The Best Intelligent Comedies Of All Time

Voting Rules
Vote up the movies that have an intelligent way of making you laugh.

Intelligent comedies really aren't too easy to come by—or they're at least far less common. Simply put, most people want constant laughter, regardless of content. In other words, what most consider the be the best comedies of all time don't typically fall under the intelligent category. Be that as it may, it's not to say smart and clever comedies don't exist, or that they aren't funny. It's just the fact we all love dumb humor, and there's nothing wrong with that. That doesn't mean we can't enjoy a witty, intellectual, or sarcastic comedy movie every now and then.

Because, a great movie can certainly intertwine comedy and intelligence - or even take on social concerns - and it happens all the time. Even quintessential comedies can incorporate such elements sometimes. Whether it be a solid storyline, a strong setting, or even high-brow jokes, some of the big screen's top comedies do more than just make us laugh. The Truman Show is a prime example. While funny, the film also makes us feel emotion and think. The same goes for other funny flicks like Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Groundhog Day and Burn After Reading, among many others. So, of all the clever and intelligent comedies out there, which are the best?

Check out the list of comedies below and vote up those you feel incorporate a little more into the story and ultimately warrant themselves a smart comedy. Feel free to add more to the list as well. 

Photo: Gramercy Pictures
Ranked by
  • Monty Python and the Holy Grail
    1
    660 votes
    Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam
    A comedic send-up of the grim circumstances of the Middle Ages as told through the story of King Arthur and framed by a modern-day murder investigation. When the mythical king of the Britons leads ...more
  • Shaun of the Dead
    2
    527 votes
    Simon Pegg, Kate Ashfield, Lucy Davis
    Shaun is a 30-something loser with a dull, easy existence. When he's not working at the electronics store, he lives with his slovenly best friend, Ed, in a small flat on the outskirts of London. The ...more
  • The Big Lebowski
    3
    628 votes
    Jeff Bridges, John Goodman, Julianne Moore
    Jeff Bridges plays Jeff Lebowski who insists on being called "the Dude," a laid-back, easygoing burnout who happens to have the same name as a millionaire whose wife owes a lot of dangerous people a ...more
  • Office Space
    4
    451 votes
    Ron Livingston, Jennifer Aniston, David Herman
    Corporate drone Peter Gibbons (Ron Livingston) hates his soul-killing job at software company Initech. While undergoing hypnotherapy, Peter is left in a blissful state when his therapist dies in the ...more
  • Ghostbusters
    5
    321 votes
    Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis
    After the members of a team of scientists (Harold Ramis, Dan Aykroyd, Bill Murray) lose their cushy positions at a university in New York City, they decide to become "ghostbusters" to wage a ...more
  • Groundhog Day
    6
    578 votes
    Bill Murray, Andie MacDowell, Chris Elliott
    Phil (Bill Murray), a weatherman, is out to cover the annual emergence of the groundhog from its hole. He gets caught in a blizzard that he didn't predict and finds himself trapped in a time warp. He ...more