Shubhabrata Dutta
Comedy movies carry a lot of advantages for their audiences. Although they aren’t prescribed as medicines, they can work wonders for your mental health. To tune it down a bit, watching comedy movies relieves stress, brings joy, and serves as a great getaway from a mundane life. Of course, you can watch them even if your life isn’t mundane, and they will have the same effect, perhaps even better than usual, as they will only add to your already happiness-filled life.
So, here we bring you nine great comedy movies of different kinds, all of which are available for streaming on Peacock. Each of these movies, while being connected by humor, offers a different type of comedy customized to complement the story, offering you a unique experience with each watch.
7. Better Watch Out (2016)
A horror comedy directed by Chris Peckover, ‘Better Watch Out’ stars Olivia DeJonge, Levi Miller, and Ed Oxenbould. It shows what happens when 17-year-old Ashley arrives at 12-year-old Luke Lerner’s suburban home to babysit him. Luke’s friend Garret also joins them. Luke has feelings for Ashley and plans to seduce her, but things take a dark turn when someone breaks into the house. It is slowly revealed that the intruder isn’t the criminal but one of the three already inside the house. Who is it? To find out, you can watch this movie here.
6. Dìdi (2024)
A raw coming-of-age drama that does a powerful job showcasing the numerous urges and conflicts that growing up gives rise to, ‘Dìdi’ focuses on 13-year-old Chris Wang (AKA Dì Di) who has to manage an overburdened mother, a grandmother, and a sister. Set in 2008, we see him making videos on YouTube and having fun with his two best friends, his only windows through which he vents out his personal inadequacy that stems from internalized racism. To add to the chaos, there’s the need to be able to flirt and kiss a girl. Starring Izaac Wang, Joan Chen, Chang Li Hua, Raul Dial, Aaron Chang, and Shirley Chen, ‘Dìdi’ looks at teenage angst from a humor lens that is yet laced with the tragedy of it. The film won two awards at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival and can be streamed right here.
5. Renfield (2023)
Chris McKay’s horror comedy ‘Renfield’ has Nicolas Cage as Dracula, the blood-sucking vampire, and Nicholas Hoult as Dracula’s titular aide. After serving his master for decades, including bringing him humans to feed on, Renfield is finally fed up with the torturous servitude. Coming across a self-help group specifically for people in co-dependent relationships, he decides to volunteer and try to deal with his present condition better. With workplace dynamics at its heart, the film is a humorous depiction of a person’s struggle for personal growth in the face of a demanding and scary boss. Add to this Cage’s expressions, and entertainment is guaranteed. You can watch ‘Renfield’ here.
4. Welcome to Me (2015)
Kristen Wiig pulls off one of her most charming roles ever in ‘Welcome to Me,’ directed by Shira Piven, and proves that she is an actor of high caliber. The movie transcends the comedy genre as we meet Alice Klieg, who has borderline personality disorder. After winning $83 million in a lottery, she decides to put aside her meds and produce her TV show where she speaks her heart out to the world, her inspiration being Oprah Winfrey. But while she is all set to reveal herself to the world, is the world prepared for her? ‘Welcome to Me’ is problematic not as a movie but as an experience that shows the absurd world as seen through Alice’s eyes while providing a fair share of laughter. You may watch the film here.
3. The Little Hours (2017)
Directed by Jeff Baena, ‘The Little Hours’ is a dark comedy set in 14th-century Italy and centers on a trio of sexually impoverished nuns and their new deaf-mute gardener, Massetto. Each of these people has secrets underscored by the overwhelming urge for sexual pleasure. It is how pleasures of the skin are incorporated in such a religious setting that adds to ‘The Little Hours’ effectiveness. Even the father, who runs the convent, and the Mother Superior are shown to be in a secret relationship. Dark, twisted, surreal, and humorous, ‘The Little Hours’ is a fun-to-watch period comedy pulled off by compelling performances from Alison Brie, Kate Micucci, Aubrey Plaza, and Dave Franco. You can watch the film here.
2. Bernie (2011)
This independent dark comedy is based on Skip Hollandsworth’s January 1998 article, “Midnight in the Garden of East Texas”, published in Texas Monthly magazine. The film is set in Texas in 1996 and shows the companionship between mortician Bernie Tiede and 81-year-old wealthy widow Marjorie “Marge” Nugent and the subsequent murder of Marge by Bernie. Why he did it, how he did it, and how his heinous crime was discovered is what we find out in this Richard Linklater directorial. Jack Black as Bernie Tiede is a treat to watch, and his performance earned him a Golden Globe nomination. Legendary actress Shirley MacLaine plays Marjorie to a T. The cast also includes Matthew McConaughey, Brady Coleman, and Richard Robichaux. You can watch ‘Bernie’ here.
1. Afternoon Delight (2013)
Joey Soloway’s ‘Afternoon Delight’ follows a sexually frustrated stay-at-home mom named Rachel (Kathryn Hahn) whose urge for pleasure brings her to a strip club. Realizing the countless excitement the concept holds, she decides to explore it with her friends, eventually giving a young stripper named McKenna (Juno Temple) a roof over her head in her own house. How does that turn out? Well, at least it isn’t boring anymore, is one way of putting it. Co-starring Josh Radnor, Jane Lynch, and Jessica St. Clair, ‘Afternoon Delight’ is a beautifully crafted comedy that incorporates issues of life and garnishes them with humor in a way that just hits the spot. Soloway even won the Directing Award at the Sundance Film Festival for it. You can watch the film here.
Read More: Best Comedy Movies on Paramount+
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