The world can be a ridiculous place sometimes, as anyone who exists within it would surely be well aware of. That being said, perhaps some individuals are quite aware of how ridiculous things can be, because problems and issues that are worth pointing out exist in all areas of life and all - asDaft Punkmight say - around the world. It might be some relief to hear, then, that satire - as a genre or subgenre of sorts - ishere to highlight the ludicrous, with the medium of film being one where satirical stories shine.
Satirical movies are often funny, but they’re not necessarily all comedies, because satire can look at provocative or controversial issues while taking them seriously. Other satirical films get a whole lot sillier, and possibly cross over into what might be betterdefined as a parody movie. And then others still fall somewhere in between “serious takedown” and “joke-a-minute parodies,” with some of the best satirical movies of all time - all encompassing slightly different strategies and tones - being ranked below.
25’Triangle of Sadness' (2022)
Directed by Ruben Östlund
Ruben Östlundis a filmmaker best known for his satirical dramedies, with two of his films even being acclaimed enough to win thePalme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival. The first of these was the bizarre 2017 filmThe Square, with the second being the slightly more comprehensibleTriangle of Sadnessfrom 2022. It deals with similar themes surrounding wealth and class warfare as seen in something like 2019’sParasite, but makes fun of most of its characters rather than humanizing them.
That makes it more satirical, in some ways, than the also highly-acclaimedParasite, even if that film might be overall more nuanced. Still,Triangle of Sadness- with its strange plot involving a chaotic series of events impacting all on board a luxury cruise - is entertaining, and does work as an uncompromising attack on the wealthiest of the wealthy in society.Perhaps its cartoonish nature means some of its targets (indeed, audience members) may be able to distance themselves from the caricatures on screen, but the film is nevertheless funny and quite enjoyable.
Triangle of Sadness
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24’South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut' (1999)
Directed by Trey Parker
Standing as botha great musical movieand a biting piece of satire,South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncutis arguablySouth Parkat its very best, even if theoriginal show does indeed have many commendable aspects. The 1999 movie was made not long after the show initially began airing, and has a premise that involves the show’s four main characters seeing a Canadian movie that’s filled with bad language and offensive content, which starts influencing their behavior.
The adults of the titular town don’t approve of this by any means, and as such, declare war against Canada. From there, things get somehow even more chaotic.South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncutmakes fun of just about everything and everyone, as one would expect from something carrying theSouth Parkname. However, it’s the film’s criticism against movie censorship and moral panics that proves the most pointed and arguably funny out of anything else here.
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23’Tampopo' (1985)
Directed by Jūzō Itami
Tampopois a very strange movie, but had it been a very normal movie, there’s little chance it would have achieved the sort of international acclaim and ongoing cult following it got, and continues to have.It’s an acclaimed Japanese comedythat largely revolves around food, with various subplots and side characters sometimes colliding, and sometimes going their own way. But the principal storyline here is about two truck drivers helping a woman make her roadside fast food stop into a more celebrated noodle shop/dining establishment.
It’s impossible to watchTampopowithout feeling hungry, but it’s also hard to imagine someone watching it without having a good time and finding it very funny overall. It pokes fun at various Western movie conventions, becoming well-known forestablishing itself as a “Ramen Western,“as opposed to the already established Spaghetti Western. Many of the other satirical references might be lost on those who aren’t familiar with Japanese customs, butTampopo’snevertheless funny and unique either way.
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22’They Live' (1988)
Directed by John Carpenter
You could callJohn Carpentera horror filmmaker, especially seeing as what might be his two most well-known films - 1978’sHalloweenand 1982’sThe Thing- both fall into that genre, but he’s also much more than just a director who likes scaring viewers. TakeThey Live, for example, whichcombines action, horror, science fiction, and satire/comedyto thrilling effect, being an alien invasion movie - of sorts - unlike any other.
They Liverevolves around a homeless man named John Nada who, one day, discovers a pair of sunglasses that lets him see the truth about the world around him. To be more specific, the sunglasses make clear certain subliminal messages seen throughout society, and also reveal that alien invaders are behind such messages, using them to control the human race.It’s far-fetched and thought-provoking in equal measure, being a compelling condemnation of the media/world powerswhile also just being very entertaining and gloriously action-packed.
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21’Wild Tales' (2014)
Directed by Damián Szifron
No one is safe from a movie likeWild Tales, which sets its sights on humanity’s worst impulses and mocks them thoroughly throughouta tremendously engaging comedy/thriller filmthat’s also an anthology movie. There are half a dozen stories told over the course of two hours inWild Tales, and each concerns people in highly intense situations where something seemingly small spirals out of control, often because an element of revenge is involved.
It’s safe to say the tales are indeed wild, and the film overall goes to some places in some of its stories that may make certain viewers uncomfortable.Yet it’s clearly all heightened and intended to be over-the-top/satirical, so those willing to go into the film with something approaching an open mind should find a great deal to be entertained - and occasionally shocked - by.
20’PlayTime' (1967)
Directed by Jacques Tati
PlayTimemay have been made well over half a century ago at this point, but many of its observations about the chaos of everyday life still ring true. In fact, there’s an argument to be made that things have gotten progressively stranger and more “otherworldly” since the 1960s, with the unique world conjured in this film still feeling eerily true to life when watched today. Narratively, there’s not much toPlayTime, either - it’s more just something that wants to immerse you in an unusual way of life.
Monsieur Hulot - played by the film’s director,Jacques Tati- walks through an unusual version of Paris, and finds himself baffled, amused, and engaged by the otherworldly nature of such a Paris, much in the same way viewers will.It’s an intricate and often funny movie, serving as a more gentle and less angry satirical film than most, with all these qualities serving to makePlayTimeone ofthe best movies of the entire 1960s.
Watch on Criterion Channel
19’Four Lions' (2010)
Directed by Chris Morris
It’s hard to sugarcoat a description ofFour Lions’plot without making it sound quite shocking and provocative, because the film is those things… but with good reason. It unpacks certainissues incredibly prevalent andwidely discussed throughout the 2000s - namely, terrorism, radicalism, and responses to such things - in a darkly hilarious way. This is because the main characters here are aspiring to become terrorists who will wage jihad through suicide bombings, only all are incompetent, to say the least.
It’s therefore easy to callFour Lionsone of the most alarming and potentially controversial satirical films in recent years, butthose open to viewing something dark and uncompromising might well find a great deal of value within. There’s an argument to be made that effective satire has to provoke and challenge the viewer to some extent, and no one could faultFour Lionsfor not doing those things, and then some.
Four Lions
As five bumbling jihadis organize a terrorist attack on the London Marathon, it looks like the only thing standing in their way might be their own idiocy.
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Directed by Shinichiro Ueda
The overall storyline ofOne Cut of the Dead- taking the whole film into account -is so wonderfully unpredictablethat spoiling it would feel like a cinematic sin (call it “sinematic”). However, giving an outline of the first act doesn’t feel like it crosses any boundaries. What someone unfamiliar withOne Cut of the Deadshould know is that this is a zombie movie about making a zombie movie, and that for a good chunk of its runtime,it consists of one unbroken take.
As things progress, the film overall gets considerably more interesting and clever, with later scenes that brilliantly recontextualize earlier moments that might’ve seemed a little strange at the time. To describe whatOne Cut of the Deadsatirizes and/or makes fun of would be giving away some of its best surprises, but just know that it’s overall very funny, remarkably clever, andalso unexpectedly heartfelt, overall feeling like an instant cult classic.
One Cut of the Dead
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17’Starship Troopers' (1997)
Directed by Paul Verhoeven
First and foremost,Starship Trooperscan be enjoyed as a rathersimple and satisfying sci-fi/action movie, with it providing decent entertainment value if one wants to view it as a blunt and potentially dumb flick. However, digging a little deeper intoStarship Troopersreveals a biting satirical edge that makes this so much more than just a movie about an interstellar war between humanity and a race of giant alien bugs.
In telling a story about a fictional and futuristic war in space,Starship Trooperssatirizes things like militarism and fascism in a manner thatwent over some people’s heads upon release, which is a sign that perhaps your satire is too subtle… which is strange, considering that when watched today, those things feel pretty apparent. In some ways,it’s a blunt and ridiculous movie filled with gore and melodrama, but in other ways, it’s shockingly clever and dark, ensuringStarship Troopersis one of the most surprisingly effective big-budget satirical movies of all time.
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16’The Lobster' (2015)
Directed by Yorgos Lanthimos
Taking place ina humorous depiction of a dystopian society,The Lobsteris a bleak yet somewhat funny look at the trials and tribulations of finding love in the modern world. It does this by taking place in a future that seems even more desolate and strange than the world humanity’s currently living within. The central premise ofThe Lobsterrevolves around single people who are forced to find a partner, or risk getting turned into an animal of their choosing if they fail to do so within a certain amount of time.
It’s possible to callThe Lobsteragreat - albeit quirky and strange - romantic movie, but it’salso a wonderfully effective takedown of modern love, with a warts-and-all approach to all the difficulties finding a partner entails. Some might consider it too uncomfortable or even despairing to find it genuinely watchable or entertaining in any way, but others might find themselves transfixed and engaged by all the strange twists and turns the film has to offer.
The Lobster
In a dystopian near future, according to the laws of The City, single people are taken to The Hotel, where they are obliged to find a romantic partner in 45 days or they’re transformed into beasts and sent off into The Woods.
