In 1972 and 1973 at the Royal Alexandra Theatre here in Toronto, almost everything we know about modern comedy was born. The cast included Martin Short, Eugene Levy, Gilda Radner, Andrea Martin, Victor Garber and Dave Thomas. From the seeds planted by this special group being brought together sprang SCTV and SNL, not to mention…
Tag: comedy
The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988) – David Zucker
What with the reboot/sequel bringing comedic laughs back to the theatre, I thought I would take a look at the original The Naked Gun, which followed on the oh-to-short Police Squad! series. Leslie Nielsen is back as Frank Drebin, and if you were worried this movie wouldn’t be funny almost forty years later, you can…
The Monkey (2025) – Osgood Perkins
Theo James and Christian Convery pull double duty as the older and younger versions of twin brothers Hal and Bill in Osgood Perkins horror comedy, The Monkey. Using the original Stephen King short story as a launching point Perkins delivers a gory tense ride, that releases with every gruesome kill and then ratchets the tension…
Casino Royale (1967) – Val Guest, Ken Hughes, Robert Parrish, Joe McGrath, and John Huston
It’s been a long time since I watched Casino Royale, a spoof of 007 films, which had originally been developed as a serious adaptation of the Ian Fleming novel. When the Bond filmmakers, and Sean Connery didn’t want to be involved, the producers held onto the rights and went with a comedy instead. With five…
Northern Exposure (1995) – Mi Casa, Su Casa, and Horns
Marilyn (Elaine Miles) comes to visit Joel (Rob Morrow), well not really, so he’s a little bothered by the fact that she didn’t. She’s there for a community event, not to see how Joel is getting by. As they spend time together, Joel finds himself trying to convince her that he’s changed. Mi Casa, Su…
The Accountant 2 (2025) – Gavin O’Connor
I quite enjoyed The Accountant, which I didn’t think I would originally, and it had the added bonus of having Anna Kendrick in it. I liked the way Ben Affleck brought Chris’ autism to life, and the way he played it. And while Anna Kendrick isn’t in this one, Affleck’s Chris gets more time with…
The Three Musketeers (1973) – Richard Lester
This version of The Three Musketeers is incredibly popular and I thought it would be a nice palette cleanser after the version I watched earlier this week. And sadly, it didn’t do anything for me. And that’s horrible, because it’s got a great pedigree. Produced by the Salkinds who would go on to produce Superman…
Top Secret! (1984) – Jerry Zucker, David Zucker, and Jim Abrahams
It’s been a couple of decades since I last watched Top Secret! I remember from my time working in a video store that it was a perennial favourite of my friend Ted. And with the passing of Val Kilmer, I felt it was definitely time to take it in again. And wow, did I laugh….
Hit Man (2023) – Richard Linklater
Glen Powell headlines in Hit Man, a film by Richard Linklater that is based loosely on a true story. It allows Powell to lean both into his dramatic and comedic talents, and be charming the entire way through. Powell plays Gary Johnson, an almost nebbish philosophy professor who also does some work with the local…
Twins (1988) – Ivan Reitman
Arnold Schwarzenegger in shorts and converse is laugh-worthy on its own. From that first reveal I was in for the ride, and while some of it isn’t so great, there’s a lot of heart and laughs to be mined from this classic 1988 comedy. Julius (Schwarzenegger) is a product of a genetic experiment, and has…
The Mind Reels 