Recently, we discussed the funniest men in movie history, and now I would like to talk about women in the same category.
Sally Kellerman in MASH (1970)
Margaret “Hot Lips” O’Houlihan is one of the standouts in MASH, a hilarious film and well ahead of its time. It makes the nightmare of the Korean War medical unit, the 4077th, into a funhouse. O’Houlihan complains that the camp is not a hospital but an insane asylum.
She is the target of vicious pranks perpetrated by her male associates. In one memorable scene, she goes to Col. Henry Blake to demand the punishment of the men, but she gets rejected. She then hilariously tries to keep her composure about resigning her commission but ends up walking away from the situation. I’m sure this scene earned Kellerman her Oscar nomination.
Cloris Leachman in Young Frankenstein (1974)
Teri Garr and Madeline Kahn have their fair share of funny moments in Young Frankenstein, but I think Cloris Leachman is the standout. She doesn’t have as much screentime as the others, but her presence makes up for it.
Leachman is Frau Blücher, the German housekeeper of the haunted house. Her demeanor is so intimidating that even mentioning her name makes the horses whinny – a running gag in the film. When her ulterior motive comes to light, her excuse is that “he..was…my…boyfriend!” This scene is one of the funniest in a priceless film.
Dolly Parton in 9 to 5 (1980)
Doralee (Parton), Judy (Jane Fonda), and Violet (Lily Tomlin) decide to turn the tables on Frank Hart (Dabney Coleman), their “sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical bigot” of a boss. They all fantasize about how to do so, with Doralee thinking of tying him up and roasting him over a fire. However, their original plan doesn’t work, and they end up kidnapping him – with hilarious results.
Dolly Parton steals the show in this hilarious film about sexism and revenge. Not only does she sing the chart-topping theme song, but her performance as a no-nonsense secretary is memorable.
Kathleen Freeman in Dragnet (1987)
Freeman only has one scene in this film, but it’s the funniest one because of her. I laugh at almost everything she says. I also wonder whether Dan Aykroyd wrote that part for her after working with her in The Blues Brothers (1980).
Freeman is Enid Borden, a ticked-off landlord who talks to detectives Joe Friday (Aykroyd) and Pep Streebek (Tom Hanks) about a fugitive tenant. Every answer to their questions ends with an insult directed at the fugitive, like him being a “big, bad stupid-looking piece of sewage breath.” Freeman owns this scene!
Holly Hunter in Raising Arizona (1987)
The Coen Brothers know how to make their characters memorable. In this film, Nicolas Cage is H.I. McDunnough, a guy who can’t keep himself out of jail. He falls in love with Ed (Hunter), the cop always telling him to “turn to the right” to take his arrest photos. After a few arrests, Ed starts to reciprocate his love for her.
They marry and want to start a family; however, they are unable to conceive. They decide to kidnap one of the “Arizona Quints” – a set of quintuplets. My favorite scene is when H.I. robs a store for diapers, unbeknownst to Ed. Her reaction to the robbery is hilarious, as she decides to leave H.I. behind. This comedy has a unique style – I haven’t seen many like it.
Marisa Tomei in My Cousin Vinny (1992)
Tomei deserves her Oscar with her performance as Mona Lisa Vito, a tough-talking girl from Brooklyn. She and her fiancé Vinny (Joe Pesci) travel to a small Alabama town, where Vinny must defend his cousin and the cousin’s friend against a crime they did not commit.
One of my favorite moments is when Mona Lisa gives Vinny a hard time as he is about to go hunting with the judge. Vinny asks her about what kind of pants he should wear. Mona Lisa, who is against the idea of hunting deer, asks Vinny if he was the prey, would he care what kind of pants the hunter would be wearing? And how could anyone forget the iconic “positraction” scene in the courtroom? Classic!
Kate Hudson in How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days (2003)
Hudson’s performance is one of the great things about this film. I loved her in Almost Famous (2000) and loved her even more after watching this film. She can do a great comedy.
Hudson plays Andie Anderson, the “how-to” writer for a women’s magazine. She volunteers to write an article on how to get a guy to dump you (a “how not to” if you will). She starts seeing Benjamin Barry (Matthew McConaughey), the unwitting main character in her article.
However, Andie doesn’t know that Benjamin has his own agenda. He makes a bet with his colleagues that he can get a woman to fall in love with him before their big gala, which happens to be in ten days. Their contradicting agendas are another reason this film is hilarious, especially when Andie crashes Ben’s guy’s night at his place.
Amanda Seyfried in Mean Girls (2004)
It was hard to pick only one out of the four leads of this film. I chose Seyfried because she has the best lines and performance of the four. I honestly never thought I would like this film before watching it, but I still find myself quoting it today.
Seyfried is Karen Smith, a dimwitted high school girl who is also a member of The Plastics, the group with the most popular girls. Her best moment is when she is at peace with her lack of intelligence because she has extrasensory perception. She calls it “ESPN,” or rather her “fifth sense.” Another great moment is when she gets out of hanging out with Regina George (Rachel McAdams) by saying, “[weak cough] [weak cough] I’m sick.”
Isla Fisher in Wedding Crashers (2005)
I can’t imagine who could have played Gloria Cleary better than Isla Fisher. Her performance is one of the standouts in this fun-filled comedy. Jeremy (Vince Vaughn) sets his sights on Gloria after crashing a big wedding with his friend John (Owen Wilson). Gloria is one of the bridesmaids, and it seems obvious to Jeremy that she is interested in a potential romantic rendezvous.
After the deed is done, Gloria claims that it was her first time and does not leave Jeremy alone. He was hoping to be one and done, but things get more complicated after Gloria invites Jeremy and John to the family vacation house for the weekend. Jeremy is reluctant, but John happily accepts, since he’s interested in Gloria’s sister Claire (Rachel McAdams). It’s funny to watch Jeremy continually be tortured by Gloria and get a bit of a comeuppance from all his wedding crashing.
Amanda Bynes in She’s the Man (2006)
She’s the Man is loosely based on Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night,” except this film takes place in a modern-day prep school. Viola (Bynes) learns that her brother Sebastian is leaving school for a couple of weeks. Viola decides to disguise herself as him and play on his soccer team.
I love the moment when she introduces herself, or rather, himself to his roommates. I always laugh myself silly during the scene when a spider runs around her room, and she lets out her natural scream while still disguised as Sebastian.
There are so many talented comedic actresses, and it wouldn’t be fair to exclude these wonderful comediennes:
Diane Keaton in Love and Death (1975)
Goldie Hawn in Overboard (1987)
Ornella Muti in Oscar (1991)
Kathy Bates in The Waterboy (1998)
Melissa McCarthy in The Heat (2013)
Happy watching!
