20 Comedy Movies You Must See Before You Die

17. Anchorman: The Legend Of Ron Burgundy (2004)

Ask anybody if they thought Anchorman had the makings of a comedy classic the first time round and chances are they'll tell you anything but. Indeed, Anchorman is one modern comedy that slowly wriggled its way into the public's subconscious and has refused to go away since (indeed, a long-awaited sequel came out last year).

Many who saw it just once, however, didn't seem to rate it as anything more than a relatively funny yarn. But the brilliance of Anchorman comes in its ability to get under your skin; the gags, despite their ridiculousness, are perfect little earworms. And so Anchorman's popularity began to spread through extended word of mouth, as more and more people went back to see what the big deal was.

And the big deal, of course, is that Anchorman is hilarious; packed to the brim with strange, loosely constructed sequences, foul-mouthed gags, and a deft comedy cast working their collective magic, Will Ferrell's best movie to date - despite its familiarities - genuinely feels like one of a kind. The beauty seems to stem from the fact that there were no real expectations; everything went into the absurd melting pot.