The Best Comedies On Amazon Prime

Image via Warner Bros.

Just when you thought the vampire genre had been done to death, What We Do In The Shadows resurrected it with an inspired take I can’t believe nobody thought to make sooner. What do vampires do all day while the sunlight keeps them in the shadows? Apparently, they argue with their vampire roommates about the same dumb stuff humans do: dirty dishes, stains on the couch, and what to wear out for a night of feeding (ok, maybe not the exact same stuff). If you like the deadpan New Zealand-accented comedy that characterizes Flight of the Conchords, you’ll be quoting this one for months.

Why isn’t everyone talking about how great this movie is all the time? Living icon Madonna plays a punk rock, heart-stealing drifter who captures the attention of men and women alike—specifically, one bored housewife fascinated by mysterious personal ads in the paper, placed by men who are ‘Desperately Seeking Susan.’ Through some zany twists and turns I wouldn’t dare spoil, the bored housewife gets mistaken for Susan and finds all the ‘80s adventure she’s been craving, set, of course, to Madonna’s greatest hits.

This movie has just about everything: Young Alec Baldwin, a decaying Michael Keaton serving creepy undead uncle realness, and Winona Ryder in goth looks that continue to be #goals for every art babe on Instagram. Before Tim Burton movies were all just love letters to Johnny Depp, we got this true gem about a city family that moves to the country for some peace, and instead finds two ghosts that want them gone, but are too polite to kick them out. Enter Beetlejuice, a sadistic ghoul with the personality of a used car salesman and the body of a moldy scab, who is eager to do the dirty work for them. It’s a Halloween classic that holds up year round.

Before Danny DeVito stole our hearts as the disgusting and constantly sweaty Frank Reynolds on It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, he was in what seems like 75% of the great comedies between 1980 and 2000. DeVito steals the show as an actor with a Napoleon complex in this film about Hollywood, mobsters, and playing it cool. But, the real star is John Travolta, freshly reinstated as an industry staple after his performance in Pulp Fiction. He navigates L.A. with his Miami loan-shark wiles so well that by the end, he’s producing a blockbuster movie and dating the leading lady. He talks fast and makes everyone look like an idiot. Trust me, it’s fun.

Sam Rockwell is like movie Sriracha—add him into the mix, and your end result is spicier, more flavorful, and slightly wilder than what you started with. He maneuvers a world of over-the-top violence and unnecessary risk alongside Christopher Walken (no stranger to comedy), Colin Farrell (whose accent makes almost anything funnier), and the signer Tom Waits (who plays a psychotic, vengeful serial killer with a pet bunny, but is somehow also charming and hilarious).

 Funny, real, and geniusly girl-powered, In A World... is still a fresh surprise. Lake Bell stars as the awkward, relatable, and insanely likeable Carol Solomon, a vocal coach and wannabe voiceover actor with dreams of being the first women to utter the iconic titular phrase in a blockbuster movie trailer. Carol navigates a dysfunctional family, uncomfortable hook-ups, her own coming of age, and a cameo from Geena Davis that’ll hit home for women everywhere. If that’s not enough for you, Nick Offerman also appears with a totally clean-shaven face.

If you haven’t seen Tommy Boy, you need to at least watch it for the in-jokes—remember when Chris Farley put on David Spade’s tiny jacket, sang “fat guy in a little coat,” and basically invented comedy all over again? Ok, the plot may be needlessly convoluted, and the jokes are admittedly super-goofy, but the Spade/Farley duo shines in this classic road trip story about a couple of losers who finally do something right for once.

Election falls on the darker side of the comedy gradient, but it’s a much-needed departure from the typical high school romp. Boring, but well-liked high school teacher Jim McAllister (Matthew Broderick) appears to be the picture of suburban success, until his efforts to keep annoying overachiever Tracy Flick (Reese Witherspoon) from winning the seat of high school president reveal the bored midlife crisis that’s been bubbling underneath. Election is a wickedly genius satire on social politics, both in and out of high school.