Items20The creator’s order
  1. 1Jackie ChanJackie ChanBorn 7 Apr 1954Drunken Master (1978) makes loss of balance look like an elaborate form of control. Chan lets effort, pain and quick improvisation remain visible, so the comedy grows from the struggle rather than interrupting it. Follow with Police Story (1985) to see how props and confined spaces can become…0i
  2. 2Melissa McCarthyMelissa McCarthyBorn 26 Aug 1970Spy (2015) uses McCarthy's physical confidence as well as her capacity for comic disaster. Susan Cooper can be formidable and socially uncomfortable within the same sequence, which gives the movement more purpose than a string of falls. Look for the changes in posture as she negotiates identities…0i
  3. 3Jim CarreyJim CarreyBorn 17 Jan 1962The Mask (1994) surrounds Carrey with cartoon effects, but his elastic reactions help make that world feel inhabited. Liar Liar (1997) is a useful companion because a verbal predicament becomes a whole-body struggle. The interest is in the precision beneath the excess: face, shoulders and limbs…0i
  4. 4Stephen ChowStephen ChowBorn 22 Jun 1962Kung Fu Hustle (2004) lets Chow move between a would-be tough guy's swagger and the ungainly reality beneath it. The film's effects push the action towards cartoons, but his reactions keep the embarrassment readable. Choose it for a deliberately exaggerated Hong Kong comedy where physical prowess,…0i
  5. 5Kaitlin OlsonKaitlin OlsonBorn 18 Aug 1975Sweet Dee in It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia never quite accepts the evidence her own body supplies about her abilities. Olson's inflatable-tube-man dance is an especially clear example of an absurd idea carried through with total commitment. The series is abrasive and its characters are awful;…0i
  6. 6Julia Louis-DreyfusJulia Louis-DreyfusElaine's dance in Seinfeld is memorable because Louis-Dreyfus performs it with complete assurance. The arms and kicks have a disastrous internal logic, while Elaine has no idea what everyone else can see. That gap between self-image and movement is more interesting than mere clumsiness, and her…0i
  7. 7Steve MartinSteve MartinBorn 14 Aug 1945All of Me (1984) asks Martin to make two personalities appear to control different sides of one body. The competing walks and gestures remain clear enough for the audience to follow the argument without an explanation. It is an unusually direct demonstration of physical acting: a ridiculous premise…0i
  8. 8Lee Evans (comedian)Lee Evans (comedian)Born 25 Feb 1964Funny Bones (1995) is the best starting point for Evans's combination of nervous energy, mime and sudden physical invention. His Jack seems to find comic possibilities before he can explain them. Mousehunt (1997) offers a broader, effects-heavy showcase, but Funny Bones leaves more room to notice…0i
  9. 9Jack BlackJack BlackBorn 28 Aug 1969In School of Rock (2003), Dewey Finn's body is already playing the concert his surroundings cannot accommodate. Black's demonstrations, poses and barely contained enthusiasm make the classroom a stage without losing the children as an audience within the scene. His physical exuberance is funniest…0i
  10. 10Molly ShannonMolly ShannonBorn 16 Sept 1964Mary Katherine Gallagher's entrances on Saturday Night Live turn the desire to be noticed into a bodily emergency. Shannon commits to each awkward pause and sudden eruption as part of the character's enormous ambition. The sketches provide the sharpest introduction; Superstar (1999) expands the…0i