Martin at 2010-05-04 09:20:41:

To start:

Duck Soup
A Night at the Opera
Harold and Maude
Dr. Strangelove
A Fish Called Wanda
Annie Hall
Local Hero
Being There
Monty Python and the Holy Grail
Life of Brian
The Meaning of Life

j at 2010-05-04 09:47:26:

First of all, GREAT SITE - useful, enjoyable, helpful.

Your inclusion of The 40 Year-Old Virgin on your list of excellent comedy screenplays leads me to a couple of questions I've had about writing 'Apatow' type films -

What should I be looking for in the scripts for these types of movies since they're so heavily improvised? With The 40 Year-Old Virgin screenplay in particular, most of beats match up to the movie, but much of the dialogue does not.

I've read that The 40 Year-Old Virgin shot over a million feet of film. And Anchorman had enough unused footage, alternate takes and abandoned subplots to make the 90 minute Wake Up, Ron Burgundy "Lost Movie".

Is there a market for these types of screenplays from new screenwriters or are these the type of scripts which only proven producers and stars can get made?

Are today's adult comedies more about the concept than the screenplay?

Ricardo Cantoral at 2010-05-04 10:15:03:

To me it's very hard to recommend my all time favorites from geniuses as Harold Lloyd or Buster Keaton. I don't even know how much their work was written on the screen. Or they just hammered some details on paper and took from there.

Also I fail to see how anyone could learn good screen writing from those CGI-animated comedies you listed there. Especially Rataouille which seems to thrive on the character being bland.

Anyways I actually do have recommendations and limiting myself to just two from each creator, at most.:

The Odd Couple
The Producers
Young Frankenstein
Airplane !
The Naked Gun
Sliver Streak (Could actually fall in-line with a thriller as well)
The Nutty Professor (1963)
Back To The Future
Bad Santa

Christian H. at 2010-05-04 10:27:12:

New:
I Love you Man
Old School

Old:
Mad, Mad world
Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum

General:
The In-Laws
What Happens in Vegas
Down Periscope
League of their Own
Mother

CD at 2010-05-04 11:01:48:

One of my favorites is a spec script, the 40K man. I laughed throughout...worth tracking down.

* * *

The $40,000 Man, a comedy spoof written by John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein. The story revolves around a heroic astronaut who is horribly injured in a car accident. On a budget of a mere $40,000, the government rebuilds him into a not-so-bionic man by the government.

* * *

Local Hero is a great film, too. I actually like it so much, I have the novelization of the movie...

Scott at 2010-05-04 11:58:41:

@j: You wrote this:

"Is there a market for these types of screenplays from new screenwriters or are these the type of scripts which only proven producers and stars can get made?

Are today's adult comedies more about the concept than the screenplay?"

How about I respond as part of the Reader Question series I do every other week or so? I do have some thoughts on the matter.

Walter at 2010-05-04 12:09:10:

Here's a few others:

Meet the Parents
Liar, Liar
Wedding Crashers
The Wedding Singer
Four Weddings & A Funeral
Analyze This
Broadcast News
Mrs. Doubtfire
When Harry Met Sally
The Pianist

Geralyn at 2010-05-04 13:16:32:

Just off the top of my head (I'm not at home so I can't look at my collection):
Dr. Strangelove
anything by Preston Sturges
Monty Python's Life of Brian

All older but great writing.

Rob Fuller at 2010-05-04 14:25:11:

The Apartment
Blazing Saddles
Dr. Strangelove
Friday--Ice Cube, not Jason.
Dazed and Confused
Coming to America
Trading Places
Some Like It Hot.
His Girl Friday
Bringing Up Baby

Darren at 2010-05-04 16:01:47:

I have noted this on the forum already, but I think American Pie -- despite its gross-out humour -- has a terrific screenplay. It is a very fun read and you can see immediately why it sold -- the writing is sharp and the characters are interesting.