The Best Comedy Movies Of The 1970s

Updated December 14, 2020 19.4k votes 1.4k voters 72.5k views175 items

List RulesVote up your favorite film comedies that were released in the 1970s.

In the '70s, comedy movies were dominated by two comedic heavyweights: Woody Allen and Mel Brooks. They still left room for plenty of classic comedies like The Rocky Horror Picture Show and National Lampoon's Animal House, though. A lot of '70s comedies like The Bad News Bears were so great that they ended up being remade decades later. With all of these choices, what do you think are the top 1970s comedy movies? Vote up your favorites and vote down those that just aren't as funny. But one this is for sure, 1970s movies sure had their own unique sense of humor.

A look at this list of 1970s comedies makes it clear that Woody Allen and Mel Brooks were in their prime during this decade. Allen delivered with the celebrated Annie Hall, Manhattan, and Sleeper, among others, while Brooks turned in two beloved '70s comedy films with Blazing Saddles and Young Frankenstein. That said, it could be argued that the funniest '70s films were, in fact, cult classics like The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Cheech and Chong's Up in Smoke, and Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

This '70s comedy movies list is also filled with stellar movies that were then remade into not-so-stellar reboots years later. You have The In-Laws, The Bad News Bears, The Out-of-Towners, Freaky Friday, and The Heartbreak Kid. Do you think any of these movies deserves to be considered one of the best '70s comedy movies? Use your votes to express your opinion.

You know it was a good decade for comedy because even a merely decent 1970s comedy like Meatballs still featured Bill Murray's very first starring role. Have fun and laugh it up while you vote up the top '70s comedy films!

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1
432
126
Young Frankenstein
Gene Hackman, Mel Brooks
Released: 1974
Directed by: Mel Brooks
2
482
161
Blazing Saddles
Mel Brooks, Gene Wilder
Released: 1974
Directed by: Mel Brooks
3
451
133
Monty Python and the Holy Grail
John Cleese, Terry Gilliam
Released: 1975
Directed by: Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones
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4
407
128
National Lampoon's Animal House
Kevin Bacon, John Belushi
Released: 1978
Directed by: John Landis
5
347
162
The Jerk
Steve Martin, Bernadette Peters
Released: 1979
Directed by: Carl Reiner
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6
271
147
Smokey and the Bandit
Sally Field, Burt Reynolds
Released: 1977
Directed by: Hal Needham
7
250
106
Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory
Gene Wilder, Jack Albertson
Released: 1971
Directed by: Mel Stuart
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8
225
118
Cheech & Chong's Up in Smoke
Ellen Barkin, Cheech Marin
Released: 1978
Directed by: Lou Adler, Tommy Chong
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9
207
116
The Return of the Pink Panther
Peter Sellers, Christopher Plummer
Released: 1975
Directed by: Blake Edwards
10
204
104
The Sting
Paul Newman, Robert Redford
Released: 1973
Directed by: George Roy Hill
11
165
79
The Longest Yard
Burt Reynolds, Bernadette Peters
Released: 1974
Directed by: Robert Aldrich
12
194
105
Slap Shot
Paul Newman, M. Emmet Walsh
Released: 1977
Directed by: George Roy Hill
13
185
110
Silver Streak
Richard Pryor, Gene Wilder
Released: 1976
Directed by: Arthur Hiller
14
219
117
MASH
Robert Duvall, Donald Sutherland
Released: 1970
Directed by: Robert Altman
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15
173
96
Meatballs
Bill Murray, Kristine DeBell
Released: 1979
Directed by: Ivan Reitman
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16
204
121
The Bad News Bears
Tatum O'Neal, Jackie Earle Haley
Released: 1976
Directed by: Michael Ritchie
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17
231
128
Life of Brian
George Harrison, John Cleese
Released: 1979
Directed by: Terry Jones
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18
175
87
The Pink Panther Strikes Again
Julie Andrews, Omar Sharif
Released: 1976
Directed by: Blake Edwards
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19
155
93
Kelly's Heroes
Clint Eastwood, Donald Sutherland
Released: 1970
Directed by: Brian G. Hutton
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20
168
107
The Muppet Movie
Steve Martin, Mel Brooks
Released: 1979
Directed by: James Frawley
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21
197
144
Grease
John Travolta, Olivia Newton-John
Released: 1978
Directed by: Randal Kleiser
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22
182
106
American Graffiti
Harrison Ford, Ron Howard
Released: 1973
Directed by: George Lucas
23
147
92
Revenge of the Pink Panther
Peter Sellers, Dyan Cannon
Released: 1978
Directed by: Blake Edwards
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24
107
71
Foul Play
Goldie Hawn, Chevy Chase
Released: 1978
Directed by: Colin Higgins
25
153
74
High Anxiety
Cloris Leachman, Madeline Kahn
Released: 1977
Directed by: Mel Brooks
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