As
you probably know by know, legendary comedic actor-writer-director (and Chicago
native and Second City alum) Harold Ramis died yesterday at the age of 69 as a
result of an autoimmune disease. This is
a huge loss for the comedy world, as Ramis wrote, directed, and starred in some
of the best comedies of the last 35 years.
Ramis
is probably best known as Egon in the Ghostbusters movies, but his talents
behind the scenes were, in my opinion, far greater than his on-screen acting
talent. That's not meant as a knock on
Ramis's acting, which was perfectly fine, but Ramis was a great director and an
even better writer, writing or co-writing legendary comedies like Animal House,
Caddyshack, and Ghostbusters. To say
that he was influential on an entire generation (or two) of comedic writers and
actors is an understatement. The films
that he wrote always seemed to have that perfect balance of smart humor,
irreverence, screwball, and physical comedy.
Below
are my ten favorite films that Ramis wrote or co-wrote, acted in, and/or
directed. Before I delve into the list, I
have to get an embarrassing caveat out there.
I have never seen Groundhog Day (which Ramis directed, co-wrote,
produced, and had a role in) or Back to School (which Ramis co-wrote and
produced). It's not that I don't want to
see either film. For some reason, I have
just never happened to see either of them, other than random parts of Back to
School when it's been on TV. Thus,
neither film is on my list.
10. As Good As It Gets (1997) (acted in)
Ramis
had a minor role in As Good As It Gets, but I still like this movie better than
my other two options, the Ramis-directed Stuart Saves His Family or Caddyshack
II (which Ramis co-wrote).
9. Analyze This (1999) (directed and co-wrote)
This
was kind of a surprise comedy hit, giving Robert DeNiro a nice little second
career as a comedic actor, as he went on to star in the Meet the Parents
trilogy and the sequel to this, Analyze That.
Up until Analyze This was released, DeNiro, of course, was a highly
regarded dramatic actor, often playing mafia men, boxers, or other
hardasses. In Analyze This, he played a
mob boss who goes to a psychiatrist (Billy Crystal) for help with anxiety, and DeNiro's
dramatic background made his comedic lines hit even that much harder.
8. Meatballs (1979) (co-wrote)
This
was Bill Murray's first starring role, and it's an underrated comedy. When I was a kid, I often confused Meatballs
and Porky's, both of which are fantastic movies, but Meatballs is PG and does
not involve peepholes looking into showers.
Rather, it involves a below-average summer camp, and Murray as the camp
counselor who tries to keep everything together and help his camp beat the
rival rich kids' summer camp in their yearly Olympiad. I haven't seen it in forever. Perhaps it's time again.
7. Knocked Up (2007) (acted in)
Judd
Apatow has cited Ramis as a big influence, and Ramis played the father of Seth
Rogen's character Ben in Knocked Up. It
wasn't a huge role or anything, but it is a pretty damn funny movie.
6. Ghostbusters II (1989) (starred in and
co-wrote)
As
far as sequels goes, this has to be near the top of the list as far as being
almost as good as the original. I
definitely remember watching this in the theater with my friend Floppy Burrito
in the summer of '89. Vigo the
Carpathian was a pretty solid villain/ghost, and anytime you can involve the
potential possession of a baby, the stakes are raised.
5. Ghostbusters (1984) (starred in and co-wrote)
Obviously,
this is a classic, and, aside from Stripes, it was probably Ramis's biggest on-screen
role. Any kid who grew up in the '80s
has seen this, probably multiple times.
4. Stripes (1981) (starred in and co-wrote)
I
love Stripes. If you haven't seen it, go
ahead and rent it, stream it, or download it.
It's the tale of two unemployed friends who decide to join the Army and,
subsequently, get sent to Europe. Ramis's
character Russell was the straight guy to Bill Murray's character John, who was
the wild card. Sgt. Hulka is the
loveable drill sergeant, and Sean Young and P.J. Soles play the attractive MPs
with whom Russell and John fall in love.
Good times all around.
3. National Lampoon's Vacation (1983) (directed)
The
first in the "Vacation" series, this is probably my second-favorite
one of the group (after Christmas Vacation, of course). This movie had it all: Chevy Chase at his best, Christie
Brinkley skinny dipping, Walley World, that bitch Aunt Edna, Christie Brinkley skinny dipping, cousin Eddie, that ridiculous station wagon, and, of course, Christie Brinkley skinny dipping.
2. National Lampoon's Animal House (1978)
(co-wrote)
Hands
down, one of the funniest movies of all-time, based in part on Ramis's and the
other writers' respective fraternity experiences in college. This was the first film made by National
Lampoon's, and also the first film for John Belushi, Kevin Bacon, and Karen
Allen. This is one of those movies that
you watch and you realize how many lines have now been appropriated into mainstream
culture and conversation ("Fat, drunk, and stupid is no way to go through life."; "Thank you sir! May I have another?"; "double secret probation"; "Grab a brew. Don't cost nothin'."; "My advice to you is to start drinking heavily"; "
1. Caddyshack (1980) (directed and co-wrote)
I
remember watching Caddyshack at some point in the fall of 2006 for the however
many dozenth time. I had recently
started taking writing classes at Second City, and I remember thinking to myself
that, no matter how funny I think I might be or how good of a comedy writer I
may turn out to be, there's not a chance in hell that I could ever write
something as perfectly funny as Caddyshack.
It really is the gold standard for comedies, in my opinion. Sure, some memorable lines (particularly by
Bill Murray) were improvised, but there are so many fantastic one-liners and
subtle jokes in this movie that you seem to pick up something new each time you
see it. I'm pretty sure I could never
get tired of watching Caddyshack.
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