The 1990s are often considered one of the decades in cinema where nothing important happened. However, this couldn’t be farther from the truth. For the first time, a horror film won the Best Picture Academy Award, a computer-animated film changed the landscape, and special effects brought dinosaurs back to life. These firsts were massive, but they didn’t affect all movie genres.
Comedy didn’t exactly go through big changes in the last decade of the previous millennium. TV sitcoms were huge, but the translation to the big screen wasn’t explosive. It seems as if people were comfortable with lightweight comedies that stayed true to the tone, which made them a safe option for audiences worldwide. You wanted to laugh, and that was OK. Risky comedy had a place in other genre-bending films that didn’t have to follow rules.
As occasional as they are, R-rated comedies have always been the risky and bold choice for studios that have no option but to release them and hope people understand. They are the black sheep of the comedy world, and, as important as comedy was on cable television in the 1990s, in cinemas it was a whole other story. R-rated films are always an experiment when it comes to box-office expectations, and with comedies, the risk is significantly higher.
The following lists those takes. At least the successful ones that were somehow able to survive the scrutiny of R-rated comedies in the family-friendly cinema of the 1990s.
10 American Pie (1999)
In American Pie, a group of idiots makes a pledge. Teenagers of different backgrounds decide they will lose their virginity before high school graduation, regardless of the costs. The agreement has its own rules, of course, but it makes the last days at East Great Falls High School a scenario for disaster, experimenting with pies, and the worst sex education we saw in the 1990s. If you don't know what the title refers to, it's probably best if you see it for yourself.
One of the Greatest Teen Comedies of All Time
Written by Adam Herz and directed by Paul Weitz, the film was considered a failure by Universal Pictures before its release. They just didn't believe in the concept. However, it would turn out to be a very popular film during the birth of the internet and DVD. Home media sales were responsible for a box-office return of more than $100 million.
In retrospect, it may be a bit problematic, but we can't deny it's well-written, and it was a breath of fresh air for audiences who were into the raunchy comedy setting that high school seldom explored.
9 Clerks (1994)
Clerks
- Release Date
- September 13, 1994
In Clerks, we follow the boring and mundane lives of Randal and Dante, two clerks who work beside each other in different stores and have to find a way not to die of boredom while taking care of business in New Jersey. Throughout the day, we see them dealing with every kind of customer and even drug dealers who hang outside the store. This is Kevin Smith's business presentation to the world in a black-and-white epic indie that speaks much more about ourselves than we care to imagine.
The Indie Film that Proved a Filmmaker's Storytelling Talent
The iconic film was shot for less than $30,000, and the setting was the store where Kevin Smith worked. However, it was so well-written that Miramax purchased it after it premiered at Sundance, and after the original and much bleaker ending was changed.
The film was hugely successful with critics who understood the value of Smith's progressive portrayal of angst among young people and how it translated well in a comedy setting. Nevertheless, it would never shed away its profanity-based script, which gives the film a lot of identity but also gives it a lot of detractors.
8 Dazed and Confused (1993)
It's May 28, 1976. The city is Austin, Texas, and the venue is Lee High School. In Richard Linklater's coming-of-age film, Dazed and Confused, all bets are off and decency is taking a break. It's the last day of school, and without focusing on a single character or a group of them, Linklater perfectly portrays the rituals of growing up in the middle of the 1970s. Also, Linklater does not filter out any of the things that make it the "ugly" decade for youth, where America could really be a teenage wasteland.
The One That Spoke to an Entire Generation in a Straight-Forward Fashion
The film wasn't exactly a stoner film, like it was marketed to be. In fact, many of the things about its promotion showed Gramercy Pictures having no clue about Linklater's comedy.
This "disagreement" with Linklater caused the film to be underseen, but it would eventually become a cult classic over the years, with many considering it the perfect coming-of-age that talked to young people the way it had to. It's the American Graffiti of the new generation, with a few problematic elements that fall secondary to Linklater's ability to speak loud and clear to everyone.
7 The Big Lebowski (1998)
In The Big Lebowski, a bowler and slacker aptly named The Dude, as he calls himself, is mistaken for a millionaire who shares his last name. When the millionaire's wife is kidnapped, The Dude is hired to deliver the ransom money, but he gets in a pickle when his best friend decides otherwise and plans a hit to keep the money. This is one of the best films by the Coen Bros., but it's also one of their most misunderstood ones.
A Crime Comedy Unlike Any Other
The film is a weird depiction of absurdist American values, seen through the lenses of filmmakers with a knack for writing unique characters. The Big Lebowski is peak "crime comedy" with too much profanity that probably made it deserve its R-rating. But in retrospect, it also feels like one of the safest Coen films ever made, regardless of the violent nature of the crime element of its plot. A box-office flop during its release that solidly became an extremely effective cult film.
6 The Full Monty (1997)
The Full Monty (1997)
- Release Date
- August 13, 1997
The Full Monty follows Gaz and Dave, two former steel mill workers who are trying to survive unemployment. Gaz and Dave are only two of the hundreds of workers in Sheffield who are begging for work. However, Gaz gets an idea: what if they could gather a group of men who could be willing to dance exotically for money? The answer would surprise you, and it turns out to be one of the funniest English comedies ever made.
A Very Underrated and Funny Comedy That Will Speak to You Directly
Featuring Tom Wilkinson in one of his best performances, The Full Monty was a worldwide success that not many believed could be so compelling. However, Simon Beaufoy's beautiful script was clever, funny, and endearing enough to make people identify themselves with the underdogs who dared shake their booty to survive.
The film was also nominated for Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director, and it would end up winning Best Original Score, one of the most controversial wins in Oscars history.
5 The Birdcage (1996)
Based on the French film La Cage aux Folles, The Birdcage starred Robin Williams and Nathan Lane as Armand and Albert. Armand is the openly gay manager of a nightclub, and Albert is his flamboyant boyfriend who performs drag in the club. When Armand’s son plans to get married, he asks his dad to meet his in-laws.
The problem is that the in-laws are a conservative couple who don’t know the reality about Armand and Albert, and when it's time for the families to meet, Albert will push the boundaries.
Nothing Like Good, Risky Humor
The film’s humor is… risky. Perhaps it’s the depiction of queer culture, or perhaps some just don’t click with Armand’s insistence on covering his reality. In any case, it’s an extremely funny film featuring great comedic performances and a third act that will make you crack more than once. Yes, it’s a remake, and yes, some jokes don’t work the same, but the story is just too good and interesting, made better by Mike Nichols' ability to direct comedy.
4 Office Space (1999)
Office Space follows Peter Gibbons, an unhappy programmer working for a software company in the ‘90s. His girlfriend doesn’t satisfy him, he’s in love with another girl, and the vice president of the company often forces him to work overtime. Welcome to Initech, a frustrated IT guy’s worst nightmare and the place where none of your dreams will come true, and your co-workers are just as frustrated as the one dude who dares speak his mind every once in a while.
A Smart and Profane Attack on Corporate Rules
Directed by Mike Judge during his creative prime, Office Space was the live-action materialization of the animated segment Milton, which often aired on Saturday Night Live. The adaptation was eerily realistic and followed Judge’s comedy style, which didn’t pull any punches and often made fun of elements that weren’t considered worth exploring.
The film is a smart rendering of office culture, before shows like The Office capitalized on that, and probably one of the best comedy films of the 1990s.
3 There's Something About Mary (1998)
There's Something About Mary
- Release Date
- July 15, 1998
The romantic comedy by the Farrelly brothers, There's Something About Mary, follows Ted Stroehmann, a magazine writer whose achievements in life are plenty, but none of those compare to being close enough to date his crush, Mary Jensen. He actually had a chance to take her to prom, but an incident left him incapacitated.
Now a fully grown man, Ted, is trying to seek Mary again, and to do this, he hires a private investigator who will find out where Mary is today. The problem is that Mary is beautiful enough to captivate everyone to the point of madness.
An Underrated Comedy That Will Never Feel Outdated
There's Something About Mary was made by the Farrelly dudes during their prime, and the film has plenty of gross elements to make it a signature film in the career of filmmakers who dared to go too far and mostly enjoyed the outcome.
It's a comedy that dives deep into the world of body horror, with a few sequences that will make you laugh as you try to keep your stomach stable. Fortunately, the presence of Ben Stiller makes it bearable, and Cameron Diaz as Mary is probably the best performance of her career.
2 Analyze This (1999)
Analyze This was one of two displays of gangster panic in the 1990s. The Sopranos being the other more serious one, this film by Harold Ramis truly went the comedy route and portrayed the ruthless mafia boss Paul Vitti having a breakdown and losing his grit. Luckily, he meets a psychiatrist named Ben Sobel after an incident on the street, and the reluctant shrink becomes Vitti's advisor and doctor. Will Sobel be able to help a man whose morals are anything but decent?
A Good Gangster Film, Disguised as an R-Rated Comedy
The film is a solid display of gangster comedy. Led by Billy Crystal and Robert De Niro, Analyze This proved that the tough dudes who led the crime underworld could also have a personality and show their weakness.
However, the film went all about ridiculing the mafia bosses and portraying them as vulnerable, as we hadn't seen before. This makes the shift to crime thriller a bit disconcerting, but director Harold Ramis holds everything together with a solid script that sharply balances crime and comedy.
1 Friday (1995)
F. Gary Gray, mostly famous for directing music videos, adapted a screenplay by Ice Cube and DJ Pooh, and Friday was released in 1995. The film follows Craig and Smokey, two dudes living in South Central Los Angeles who spend a Friday smoking pot. The problem is that Smokey is a drug dealer, and he was supposed to sell the stash. Now Big Worm is pissed, and if they don't pay him $200, they will be killed at the end of the day.
The Buddy Comedy That's Much Smarter than You'd Think
One of the funniest Black movies ever made, Friday turned into a cult film very quickly, as it was the change "hood films" needed in the 1990s. Sure, Boyz in the Hood was extremely important because of its realism, but Friday offered another view of the same world, with the same energy and confidence.
Violence is violence, and Friday didn't exactly cut it, but seen through the eyes of well-designed characters, it was authentic and more poignant in retrospect. When it comes to effective R-rated comedies with no agenda but to entertain, this is exactly what you're looking for.
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