And no, calling something a smart comedy doesn’t mean it’s boring, preachy, or trying to act superior. It means the script understands timing, character building, ideas, and that everything making you laugh is there for a reason. With that in mind, here are some of the smartest comedies of the past few years that are absolutely worth your time and will give you a genuinely great viewing experience.
7) Licorice Pizza
image courtesy of united artists releasing
Licorice Pizza has absolutely no idea what it means to be a traditional comedy, and that’s why it catches you off guard. It delivers something you don’t see that often in movies: disastrous hangouts and messy business schemes that are truly entertaining, but without relying on forced jokes. The humor here comes from the timing of the situations and the incredible chemistry between Gary (Cooper Hoffman) and Alana (Alana Haim), two young people trying to figure each other out while also trying to figure themselves out. And at first, everything feels trivial, but the comedy is rooted in the film’s ability to pull humor out of everyday life.
This is an extremely smart movie because it knows exactly where to find comedy. Gary is a teenager who wants to be an actor and an entrepreneur, while Alana is an older woman who unexpectedly gets pulled into his chaotic plans. From one disaster to the next (especially painfully awkward social encounters), you end up laughing at the mess and vulnerability of these characters. In other words, Licorice Pizza proves that laughing at real people, at the sincerity of human behavior, at something spontaneous and natural, is way more fun than just throwing a punchline into the script.
6) A Real Pain
image courtesy of searchlight pictures
A Real Pain is the kind of movie that doesn’t try to be funny at all, which makes it perfect for anyone who can enjoy the genre without needing to laugh every five seconds. The story introduces David (Jesse Eisenberg) and Benji (Kieran Culkin), two cousins who travel to Poland and end up spiraling into arguments, misunderstandings, and some uncomfortable situations. But none of it is played in that obvious “comedy mode.” Since the film is really about family, identity, and even generational conflict, it becomes entertaining because the characters’ reactions feel real. The humor comes from how natural and exaggerated their behavior is in the middle of all that tension.
If you had to sum it up, A Real Pain is a pure character-driven comedy. The best part is the dynamic between the two leads (and yes, a lot of it comes down to the performances): one is constantly anxious, while the other is completely carefree. That contrast turns their trip into a chaotic experience that still finds the right moments to touch on heavier themes like grief and belonging. Basically, it’s the kind of film that proves you don’t need nonstop jokes — you just need characters who feel complex and human enough for the situation to become funny on its own.
5) Barbie
image courtesy of warner bros.
One of the biggest breakout hits in recent years, Barbie is basically known by the entire world. And while a lot of the dramatic moments got most of the attention, the truth is that this movie is a layered comedy through and through. Here, Barbie (Margot Robbie) leaves her perfect hometown and enters the real world, facing an existential crisis and having to deal with impossible standards of perfection. Naturally, the humor comes from the clash between an idealized fantasy world and real-life chaos, mixing gender satire, social commentary, and some absurd moments that work because they connect to real-life struggles people actually recognize.
Of course, Ken (Ryan Gosling) is another element that adds plenty of fun and keeps things light enough for you to relax and laugh, but Barbie is smart overall because its jokes are designed to hit where the audience lives. You laugh at the craziness, but you also stop for a second and think about what it’s saying. It could’ve been just a colorful adventure, but instead it goes further, turning into a “message comedy” disguised as a blockbuster. And it’s definitely rewatchable too.
4) Poor Things
image courtesy of searchlight pictures
Poor Things is the kind of film you never expect to watch in your life, but once you do, you can’t get it out of your head. In it, Bella (Emma Stone) is a reanimated woman who has to learn how the world works while always throwing herself into completely unhinged and often bizarre situations. But this isn’t a traditional comedy at all, because the humor is unpredictable, grotesque, and sharp at the same time. It comes from the clash between the protagonist’s innocence and the ridiculous way everyone around her behaves.
The movie manages to be funny while still feeling brutally incisive. The whole point is to play with social norms and expectations, and the tone makes sure the funniest scenes also work as a commentary on humanity itself. Honestly, Poor Things is the kind of comedy that challenges you, makes you uncomfortable, and somehow entertains you through that discomfort. Bella has zero filter, so just imagine what she’s capable of doing and how everyone reacts to it. It’s a bold experience with no clichés, no easy gags, and unlike anything else you’ve seen in modern cinema.
3) Everything Everywhere All at Once
image courtesy of a24
If you think comedy and the multiverse don’t mix, Everything Everywhere All at Once proves you wrong. Here, we meet Evelyn (Michelle Yeoh), an ordinary woman who discovers she can access endless versions of herself while trying to save her family. And between surreal fight scenes and the infamous hot-dog fingers, the movie throws action, chaos, and humor at you nonstop — but it works because everything carries emotional weight and actually helps build the characters. That alone shows how smart the script is, even if at first glance it looks like pure madness.
And it’s exactly because there’s so much going on that Everything Everywhere All at Once ends up being so impressive, since none of the absurdity is random. The multiverse concept is used to exaggerate family problems, life choices, and personal conflicts, making you laugh while still feeling weirdly seen. It’s basically similar to what Barbie does, but with ten times more happening on screen. It’s inventive, surprising, and above all, really funny in a way that only fully lands if you pay attention to the details and the layers hidden inside the jokes.
2) Hit Man
image courtesy of netflix
To put it simply, Hit Man is fun because it knows how to laugh at itself. Here, we meet Gary Johnson (Glen Powell), a philosophy professor who, in his free time, works as a fake hitman for the police in order to catch people trying to hire someone to commit a crime. Things take a turn when he breaks protocol to help an unexpected client and ends up falling for her. In the middle of all that, he starts mixing his real life with the different personas he invents. Sounds like a standard rom-com setup, right? But what makes it stand out is the contradiction between who the protagonist really is and who he has to pretend to be.
That’s why Hit Man is built around great timing and clever dialogue that actually lands — and that’s the key difference. It’s way more than its premise suggests. The movie uses the genre to touch on bigger topics like identity, ethics, and human relationships, but without ever turning heavy or preachy. Instead, it leans into a drier, more situation- and dialogue-based kind of humor, without making it feel like it’s trying to make a point. It’s a perfectly balanced approach, and it’s not dumb at all — if anything, it’s basically a conceptual joke.
1) Bottoms
image courtesy of mgm
Bottoms is one of the boldest comedies of the decade, and it still doesn’t get nearly enough credit. The story follows PJ (Rachel Sennott) and Josie (Ayo Edebiri), two unpopular high school friends who start a fight club to get closer to their crushes. But even though the premise sounds like just another teen movie setup, it really isn’t. The film actively satirizes the clichés of the genre, along with its rules and the entire logic of high school behavior, delivering witty dialogue and dry one-liners nonstop. It might look like a goofy, over-the-top comedy at first, but it’s actually using that chaos as a critique.
Bottoms isn’t just a film that makes you laugh at ridiculous situations; it makes you laugh at something bigger than a joke that seems silly on the surface. It’s like the production is openly admitting it knows teen movies with social hierarchies, arrogant athletes, incompetent principals, rivalries, and party scenes have always been ridiculous, so it just decides to make that obvious and mock it. But it’s not so extreme that it turns into a mess. The script feels like it was written by someone who was genuinely tired of the formula and decided to explore friendship, sexuality, and power in a way that actually works.
What do you think of these comedies? Have you watched any of them? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
