Top 10 Ben Stiller Movies

Benjamin Edward Stiller was born in New York City, New York to renowned comedians Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara. Growing up in the Hollywood lifestyle surrounded by stars, it wasn’t a shock when he followed in his parents footsteps and pursued a career in the industry. As kids, Stiller and his younger sister, Amy, would perform plays at home and Stiller also enjoyed being behind the camera as well as in front of it, since at 10 years old, he began shooting films on his Super 8 camera. Yet even before attempting to make It in Hollywood, Stiller spent years doing theater. After dropping out of UCLA, Stiller performed in the Tony Award winning play The House of Blue Leaves. While working on the play, Stiller shot a short spoof of the 1986 sports drama The Color of Money(1986) starring in the Tom Cruise role. The short film was so funny that Lorne Michaels, creator and producer of Saturday Night Live,purchased it and aired it on the show. This led to Stiller spending a year on SNL in 1989. Stiller made his big screen debut in the Steven Spielberg 1987 war drama Empire of the Sun. He then stepped behind the camera to direct Back to Brooklyn for MTV. His work impressed the network so much that he got his own show aptly named The Ben Stiller Show. Stiller recruited off-the-wall comics like Janeane Garofalo and Andy Dick to churn out a wickedly sardonic program. Fox picked it up after MTV passed on it, but it was later cancelled due to lack of ratings despite winning an Emmy. Stiller then did guest appearances for a while until a little comedy called There’s Something About Mary launched Stiller onto Hollywood’s A-list and he hasn’t stopped since. Stiller has since starred in a barrage of buddy films that showcase his innate flair for physical comedy and slapstick. In honor of his 48th birthday, here is a Top 10 list of Ben Stiller movies.

10. Zoolander: This 2001 comedy had Stiller playing a dim fashion model, who was brainwashed to kill the Prime Minister of Malaysia. Co-starring with his wife Christine Taylor, his father Jerry Stiller, Owen Wilson, Will Ferrell, Milla Jovovich, David Duchovny, Jon Voight and Judah Friedlander, Stiller succeeded in making this phenomenally stupid male model into a sweet endearing guy.

9. Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa: This 2008 animated comedy, produced by DreamWorks Animation, was the sequel to the mega popular 2005 film Madagascar. Stiller returned to again lend his voice to Alex the Lion and the three other original cast members returned to voice the now beloved animated characters. Chris Rock voiced Marty the Zebra, Jada Pinkett-Smith voiced Gloria the Hippo and David Schwimmer voiced Melman the Giraffe. This film began as prequel to the previous movie, showing Alex’s early life and capture by hunters. Then, the movie picked up where the original left off, where the four animals were trying to get back to New York via plane but crash land in Africa, Alex was reunited with his parents but problems arose along with the laughs. Stiller gave Alex the Lion heart and vulnerability and showed his comedic genius can even be portrayed through animation.

8. Reality Bites: Stiller directed and starred in this 1994 romantic dramedy, which also starred Winona Ryder and Ethan Hawke. Stiller played Michael Grates, an executive at an MTV-like cable channel. He began dating Ryder’s character, Lelaina Pierce, an aspiring filmmaker. But, Hawke’s character, guitarist Troy Dyer liked Lelaina too so a triangle ensued. The film has become a cult classic for Gen X-ers and introduced moviegoers to Stiller’s talent both in front and behind the camera.

7. There's Something About Mary: Directed by the Farrelly brothers, this 1998 romantic comedy launched Stiller’s career into the mainstream. Co-starring with Cameron Diaz, Matt Dillon, Chris Elliott and Jeffrey Tambor, Stiller played Ted, who landed a date with his dream girl, Mary (Diaz) for their high school prom. But, thanks to an embarrassing and painful zipper incident, Ted had to go to the hospital and lost touch with Mary. Fast-forward, 13 years, Ted became obsessed with Mary and hired a private detective to track her down. Hijinks ensued as along with Ted, several other men did crazy things in order to win Mary’s heart. Stiller did a stellar job portraying Ted as a cute albeit obsessive guy just trying to win over the girl of his dreams.

6. Along Came Polly: Stiller starred opposite Jennifer Aniston in this 2004 romantic comedy. Stiller played Reuben Feffer, an insurance risk assessment expert, who after finding his new wife in bed with another guy on their honeymoon bumped into an old high school classmate Polly Prince (Aniston.) As Polly and Reuben start dating, she started introducing him to activities he once deemed “too risky” and that was where the nonstop laughs start. Stiller’s performance as a guy afraid to take any chances was spot on and made for a movie filled with poignancy and laughter.

5. Mystery Men: Loosely based on Burden's Flaming Carrot Comics published by Dark Horse Comics, this 1999 comedy was about a group of superhero wannabes trying to save an actual superhero from a crazed villain. Stiller co-starred with Janeane Garofalo, William H. Macy, Paul Reubens, Hank Azaria, Kel Mitchell, Claire Forlani, Greg Kinnear and Geoffrey Rush. Stiller played Mr. Furious, whose superpower was supposed to be that he could get powerfully angry. Stiller and the others teamed up to thwart supervillian Casanova Frankenstein (Rush) from destroying the city with a powerful weapon. Stiller’s portrayal of a guy who so wanted to be a superhero and win the affections of Monica (Forlani,) a waitress at the diner where the team ate, was charming. In the end, Mr. Furious found his inner rage, won Monica’s heart and with his friends, saved the city.

4. Night at the Museum: This 2006 adventure comedy had Stiller playing night security guard Larry Daley at New York City’s Museum of Natural History, who finds out that the exhibits come to life after dark. Co-starring Carla Gugino, Dick Van Dyke, Mickey Rooney, Bill Cobbs, Ricky Gervais, Owen Wilson and Robin Williams, Stiller’s Daley learned an ancient tablet caused a curse that made the exhibits come to life and tried to stop Van Dyke and Cobbs’ characters from stealing the tablet to use for their own ends. Stiller’s interaction with the live exhibits was hysterical as is his interaction with his fellow co-stars. The movie was such a success that a sequel Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian was released in 2009 and a third installment, tentatively titled Night at the Museum 3, is scheduled to be released in theaters on December 20, 2014.

3. Meet the Fockers: This 2004 comedy was a sequel to the successful 2000 movie Meet the Parents. Stiller returned as Greg Focker along with Robert DeNiro, Blythe Danner and Teri Polo with cast new additions of Dustin Hoffman and Barbara Streisand. Greg introduced his parents (Hoffman and Streisand) to his fiancé Pam’s (Polo) parents (DeNiro and Danner) for the first time. Contrasting personalities, little white lies and rampant misunderstandings made for some hilarious moments as Greg tried to get everyone to get along. Stiller’s talent for playing crazy shined here as he moved heaven and earth to not be embarrassed by his parents and to stay on DeNiro’s character’s good side.

2. Madagascar: This 2005 animated comedy had Stiller voicing Alex the Lion, the main attraction at New York’s Central Park Zoo. Stiller’s Alex the Lion was joined by Marty the Zebra, voiced by Chris Rock, Gloria the Hippo, voiced by Jada Pinkett-Smith and Melman the Giraffe, voiced by David Schwimmer. When Marty got restless for life outside the zoo, his friends followed him and they ended up in Madagascar. Stiller’s voice gave Alex the Lion a soul and a tenderness with his friends. The ensuing situations the four endured in their quest to get back home were sidesplitting and make this a must see film for all ages.

1. Meet the Parents: This 2000 comedy had Stiller’s Greg Focker, a male nurse, doing anything possible to impress his girlfriend, Pam’s (Teri Polo’s) parents (Robert DeNiro and Blythe Danner.) The whole movie, Stiller showcased his penchant for physical comedy as he tried to win over DeNiro’s Jack Byrnes but to no avail. The lie detector scene is one of my faves as Byrnes hooked Focker up to a lie detector to determine if he’s being 100% percent truthful about himself. Yet, in the end, Jack saw that Pam truly loved Greg and thus set the stage for 2004’s Meet the Fockers, where Pam and Greg were engaged and Pam’s parents met Greg’s parents.

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