Horror comedy!
Everyone’s favourite way to appreciate the darker side on the spectrum of human humour
- without feeling slightly guilty about laughing at someone’s mortal misfortune.
Because after all, that’s the whole point - right?
From gallows humour to oversaturated gore that teeters on the edge of insanity - dark
comedy has often acted as a foil to the rest of horror cinema - by getting away with some
of the most insane horror concepts going - all for the sake of some well deserved laughs.
And luckily for us - there’s a whole bunch to choose from.
Hello horror fans - what’s going on, and once again, welcome back to the scariest channel
on YouTube - Top 5 Scary Videos.
As per usual, I’ll be your horror host Jack Finch - as today, we curiously take a look
at the Top 5 Scariest Horror Comedies Of All Time.
Roll the clip.
For the curious amongst you, that was the gross Drayton Sawyer telling Texas just exactly
what goes in his prize-winning chilli in the events of Tobe Hooper’s The Texas Chainsaw
Massacre 2 - and it addresses an important point.
Some films are comedy horrors and some films are horror comedies - but whichever way you
spin it, there are just far too many classics to fit into a five point list - so consider
these many honorable mentions taking a 6th spot all for themselves - Re-Animator, Cabin
In The Woods, Creepshow, From Dusk Till Dawn, Night of the Creeps, American Werewolf in
London, Fright Night - literally, the list goes on, and on.
But let’s jump into this one.
Kicking off at Number 5 - What We Do In The Shadows, 2014
Because we are Werewolves, not Swearwolves - and there is perhaps no finer horror-comedy
mockumentary than What We Do In The Shadows - mainly being that it’s not exactly the
most contested sub-genre - but that also doesn’t detract from the fact that it’s one of the
most hilarious and horrifying horror comedies of the past few decades.
If you’re yet to see What We Do In The Shadows - consider this a friendly reminder, because
it’s one of the most enjoyable experiences that a horror fan can have when it comes to
modern day vampire fiction - and yes, I’m including Twilight in that.
Alright, that was a joke.
Come on, this is a horror comedy list!
For those of you that don’t know - What We Do In The Shadows is a mockumentary written
and directed by Taika Waititi and Jemaine Clement, that tells the tale of a group of
vampires living in modern day Wellington, New Zealand, as they prowl the streets at
night - looking for innocent victims to feast upon to feed their cursed, immortal souls.
It’s a fly on the wall piece, that is incredibly self aware - and uses those same conventions
and fictional cultural perceptions of vampires as it’s bread and butter - and within that
incredibly simple premise, it manages to find some of the most hilarious instances of gallows
humour and dark comedy, often ignored in the rest of horror cinema.
The most important part of this film though - is that it’s just so much fun to watch.
It’s different without ever trying to be - and nothing about this movie ever feels
out of place.
Also, it’s spawned a spin-off T.V series on FX - starring some of the finest comics
in British comedy - Kayvan Novak, Matt Berry and Natasia Demetriou - so after you’ve
watched this, watch that too.
Next up at Number 4 - Evil Dead 2, 1987
So the thing is, in 1981 - Sam Raimi decided to make one of the most shocking and iconic
horror movies of the decade, The Evil Dead - where Bruce Campbell’s iconic Ash Williams
was born in a spawn of demonic trees and deadites - and then several years later, Raimi decided
to revisit his horror legacy in the only unique way that he knew how.
He made his sequel a parody of itself - and in doing so, created one of the most hilarious
intentional comedies in horror cinema.
And I’d just like to add to that point - how much of an incredibly brave move for a director
to take that is, and it would likely be unprecedented in today’s industry.
But hey - Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell.
They do things their own way.
And of course - the sequel serves to make its initial point by rehashing all of the
old tropes of the first, but this time, Raimi makes them hilarious.
Demonic cabin in the woods.
Necronomicon.
Deadites.
Ancient daggers.
Terrifying Demonic Trees.
Evil Dead 2 is literally a carbon copy of the first film - but in a strange, oddly familiar
way - and that also makes things easier for the audience to digest from a comedic perspective.
We expect one thing - and then Raimi pulls the rug from beneath us - in a bright burst
of slapstick gore and perfect comedic timing from Campbell, who manages to turn Ash Williams
into a can’t catch a break, sick of it all anti-hero in the space of 90 minutes.
Now, don’t get me wrong - Army of Darkness also probably deserves to be on this list,
but Evil Dead 2 takes its place on originality alone.
There is nothing like it - and there probably won’t ever be.
Coming in at Number 3 - Tucker & Dale vs. Evil, 2010
And talking of originality - there probably won’t be anything like this film either
- because there is something that is just so damn captivating when watching a fresh
new take on a horror convention, that lends itself perfectly to horror comedy subversion.
Tucker & Dale vs. Evil is one of the funniest films of the 21st century - and if like me
you discovered it without any idea on what the hell it was - then that made for even
better viewing.
I legitimately went into Tucker & Dale with the perception of it being a straight up horror
- and that made it even more hilarious when I realised what the hell was going on.
Written and directed by Eli Craig - it tells the tale of a group of clueless college students
who are convinced they’re being stalked by some murderous hillbillies.
Turns out though - the jokes on them - because those murderous hillbillies are actually Tucker
and Dale, played by Alan Tudyk and Tyler Labine - two of the nicest guys in the forest, who
can’t help but stare in shock and awe at these damn college kids who can’t stop throwing
themselves in woodchippers.
I don’t really want to say any more - because if you haven’t yet seen Tucker & Dale - please,
stop what you’re doing and go and watch it right now.
This film is hilarious - with some of the tightest dialogue and delivery in the whole
of horror comedy - and more impressively, it came as the debut feature of director Eli
Craig - which definitely says something about a fresh perspective.
Most importantly though - despite being from a genre that is so often lauded for it’s
nihilism and lack of moral fiber - this film has heart.
Like, real heart.
Swinging in at Number 2 - Return of the Living Dead, 1985
Of course - Rabid Weasels.
Because what do you get when you cross a few warehouse workers with an off-beat mortician,
a bunch of teenage punks - and a horde of brain-hungry zombies?
Return of the Living Dead, of course - perhaps one of the finest zombie satires in the whole
of horror cinema.
And the beauty of this film - as well as the main reason why it works so well as a comedy
- is in it’s DIY sensibility.
It pretty much took the whole meaning of punk culture - threw it into a blender with a few
semi-sentient zombies - and out we got Return of the Living Dead.
But also, despite demonstrating some of the most insanely entertaining physical effects
of the 80s - the reason that this film is so damn funny, isn’t because of the over-the-top
gross outs - it’s because of it’s dialogue and deadpan delivery.
This film has one of the funniest lines in horror cinema - that systematically manages
to poke fun at the zombie genre and horror conventions in general.
I won’t spoil it for you - but when you know, you know.
This film is everything you’d expect from a zombie apocalypse - only if it went to clown
school and somehow managed to become an expert in every slapstick trick in the book.
It’s like Airplane - just without the Airplane - and a warehouse full of brain hungry zombies.
And despite all of that - it’s not dated in any way.
There’s a reason why the true classics of both horror AND comedy always stand the test
of time, and 1985’s Return of the Living Dead is both of those things at once.
Yeah.
Of course it makes this list.
And finally - coming in at our Number 1 spot - Shaun of the Dead, 2004
Because although this particular Number 1 spot may come across as a little biased - I’m
going to go out on a limb, and say that Shaun of the Dead is the greatest horror comedy
ever made.
There.
I said it.
And well - it is.
So far - anyway - and much like Return of the Living Dead, it relies on the subversion
of horror convention to find the vast majority of its humour - *but* - the thing that sets
these two apart, is that in a strange, uniquely British fashion - Shaun of the Dead actually
still somehow manages to hold up as a zombie apocalypse movie.
Again, unlike Return of the Living Dead - it doesn’t necessarily rely on the Undead Hordes
of Zombies to find it’s humour by poking fun at the concept - but instead finds it
in the frustrated intrusion of the main cast - because, let’s face it - if a zombie apocalypse
did happen in Britain, it would be more of a massive inconvenience than anything - personified
in this case, by the brilliant Simon Pegg who plays Shaun - alongside his layabout,
lovable roommate Ed - played by the resounding Nick Frost.
Shaun of the Dead is an enigma in that sense - but by no means is it too out-there, in
any way.
In fact, its rooted firmly in a tried and tested sensibility of both horror and comedy
- it just does them both really, really well.
Written and directed by Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg, Shaun of the Dead is the first entry
in the duo’s Cornetto Trilogy - followed by Hot Fuzz and The World’s End - which
are definitely worth a look-see, Hot Fuzz in particular - but both of them don’t quite
live up to the genuine joy of horror cinema that Shaun of the Dead captures.
It’s a horror comedy written by fans of both horror and comedy - for fans of both
horror and comedy.
For me, it takes the number one spot - time and time again.
And if the zombie apocalypse ever happens - give me a cricket bat - because you’ve
got red on you.
Well - there we have it horror fans - our five point list for the Top 5 Greatest Horror
Comedies Of All Time.
I know for a FACT that there will be many of you doing grammatical somersaults down
in the comment section below - but please take note that of course, this is only five
points - and there are many, many more entries that could’ve comprised this list.
So, in that case - why don’t you let us know your thoughts - as well as your own choice
picks - and who knows, maybe we can cobble up a part 2.
Before we depart from today’s video though - let’s first take a quick look at some
of your more creative comments from over the past few days.
Joe Terrance Universe says --
The Jack Is Back - that would make you way cooler if you said that in every video you
do.
--- Would it?
…….. Would it really Joe Terrance Universe?
Next up, Rachel Wakerley says --
Jack, you’re awesome - but seriously, muffin or barms?
Love when you read the comments at the end.
-- Well Rachel, thank you very much - you’re awesome too.
And by Barms, I’m guessing you mean Barm Cakes?
We call them batches in the Midlands - but I say that with prior warning, please don’t
kick off some kind of dialect debate in the comment section - say whatever you want.
It’s bread - and everyone loves sandwiches.
Well on that note - I better get out of here.
Unfortunately, that’s all we’ve got time for in todays video - cheers for sticking
around all the way until the end.
You know how it is by now - if you were a fan - hit that thumbs up button, as well as
that subscribe bell, and I’ll be seeing you in the next one.
As per usual, I’ve been your horror host Jack Finch - you’ve been watching Top 5
Scary Videos - and until next time, you take it easy.