Photo: Paramount Pictures
We here at Mandatory feel that the 1980s was the decade of comedy films. By that, we mean the decade was the best 10 years for comedies. From Caddyshack to Trading Places to Three Amigos to Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, we dare you to find a better 10-year period for comedies. It’s also probably the best decade for the “buddy comedy.” If you’re a fan of 1980s comedies, you’re probably keenly aware of the glut of classic buddy comedies the decade gave us.
Coming to America is one of the best of the era. If you love that movie, you’re probably happy that a sequel is dropping this week on Amazon. In honor of this long-awaited sequel, we decided to make a list of our favorite buddy comedies from the 1980s. Check them all out below and get streaming.
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Best 1980s Buddy Comedies
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10) Weekend at Bernie's
This classic buddy comedy centers around a pair of corporate employees (played by Andrew McCarthy and Jonathan Silverman) who find their awful boss is dead, but they spend the weekend (you guessed it) pretending he’s alive.
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9) Twins
Fraternal twins played by Danny DeVito and Arnold Schwarzenegger were separated at birth. Obviously, size difference-based hilarity ensues.
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8) Turner and Hooch
This isn’t your average buddy comedy. That’s because the two “buddies” are a man played by Tom Hanks and a slobbering, destructive, loveable pooch named Hooch.
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7) Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure
This time-traveling romp featuring two Southern California slackers is such an iconic, memorable journey that it spawned not one, but two sequels.
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6) Midnight Run
This action-comedy starring Robert De Niro and Charles Grodin centers around a bounty hunter as he attempts to bring an embezzling accountant to Los Angeles.
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5) 48 Hours
This action-comedy starring Nick Nolte and Eddie Murphy is the story of a cop who takes a bank robber out of prison for a 48-hour leave to help him capture said bank robber’s former partner.
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4) Coming to America
Eddie Murphy is an African prince and Arsenio Hall is his right-hand man. They travel to New York City in an effort to find a wife.
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3) Dragnet
Officers Joe Friday and Pep Streebek couldn’t be more different. One is an uptight, by-the-book cop, and the other is a bit of a wild card. Together, they are thrown into the LA underbelly, including investigating a pagan cult.
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2) Spies Like Us
This cold-war comedy centers around two intelligence officers (played by Chevy Chase and Dan Aykroyd) as they travel to the Soviet Union.
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1) Planes, Trains, and Automobiles
Steve Martin and John Candy play two extremely different businessmen who somehow end up stuck to each other as they attempt to get home to Chicago for Thanksgiving.
