The best Buck Henry’s comedy movies
If you love cinema, you will share this ranking of the best Buck Henry’s movies, although you may have ordered them differently. In any case, we hope you love it and with a little luck discovering a movie that you still don’t know about Buck Henry.
The Graduate
8/10
Benjamin, a recent college graduate very worried about his future, finds himself in a love triangle with an older woman and her daughter.
Serendipity
6.8/10
Although strangers Sara and Jonathan are both already in relationships, they realize they have genuine chemistry after a chance encounter – but part company soon after. Years later, they each yearn to reunite, despite being destined for the altar. But to give true love a chance, they have to find one another again.
The Player
7.5/10
A Hollywood studio executive is being sent death threats by a writer whose script he rejected - but which one?
To Die For
6.8/10
Suzanne Stone wants to be a world-famous news anchor and she is willing to do anything to get what she wants. What she lacks in intelligence, she makes up for in cold determination and diabolical wiles. As she pursues her goal with relentless focus, she is forced to destroy anything and anyone that may stand in her way, regardless of the ultimate cost or means necessary.
Short Cuts
7.6/10
Many loosely connected characters cross paths in this film, based on the stories of Raymond Carver. Waitress Doreen Piggot accidentally runs into a boy with her car. Soon after walking away, the child lapses into a coma. While at the hospital, the boy's grandfather tells his son, Howard, about his past affairs. Meanwhile, a baker starts harassing the family when they fail to pick up the boy's birthday cake.
Defending Your Life
7.2/10
In an afterlife resembling the present-day US, people must prove their worth by showing in court how they have demonstrated courage.
Catch-22
7.1/10
A bombardier in World War II tries desperately to escape the insanity of the war. However, sometimes insanity is the only sane way to cope with a crazy situation.
Grumpy Old Men
7/10
For decades, next-door neighbors and former friends John and Max have feuded, trading insults and wicked pranks. When an attractive widow moves in nearby, their bad blood erupts into a high-stakes rivalry full of naughty jokes and adolescent hijinks.
The Last Shot
5.7/10
A movie director-screenwriter finds a man to finance his latest project but soon discovers that the producer is actually an undercover FBI agent working on a mob sting operation.
Candy
5.1/10
Based on Terry Southern's satirical novel, a send-up of Voltaire's Candide. Young Candy is a high school girl who seeks truth and meaning in life, encountering a variety of kookie characters and humorous sexual situations in the process.
Eating Raoul
6.8/10
A relatively boring Los Angeles couple discover a bizarre, if not murderous way to get funding for opening a restaurant.
Town & Country
4.5/10
Porter Stoddard is a well-known New York architect who is at a crossroads... a nexus where twists and turns lead to myriad missteps some with his wife Ellie, others with longtime friends Mona and her husband Griffin. Deciding which direction to take often leads to unexpected encounters with hilarious consequences.
Heaven Can Wait
6.9/10
Joe Pendleton is a quarterback preparing to lead his team to the superbowl when he is almost killed in an accident. An overanxious angel plucks him to heaven only to discover that he wasn't ready to die, and that his body has been cremated. A new body must be found, and that of a recently-murdered millionaire is chosen. His wife and accountant—the murderers—are confused by this development, as he buys the L.A. Rams in order to once again quarterback them into the Superbowl.
Even Cowgirls Get the Blues
4.3/10
Sissy Hankshaw is born with enormous thumbs that help her hitchhiking through the US from a young age. She becomes a model in advertising and her NY agent 'the Countess' sends her to his ranch in CA to shoot a commercial, set against the background of mating whooping cranes. There, she befriends Bonanza Jellybean, one of the cowgirls at the beauty- ranch.
The Owl and the Pussycat
6.4/10
Meek, owlish Felix and strident, catty Doris live in the same apartment building. His incessant typing bothers her; her gentlemen callers bother him. Felix informs the landlord of her activities, so Doris moves in on Felix. When they both get thrown out, they move in with Barney... until they drive him out! That's when Felix and Doris finally decide to put theory into practice. But do opposites attract?
I Miss Sonia Henie
5.5/10
One camera in one setting, one attic and eight young directors – the result is a unique Dadaistic collage of seven short sketches. The original task for each filmmaker was to keep each short under three minutes, to set it in one hotel room, and to include the sentence “I miss Sonja Henie." This experimental film was shot over a single night at the international film festival FEST in Beograd in 1971.
Aria
5.7/10
Ten short pieces directed by ten different directors, including Ken Russell, Jean-Luc Godard, Robert Altman, Bruce Beresford, and Nicolas Roeg. Each short uses an aria as soundtrack/sound (Vivaldi, Bach, Wagner), and is an interpretation of the particular aria.
First Family
4.3/10
The president (Bob Newhart) and his boozing wife (Madeline Kahn) go to Africa to bargain for their abducted daughter's (Gilda Radner) return.
The Secret War of Harry Frigg
6.3/10
When 5 allied generals are captured in Italy in WWII, it is a propaganda nightmare for the allies. The generals are all 1 star and refuse to take orders from each other in order to plan an escape. Harry Frigg is a private who has escaped from the guard house dozens of times. He is promoted to Major General and ordered to get the generals out once he is captured. Harry is willing to escape, but then he meets the countess...
Taking Off
7.4/10
Unable to deal with her parents, Jeannie Tyne runs away from home. Larry and Lyne Tyne search for her, and in the process meet other people whose children ran away. With their children gone, the parents are now free to rediscover/enjoy life.
