Best Independent Films - Comedy (Part 1)

------An independent film is a movie made without studio interference and therefore tends to be more original and artistic in tone. They don't adhere to conventional wisdom or to formulas. They usually don't make much money, but in the rare occasion that they do, (think Juno) they are sometimes refered to as 'sleeper hits'.

This is part one of an alphabetical series.

A

ABOUT A BOY - 2002 - (hugh grant, rachel weisz, toni collette) As the title is quick to point out, this film is about a boy, one who is real mature for his age. There is also a man-child type guy who won't grow up and you find yourself asking, "I know it's about a boy, but which one?" Hugh Grant's best work by far. 4 *s

ADAPTATION - 2002 - (nicolas cage, meryl streep, chris cooper) The 2nd collaboration between screenwriter Charlie Kaufman & director Spike Jonze is a study in...adaption. Mr. Kaufman was adapting a book for this movie when he realized that he had no choice but to make the film about adapting this book for this movie. He not only writes himself into the story but his real life brother Donald Kaufman too,(a dual role for Nicolas Cage) who is credited as co-screenwriter for the film as well. ??? Just trust me. 4 *s

AMERICAN MOVIE - 1999 - (DOCUMENTARY) This film is hysterical if you don't mind laughing at it. It's about a totally clueless young filmmaker who can't even pronounce the title to his own movie. His tweaked out, newly sober sidekick is so so funny and pathetic. The pair recently did a cameo on Family Guy. Like I said, you might have to be a little mean-spirited to truly love it. Call it a guilty pleasure. 2.5 *s

THE ARISTOCRATS - 2005 - (DOCUMENTARY) Comedians Paul Provenza & Penn Jillette take a unique look at comedy by having over 100 famous comedians tell the same joke. And what a joke it is. This joke is as filthy and vulgar as the people telling it. (Enter george carlin, lewis black, sarah silverman, whoopi goldberg, drew carey, etc.) The best thing about this film though is that the best tellers of the joke aren't who you'd think. Bob Saget practically reinvents himself as your perverted uncle and the greatest Aristocrat of them all is hands down.........Gilbert Gottfried. 3.5 *s

B

BEAUTIFUL GIRLS - 1996 - (timothy hutton, matt dillon, natalie portman, mira sorvino, lauryn holly, rosie o'donnell, michael rapaport, martha plimpton, annabeth gish, and uma thurman) There are even more great stars than I have listed in this great little throwaway dramedy. YES. Natalie Portman blew people away with her jailbait Pooh-Bear charms. YES. There's a bar room full of those same stars above getting hammered and singing Neil Diamond's Sweet Caroline. YES. Rosie O' Donnell actually has a hilarious monologue about breasts & models. YES. Matt Dillon gets in a fist fight just like the old days. This film is a must-see. Not 'cause it's great. But because it's a must see. 3 *s

BEFORE SUNRISE - 1995 - (ethan hawke, julie delpy) An American guy meets a French girl on a train headed to Vienna, Austria. They have one day/night together. That's all I'm gonna say about the plot. Within that small scope though, we see two young educated people who don't really have a grip on their lives just yet, But, we, the audience have a lot of hope for them both. How many of us have had that long talk the first night you meet someone, and you never want that night to end? FYI: Props to writer/director Richard Linklater, following Dazed and Confused (a distinctly American nostalgia film with a huge ensemble cast) with a European film with a cast of two that leaves you looking toward the future. 3.5 *s

BEFORE SUNSET - 2004 - ( ethan hawke, julie delpy) A sequel nine years in the making. What ever happened to Jesse and Celine? Did they meet up? You gotta see it to find out. Same writers/director and format as the first one, so you know what your getting, except this time it's in Paris. Free Advice: If you watch the first one and love it, don't watch the sequel right away. Imagine nine years passing. Let it cook for a while in your mind, then, just when you take it anymore...enjoy. 2.5 *s

BEING JOHN MALKOVICH - 1999 - (john cusack, catherine keener, cameron diaz, and of course, john malkovich) It's the same old story all over again. A street puppeteer takes a filing clerk job and finds a portal that takes him into the body & mind of actor John Malkovich and then abruptly spits him out onto the New Jersey turnpike.Three academy award nominations. One for Keener as office bitch Maxine. One for director Spike Jonze. And one for Screenwriter Charlie Kaufman who's most recent work was Stranger Than Fiction with Will Ferrell. He is the most refreshingly original screenwriter around these days. If you don't like this story, you don't like independent films. Period. 5 *s

BEST IN SHOW - 2000 - (christopher guest, eugene levy, catherine o' hara, fred willard, parker posey, michael mckean, larry miller) Again, there are a lot of stars I did not even mention here. In case you could have possibly missed this movie, Christopher Guest is an Improvisational Mockumentarian. He picks a subject,(in this case THE WESTMINSTER DOG SHOW) cuts it up and then inhabits it...along with a dozen of his closest and funniest friends. Just like he always does. If you haven't seen the first film by this comedy troupe Waiting for Guffman yet, get going, you got a lot of laughing to do. 5 *s

BETTER OFF DEAD - 1985 - (john cusack, curtis armstrong, david ogden stiers) "Lane Meyer... a man who knows how to ski." Now, I thought everybody knew that line and this film by Savage Steve Holland but a whole new generation of film buffs don't. Generation Xers ate up teen 80s Cusack fare. If the animation and tone feels like One Crazy Summer at times, yeah, same star and director combo. Curtis Armstrong (a/k/a 'Booger' from The Nerds movies) steals every scene he is in. 3.5 *s

THE BIG LEBOWSKI - 1998 - (jeff bridges, john goodman. steve buscemi, julianne moore, philip seymour hoffman, john turturro & sam elliott) The Coen Brothers are the most celebrated independent filmmakers worldwide. Fargo, Raising Arizona, O Brother, Where Art Thou?, The Hudsucker Proxy, Blood Simple, & No Country For Old Men are all great and completely original films. Believe it or not though, this is the one they are gonna be remembered for. Why? Simple. 'The dude abides'. There is really just no way that you could dislike the dude and his bowling buddies Walter & Donnie. p.s. That rug really did tie the room together and chinamen is not the proper nomenclature. 5 *s

BORAT - CULTURAL LEARNINGS OF AMERICA FOR MAKE BENEFIT GLORIOUS NATION OF KAZAKHSTAN -2006 - (sacha baron cohen, pamela anderson) Winner of the Golden Globe for Best Actor-Musical or Comedy, creator-star Sacha Baron Cohen of HBO's "Da Ali G Show" is a comedic genius. The lead character and premise for this Mockumentary are completely original and executed perfectly by veteran TV director Larry Charles. Can a film be both tasteless and socially important? Apparently. Plus you laugh your ass off. 5 *s

BOTTLE ROCKET - 1996 - (luke wilson, owen wilson, james caan) I randomly met Director Wes Anderson on 55th & 6th in Manhattan on my way to work one day back in '96. It was the day after the MTV Movie Awards and he had recieved a best new filmmaker award the night before. I told him his speech about James Caan was really funny even though nobody laughed. He told me that I was the first person in public who had ever recognized him by face. I relish the moment to this day. I also told him what I thought about Bottle Rocket. He couldn't believe I had seen it in the theaters. I did @ The 72nd St. Theater and I saw it with my friend, actress Mandy Siegfried who you may have seen on Grey's Anatomy or Eli Stone. I remember looking at her half-way through and saying, "Ya know what, I have no idea where this movie is going but I like it a lot." FYI: This is Owen Wilson's star-making performance and he co-wrote the screenplay as well so don't miss it. 4 *s

update:

From: Mandy Siegfried http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0797435/ dude! totally awesome! i love that i got a mention in the "bottle rocket" listing on your indies. i soooo totally remember when we saw it. and whenever i that movie comes up in conversation i'm always super proud to say i saw it in the theatre, and i always give you credit for taking me!!! xomanda

BOX OF MOONLIGHT - 1997 - (john turturro, sam rockwell, catherine keener, dermot mulroney) When I met Sam Rockwell years back, the then-future star of (The Green Mile, Charlie Angels and Confessions of a Dangerous Mind) I told him, "No matter what else you ever do in films, you can always point to this one little movie and say you nailed it. It's one of my favorites." Tom DeCillo directed this very awkwardly but it finds it's rhythm about 20 minutes in. This movie is strictly for outside the box thinkers. If you don't really know if you like indie films, I would not recommend you start here but if you want to see some artists taking chances, you got it. 3 *s

BROKEN FLOWERS - 2005 - (bill murray, jeffrey wright, jessica lange, tilda swinton, sharon stone, julie delpy) This is another hilarious slice of americana by Director Jim Jarmusch. Bill Murray's lonely character, has reason to believe he might be someone's father, via the unsigned note. So a roadtrip movie ensues with Bill seeking out all his old flames to find out which 'oven made the bun'. If you have never seen a Jarmusch movie before, sit back, relax and enjoy the freak show. In one scene, he stumbles upon the daughter of one of his exes and she begins to flirt with Bill. He, realising that this could be his daughter gets a little weirded out but when she suddenly and quite casually appears completely nude before him, we feel for his awkward surreal situation. Turned on and turned off at the same time. 2.5 *s

BULLETS OVER BROADWAY - 1994 - (john cusack, chazz palmintieri, dianne wiest, jennifer tilly, jim broadbent, tracey ullman, jack warden, harvey feierstein, mary-louise parker and rob reiner). Woody Allen is about as independent a filmmaker as you can get. His movies often do not make much money but the producers know that with a writing talent of this magnitude, you never know when the next Annie Hall is gonna come. Academy Award nominations for Chazz and Tilly whose scenes together have now become classic. Wiest wins her second supporting actress Oscar from another Woody Allen movie. (Hannah and Her Sisters - '86) A classic. 5 *s

FYI: I almost put Big Night on there too but I really think it's more of a drama. Bob Roberts is close but no cigar, simply 'cause it feels like a lot of work for a very short payoff.

RANKINGS

1) The Big Lebowski

2) Bullets Over Broadway

3) Being John Malkovich

4) Best In Show

5) Borat

6) About a Boy

7) Bottle Rocket

8) Adaptation

9) Before Sunrise

10) The Aristocrats

11) Better Off Dead

12) Box of Moonlight

13) Beautiful Girls

14) Before Sunset

15) American Movie

16) Broken Flowers

I own them all so obviously I'll stand behind any of them. Check 'em out, come back and tell what you think. Did I miss a couple? You tell me.