Tuesday, January 17, 2006

One and two and ha! ha! ha!

Now this is exercise I can get into. A recent study shows that watching a funny movie is the equivalent of aerobic exercise or starting a statin treatment. Seems laughter increases brachial artery blood flow. You know the brachial artery? The one that runs from your shoulder to your elbow and is an A-one indicator of blood flow? Anyway, the study seems to support the theory that laughter is indeed the best medicine.

When you're in need of a good laugh, an aerobic exercise, and a statin treatment, which films are ga-run-teed to increase your brachial artery blood flow? Here are five (OK eight) of my favorite funnies, though I got a million of 'em:

  • Blazing Saddles (the bean scene, the Cole Porter classics) or Young Frankenstein ("He vas my . . . boyfriend!")
  • The Women (L'amour, l'amour . . . )
  • Best in Show (or any Christopher Guest film)
  • Sordid Lives ($32.09, $32.09, $32.09 . . . )
  • Monty Python and the Holy Grail or Life of Brian or The Meaning of Life

I also must admit that the toilet scene in the first Austin Powers movie ("Who does Number 2 work for!"), gets me weeping everytime. I know. Real low-brow, but still, think of the exercise I'm getting!

Feel free to add to.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Definitely agree w/Best in Show and Holy Grail. Other big laughs for me include The Royal Tennenbaums, Dodgeball, Ocean's 11, Fight Club (really), Better Off Dead, Stripes, and about a zillion others.

Anonymous said...

Add "Fish Called Wanda". Cleese at his best, Kevin Kline at the top of his craft, Michael Palin (also from Monty Python) is so f-f-f-funny. And of course, Jamie Lee is as funny and sexy as ever.

MaryB said...

Nobody, yes to Tennenbaums and Stripes. (May as well throw in Caddyshack, as well.) Haven't seen the other movies. I suspect it's a generational thing. ;-) (Unless you're talking about the original Ocean's 11.)

Winston, why the boot-sniffing scene alone is worth a look! Great ha-ha film.

petercmoore said...

Gimme 'Airplane' any day - though I'm likely to pass out as there's no time to breathe between gags.

Or 'Curb your Enthusiasm' on DVD.

MaryB said...

Yup, Airplane just missed my list. I don't have a readily available copy of it to pop in the DVD or VCR, so it fell off my emergency laugh list. But surely (don't call me Shirley), Airplane is good for the brachaic artery or whatever.

Chris said...

These are some of the things that make ME laught out loud:

Monty Python films
Time Bandits
Victoria Wood's 'Dinner Ladies'
Billy Connolly doing anything
Airplane
Wallace and Gromit (especially 'The Wrong Trousers'
Danny Kaye in 'The Court Jester'
....and lots of others

Liz Hinds said...

Definite;y Blazing Saddles, also that bit in K9 where the dog (attached to a Belushi)is chasing a frisbee across the beach. And Stir Crazy with fly swatting scene. And Home Alone and four weddings ...

Anonymous said...

chm, totally agree about Wallace and Grommit. My 2-year-old wanders around the house going "Cracking good toast, Grommit" and "It's the wrong trousers, Grommit, and they've gone wrong!" I'm raising her right.