of the road. I can't imagine many things worse than being stuck driving a hearse in bumper to bumper traffic in the middle of July. Oh, and if the A.C. is broken. I imagine embalming can only take away so much of the problem when put in an oven. I don't know what cooked human smells like.

You know, it's never good to lose a family member or loved one, but it's kind of fun when you make the cut to get one of those "Funeral" flags for the drive. It makes me feel special. Alternately, I always feel bad for the cut off car, the first one in the procession without one of the flags. I like to pretend it's the car of a mistress who the family refuses to recognize.

I thought about keeping one of those flags. It'd be great for when traffic sucks. I put that in the window, look sad, and start playing the intro music for The Undertaker. A flawless plan.
Another car I like to find in the procession is the person rocking out in his car. There's always a great-niece or someone who came directly from working the morning shift at McDonald's with a car that is more rust than metal, listening to hip-hop, proving that the only thing that works well in the car is the sub woofer. And this car is sandwiched between a car full of AARP members and one with people pissed to use a day off for this. For this reason, I have my funeral mix ready: It's mostly just Lord of the Rings soundtracks, a few versions of "Cat's in the Cradle", and Bobby McFerrin's timeless hit "Don't Worry, Be Happy" because, even in my grief I can appreciate irony. Otherwise, the terrorists have won.

Speaking of bad things happening. If the hearse gets in a wreck, how do you figure the body count?

All I know is that I judge people based on the length of their procession. Example: Hobo, none. Michael Jackson, Staples Center. Ok, not the best example but my point stands. That's why I have been making efforts to pad my numbers. Like any good Catholic, I refuse to wear a condom. I never donate money unless the beneficiaries know exactly who it came from. Lastly, I have been building up an extensive network of enemies. It's going to be a packed house just from people who want to make sure I'm dead.

Final tip: Make sure to drive a nice car in the funeral procession, because someone will be offended if you have to say your car died on the way to the funeral.