Matthew Broderick made his name as the irrepressible Chicago high-schooler who goes to extraordinary lengths to hoodwink parents and teachers that he's sick while playing truant. Indisputably the audience-winning plum in writer-director John Hughes' 80s purple patch. Trivia: Charlie Sheen, who has a cameo as a drunken biker, confessed that he didn't sleep for 48 hours to get the desired effect. He succeeded.<\/p>","url":"2009/5/15/Ferris-Buellers-Day-Off-07-4.jpg","width":570,"height":364,"alt":"Ferris Bueller's Day Off 07"},{"captionHeading":"St Trinian's","caption":"
The belles are tolling for England’s most notorious girls’ school. Mired in debt and under personal investigation from the Minister for Education (Colin Firth), headmistress Fritton (Rupert Everett) and her morally relaxed pupils are going to have to bend more rules than usual to save their beloved institution. Low on sugar, high on spice, this ultra-modern reworking of the classic British comedy finds Firth with his trousers down, Everett with a boob job, and comedian Russell Brand doing solid business as wheeler-dealer Flash Harry.<\/p>","url":"2009/1/8/st-trinians-3.jpg","width":570,"height":364,"alt":"st trinians"},{"captionHeading":"Kindergarten Cop","caption":"
Ivan Reitman's cute comedy brings Arnold Schwarzenegger down to size as a detective who goes undercover in a playschool to expose the kid of a druglord. After tackling the vilest villains in the universe, it's a hoot to see Arnie finally meet his match in a classful of little cherubs. Penelope Ann Miller is the real schoolmiss who teaches him the ropes. The elementary level jokes make for pants-peeing fun.<\/p>","url":"2009/6/24/Kindergarten-Cop-01-4.jpg","width":570,"height":364,"alt":"Kindergarten Cop 01"},{"captionHeading":"Juno","caption":"
By turns razor-sharp and disarmingly sweet, Jason Reitman’s bun-in-a-teenage-oven comedy is a small but perfectly formed joy. Hard Candy revelation Ellen Page delivers another marvellous performance as Juno, a suburban high-schooler whose unwanted pregnancy does little to curb her rampant cynicism. But her situation comes as a godsend to childless yuppies Jennifer Garner and Jason Bateman. Completing the casting triumph, Superbad’s Michael Cera makes a wonderfully bemused father while J.K. Simmons and Alison Janney are terrific as Juno’s unflappable parents.<\/p>","url":"2009/3/9/Juno-11.jpg","width":570,"height":364,"alt":"Juno 11"},{"captionHeading":"Drillbit Taylor","caption":"
You know the drill. American comedy maestro Judd Apatow's latest creation sees Owen Wilson playing a homeless beach bum who winds up acting as bodyguard for a trio of bullied freshmen. Produced by Apatow and co-scripted by Knocked Up's Seth Rogen it's one of the team's gentler outings with director Steven Brill coaxing richly comic performances from a young cast. There's also the bonus of Wilson having a ball as a West Coast Walter Mitty.<\/p>","url":"2009/3/12/Drillbit-Taylor-03.jpg","width":570,"height":364,"alt":"Drillbit Taylor 03"},{"captionHeading":"Jack","caption":"
Comedy drama starring Robin Williams as a 10-year-old boy who suffers from a disease that makes him age four times faster than a normal boy. Owing a major debt to Penny Marshall's Big, this sees Williams in full-flow comedy cute mode. Bill Cosby plays his long-suffering teacher and Jennifer Lopez makes an early pre-superstardom appearance.<\/p>","url":"2009/3/9/jack-06-4.jpg","width":570,"height":364,"alt":"jack 06"},{"captionHeading":"American Pie","caption":"
Jumping on the gross-out bandwagon of comedy pioneers the Farrelly Brothers, siblings Chris and Paul Weitz cooked up this taste-free, belly-busting tale of a group of horny high-school seniors who make a pact to lose their virginity by prom night. Essentially Porky's for the Nineties, it spawned a raft of hugely successful sequels while launching the careers of Jason Biggs as Jim the hapless pie-prober, Seann William Scott as anything-goes superjock Stifler, Alyson 'Band Camp' Hannigan and American Beauty Mena Suvari. But it's veteran Eugene Levy who steals the show, spurting cringeworthy paternal advice at every awkward turn.<\/p>","url":"2009/5/29/American-Pie-05.jpg","width":570,"height":364,"alt":"American Pie 05"},{"captionHeading":"Superbad","caption":"
A couple of lifelong high school buddies - one a slob, the other a nerd - are set to go their separate ways...but not before they've blitzed their way through a night of booze, sex and shooting up police patrol cars. Both trashed and tender, this is an unerringly accurate portrait of male friendship penned by the comedy team that knocked out Knocked Up.<\/p>","url":"2008/6/25/superbad-3.jpg","width":570,"height":364,"alt":"Movies"},{"captionHeading":"Billy Madison","caption":"
One of the hits that sent Adam Sandler into the stratosphere sees him play a spoiled 27-year-old rich-kid who goes back to school to prove his worth to his billionaire father. Typically boisterous stuff from comedy's own Peter Pan, co-starring Bridgette Wilson (who went on to become Mrs Pete Sampras).<\/p>","url":"2009/6/24/Billy-Madison-02.jpg","width":570,"height":364,"alt":"Billy Madison 02"},{"captionHeading":"Revenge Of The Nerds","caption":"
Socially challenged college freshmen take on the jocks in this cult 80s comedy. Porky's led the way, but this bout of sex'n'shenanigans has gathered a fervent following amongst 80s nostalgics. Turning out for the geeks are a number of youthful yet familiar faces: Anthony 'ER' Edwards, Curtis 'Moonlighting' Armstrong and The West Wing's Timothy Busfield.<\/p>","url":"2009/3/11/The-Revenge-Of-The-Nerds-03-4.jpg","width":570,"height":364,"alt":"The Revenge Of The Nerds 03"},{"captionHeading":"Mr Woodcock","caption":"
Billy Bob Thornton plays the gym teacher from hell who makes life a misery for porky student Jim Farley (Seann William Scott)...and then winds up courting his mom. Director Craig Gillespie slickly weaves themes of bullying teachers and the ludicrous self-help craze to end up with a blackly comic laugh-a-thon that will push a button with the wheezing fatties amongst us.<\/p>","url":"2009/6/24/Mr-Woodcock-15-4.jpg","width":570,"height":364,"alt":"Mr Woodcock 15"},{"captionHeading":"Teen Wolf","caption":"
Michael J Fox plays a student whose life improves when he finds himself growling when he's annoyed and starts hearing high-pitched whistles no-one else can. Yes, he's becoming a werewolf albeit a far more cuddly version than those seen in An American Werewolf in London or The Howling. Despite the attractions of a life as a human moggie, the ghoul-in-school faces an uphill struggle as he tries to avoid a lifetime of dodging silver bullets.<\/p>","url":"2009/3/11/Teen-Wolf-03-4.jpg","width":570,"height":364,"alt":"Teen Wolf 03"},{"captionHeading":"Hairspray","caption":"
All-singing, all-dancing remake of John Waters' 1988 cult classic about a big-hearted Baltimore girl whose big everything else stands between her and local TV stardom. Taking elements from the Broadway musical as well as the low-budget original movie, it's a beehived, bee-bopping slice of sunshine that marks a return to the genre for Grease star John Travolta, as well as Grease 2's Michelle Pfeiffer.<\/p>","url":"2008/11/12/Hairspray.jpg","width":570,"height":364,"alt":"Hairspray"}];