The 25 Best Comedies for Social Isolation

With social isolation a reality in 2020, we find ourselves stuck at home reading the news of the depressing events around the world. So we thought there is no better time to catch up on some classic comedies to lighten the mood and make the social isolation a bit more bearable. We chose Netflix since the Netflix Party plugin allows you and your friends to watch the same movie while chatting away.

As Good As It Gets

Melvin Udall (Jack Nicholson) is an obsessive-compulsive writer of romantic fiction who’s rude to everyone he meets, including his gay neighbor Simon (Greg Kinnear), but when he has to look after Simon’s dog, he begins to soften and, if still not completely over his problems, finds he can conduct a relationship with the only waitress (Helen Hunt) at the local diner who’ll serve him. Believe it or not, this is the last movie to win both the Oscar for Best Actor and Best Actress. Some of it is a bit dated, but it catches just enough lightning in a bottle in terms of casting to justify another look.

The Austin Powers Trilogy

Arguably Mike Myers’s most popular franchise films, right next to Wayne’s World, sees Myers take on the role of goofy British super spy Austin Powers battling to save the world against the sinister and over the top bad guy, Dr. Evil. It’s a ridiculous spoof on the James Bond films and although some of the jokes might feel very dated in 2020, it’s still the perfect movie marathon for complete silliness and incredible one-liners.

Between Two Ferns: The Movie

The famous web series turned full motion picture sees, Zach Galifianakis travel across the country trying to save his tv show. It’s as ridiculous as the shorts and some of the interviews are incredibly cringe-worthy and does the web series justice. It also stars some of the biggest Hollywood names today starring Benedict Cumberbatch, Will Ferrell, Gal Gadot, Tiffany Haddish, Jon Hamm, Matthew McConaughey, and many more.

Chasing Amy

Kevin Smith was on a roll in the ’90s and his best flick Chasing Amy is without a doubt his best work. It’s a story of a man who falls in love with a lesbian and destroys his friendship in the process. Smith has never been better than he is here at capturing believable, funny human relationships, and he gets his best acting work of his career as well from Ben Affleck, Joey Lauren Adams, and Jason Lee.

Don’t Think Twice

Mike Birbiglia is a member of a group of comedians in New York City who watches as one of them becomes famous, while the others do not. How even jealousy impacts friendship is smartly examined in this funny, empathetic movie that also stars Gillian Jacobs, Kate Micucci, and the incredible versatile Keegan-Michael Key.

Ferris Bueller’s Day Off

One of the most popular comedies of its era turned its title character into a household name. The pitch is so beautifully simple: the most popular kid in high school takes the day off and gets into trouble in Chicago while driving his sister and principal insane. Great physical sequences mixes with a very hip ‘80s sensibility to create a classic comedy that could be a hit if it came out today.

Get Him to the Greek

Russel Brand, the once-famous British comedian, returns to his Forgetting Sarah Marshall character, Aldous Snow, an obnoxious rock star who takes a talent scout played by Jonah Hill along for the ride of his personal meltdown. Brand and Hill are funny, and you may have forgotten that Rose Byrne and Elisabeth Moss pop up in funny supporting roles too.

Goon

Seann William Scott, Stifler from American Pie as he is best known, stars in this 2011 hockey comedy as Doug Glatt, a sweet but kinda dumb guy who becomes the tough guy on a hockey team. And although it flopped badly in the cinema, it found a cult following with home audiences. It’s incredibly funny and surprisingly sweet with Scott’s career-best work.

Groundhog Day

Believe it or not, this 1993 Bill Murray vehicle wasn’t that rapturously received critically or commercially when it came out, but it’s become a beloved genre classic. Murray stars as a weatherman forced to relive the same day over and over again until he gets it right. Many feel it’s Murray’s best role ever and it’s held up so much better than most early ‘90s comedies.

Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle

There was a time when Harold and Kumar had a slew of movies, each one worse than the other, but Go To White Castle was the one that still remains a worthy watch and has some clever if disgusting jokes. But there is more to this wise-cracking movie, It’s actually a really progressive flick when it comes to representation and the theme of fighting to get what you want in life, even if it’s a cheeseburger.

Jerry Maguire

Show me the money, one of the most quotable lines ever in movie history came from this Cameron Crowe classic. Tom Cruise plays the title character, a sports agent who is pushed into starting his own agency while he falls in love with a single mother, played by Renee Zellweger. It’s sweet, smart, and funny. It was also the movie that earned Cuba Gooding Jr an Oscar for his performance as the Football Star.

Kingpin

The Farrelly brothers had a slew of hits in the ’90s from Dumb and Dumber to Something About Mary, but it’s their underrated Kingpin movie that truly delivers on gross-out comedy. Starring Woody Harrelson as a grifting bowler and Randy Quaid as the Amish prodigy he exploits and then befriends. All you need to know about this movie is that it’s laugh-out-loud funny from beginning to end, and also features one of Bill Murray’s best supporting performances.

Kung Fu Hustle

You have likely never seen a movie quite like this 2004 martial arts comedy, Stephen Chow’s masterpiece. Set in 1940s China, this worldwide hit features some of the best stunt work you can find on Netflix, all in service of a movie that often plays like a live-action cartoon. It’s ridiculous and unforgettable.

Men in Black

They say the original is always better and never has it been more true that the original sci-fi/comedy Men in Black. Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones starred in this classic as two secret agents set to deal with illegal aliens that visit earth. It still holds up today and still blows up the catastrophe that was the recent reboot. And of course, the soundtrack is still amazing.

Monty Python and the Holy Grail

This is the Pythons at their best, the world-changing British comedy troupe of Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones, and Michael Palin. Holy Grail is a parody of tales like those of the Knights of the Round Table and is one of the most heavily quoted movies of all time, a comedy that feels like it’s playing in some theatre somewhere in the world, probably at midnight, every single day. Its popularity simply never recedes.

Monty Python’s Life of Brian

Holy Grail may be laugh-out-loud funnier, but it’s arguable that Life of Brian is actually smarter. Monty Python’s most controversial movie stars Graham Chapman as Brian Cohen, a lowly peasant that is mistaken for the Messiah. It’s an incredibly smart film that caused quite an uproar when it was released due to accusations of blasphemy.

Nacho Libre

Jared Hess and Jack Black’s goofy senses of humor meshed well in this 2006 comedy hit. Black plays a cook at an Oaxacan monastery who unexpectedly becomes a famous luchador, but that’s just the skeleton of a plot on which to hang physical humor and silly behavior. It’s the kind of comedy that’s easy to put on in the background while you’re doing other things. Sometimes that’s all you want from Netflix.

The Naked Gun

A gloriously ridiculous spoof of cop shows/films in which the late great Leslie Nielsen’s Frank Drebin stumbles upon a plot to kill Queen Elizabeth II that involves Reggie Jackson. It’s too bad they don’t make movies this gloriously stupid (in a good way) as often as they did in the ‘80s and ‘90s. The second film is also on Netflix.

The Original Kings of Comedy

Spike Lee directed one of the best stand-up movies of all time when he helmed this look at a tour featuring sets by Steve Harvey, D.L. Hughley, Cedric the Entertainer, and a movie-stealing Bernie Mac. Shot over two nights of the tour, Lee focuses mostly on the stand-up, but we also get some nice behind-the-scenes footage on a magical event. It’s also a nice reminder that we lost Bernie Mac way too soon, and how incredibly funny he was in everything he did.

The Other Guys

Capping off a decade that included Anchorman, Old School, Step Brothers, and Talladega Nights, the SNL alum co-stars with Mark Wahlberg as two cops forced to step into the spotlight after the hysterical death of the two most popular officers on the force. Ferrell and Wahlberg are great in one of Adam McKay’s funnier comedies. He should reunite with his best leading man and make another one.

Scary Movie

The team behind this 2000 comedy knew that movies like Scream and I Know What You Did Last Summer were so incredibly popular that people would turn out in droves for a parody of them. In fact, this movie made more than both, launching an entire franchise of Airplane-esque mockeries of popular horror films. It’s more than just a comedy, it’s a snapshot of a fascinating movement in pop culture.

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World

Michael Cera stars in Edgar Wright’s vibrant adaptation of Bryan Lee O’Malley’s graphic novel, a movie that feels like it could come out exactly the same way today, almost a decade after its release. Wright’s style is perfect for this material, capturing the tone and structure of the source material with his razor-sharp editing and wit.

Step Brothers

The pinnacle of Will Ferrell and Adam McKay’s comedy career remains this modern classic, a movie that’s as rewatchable as anything you could possibly find on any streaming service. One of the reasons for that is the fearless joy with which Ferrell and John C. Reilly literally throw themselves into the roles of stepbrothers who start as enemies and end as family.

Swiss Army Man

There are not a lot of movies like this Sundance hit. Just when you think you’ve seen it all, along comes Daniel Radcliffe as a farting corpse, that doubles up as a swiss army knife. The former Boy Who Lived stars with Paul Dano in a film that can’t really be captured in a tiny list entry. It’s weird but in such a good way.

Zack and Miri Make a Porno

Lifelong platonic friends Zack and Miri look to solve their respective cash-flow problems by making an adult film together. As the cameras roll, however, the duo begins to sense that they may have more feelings for each other than they previously thought. It’s not the best movie ever but Seth Rogen and Elizabeth Banks are so delightful and fun to watch that you just don’t care.