Young Frankenstein

From the moment you see a mysterious pair of hands wresting a box from a skeleton that refuses to let go, Young Frankenstein all but announces that it will be silly. This is, after all, a Mel Brooks film, a name associated with silly comedies. Usually I'm not the sort to go for silly, so it's a bit of mystery why I enjoy Young Frankenstein so much. Maybe it's Gene Wilder's hair, a character in and of itself, or possibly Frau Blucher, whose name creates fear in the staunchest of horse.

My favorite sequences involve the creature, when he visits the blind monk (played beautifully by Gene Hackman) and his encounter with a young girl; the latter has such a brilliant punchline that I didn't stop laughing for five minutes. For someone who rarely laughs out loud even at comedies he likes, this is epic.