Netflix is a bottomless pool of content that contains infinite hours worth of streaming movies and television. Choosing what to watch next can be a daunting task, especially when your queue adds up. Fortunately, there are ways to separate the fluff from the gems: Rotten Tomatoes.
For those who enjoy comedy movies, this list assembles 10 hilarious features currently available on Netflix that are certified fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, a website that collects and aggregates critical reviews for movies. These are 10 of the funniest and most well-received comedies, and they are just a click away.
The Little Hours (2017) - 78%
A unique black comedy written and directed by Jeff Baena, The Little Hours focuses on a medieval convent in 14th century Italy. Baena is known for co-writing I Heart Huckabees with David O. Russell and for directing Life After Beth and Joshy. He brings his quirky style to The Little Hours, which is full of anachronisms and updated dialogue.
The nuns at the center of the movie are played by Alison Brie, Aubrey Plaza, and Kate Micucci. Dave Franco plays Massetto, a young man on the run who poses as a deaf-mute gardener in order to hide out at the convent. The film's action is loosely based on the first two books of Boccaccio's 14th century comedic epic The Decameron.
Other People (2013) - 85%
This dramatic comedy is the first feature from Chris Kelly, a writer for Saturday Night Life. Loosely autobiographical, Other People stars Jesse Plemmons and Molly Shannon, who are supported by Bradley Whitford and Zach Woods.
Plemmons plays David, a gay man who returns home when he finds out his mother Joanne, played by Shannon, has advanced cancer. David's conservative father, played by Whitford, doesn't accept his sexual identity, and he struggles to fit in while attempting to be present for his sick mother. While not the most uplifting comedy, Other People is an honest and compelling story about family and loss.
As Good As It Gets (1997) - 85%
James L. Brooks's comedy swept the Oscars in 1998, earning both Jack Nicholson and Helen Hunt awards. This film is a whimsical character study focused on a trio of eccentric New Yorkers whose lives converge in interesting ways.
Nicholson plays an OCD romance novelist named Melvin who spends most of his time avoiding people and sidewalk cracks. Hunt plays a waitress at a local diner who tolerates Melvin's quirks. Alongside Nicholson and Hunt, Greg Kinnear plays Melvin's neighbor, a gay artist who is assaulted during a robbery at the beginning of the film. As they all deal with their own struggles, they learn to find solace in each other.
Chasing Amy (1997) - 87%
Kevin Smith's hey-day romantic comedy is defined by the raunchiness and dialogue-heavy jokes he's known for. Ben Affleck and Jason Lee star here as a pair of comic book writers. While promoting their latest series at a convention, Affleck's character Holden meets and develops a crush on a female comic book writer named Alyssa.
Alyssa, played by Joey Lauren Adams, tells Holden she is a lesbian, but they end up becoming friends. One night, their relationship becomes sexual. Head over heels, Holden grapples with the itinerant nature of their time together.
The Lobster (2016) - 88%
Greek auteur Yorgos Lanthimos is responsible for this unique sci-fi comedy starring Colin Farrell and Rachel Weisz. In the dystopian world brought to life in the movie, Farrell's character David is forced to go to a special hotel after his wife leaves him. It turns out David has 45 days to find love at the hotel, or there will be consequences.
The consequence is David will be transformed into an animal of his own choosing if he doesn't make a genuine connection with someone. As he attempts to develop a romance with Weisz's character, David also learns about a group of loners who live in exile in the wooded expanse outside the hotel.
Paddleton (2019) - 90%
Paddleton is a lo-fi comedy with a deadly serious plot. Co-written by and starring Mark Duplass, it tells the story of a man who discovers he has terminal stomach cancer. Duplass plays the man, Michael, who confides in his best friend and neighbor Andy, played by Ray Romano, that he plans to end his own life in lieu of enduring chemotherapy or a drawn-out process.
Michael and Andy go on a final hurrah together, which includes playing their favorite game, one of their own creation: Paddleton. Understated and real, Paddleton finds humor in one of the most heartwrenching life circumstances.
A Serious Man (2009) - 90%
A Serious Man is the most explicitly Jewish of the Coen brothers' feature films, and it is also one of their most underrated comedies. It stars Michael Stuhlbarg as Larry Gopnik, a physics professor working and living in 1967 Minnesota. Larry's life slowly unravels, leading him into a crisis of faith.
Like Job in the Old Testament, Larry's personal and professional security is swept from underneath him. Stuhlbarg gives a hysterical performance as a man at his wit's end.
Frances Ha (2013) - 92%
Noah Baumbach directed this black and white comedy he co-wrote with the film's star, Greta Gerwig. Gerwig plays an aspiring dancer living in New York named Frances, a 27-year-old on the brink of having to make some serious decisions about her future.
Gerwig gives a relatable and lively performance here, one informed by her own experiences as a budding actor and director. Mickey Sumner, Adam Driver, and Michael Zegen co-star in this imaginative and playful testament to being in your 20s.
The Edge Of Seventeen (2016) - 94%
The Edge of Seventeen is the directorial debut from Kelly Fremon Craig. This coming-of-age comedy stars Hailee Steinfeld as a self-center teen named Nadine who deals with all the normal challenges bestowed upon people her age. These challenges range from misguided crushes to fights with best friends to intense moments of personal reflection.
Woody Harrelson stars alongside Steinfeld as Mr. Bruner, one of her high school teachers who becomes a mentor for Nadine.
Dolemite Is My Name (2019) - 97%
Dolemite is My Name is a legit comedy comeback for Eddie Murphy. Murphy plays Rudy Ray Moore in this biopic, a well-known blaxploitation filmmaker and comedian who portrayed the character Dolemite in multiple movies. Directed by Craig Brewer, known for 2005's Hustle & Flow, the film one of Murphy's best.
As Moore, Murphy plays up the egotistical and bombastic nature of his character's legacy. The film highlights how Moore and other black actors in Hollywood came together to establish a creative force for themselves in the '70s.