Film

Top Five

Name: Top Five
Genre: Drama, Comedy, Romance
Released: 2014
Cast: Chris Rock, Rosario Dawson, JB Smoove, Gabrielle Union, Romany Malco

Drama

Chris Rock's love letter to comedy and New York, wrapped in a romance about a fading action star trying to remember why he was funny. It's warm, digressive, and chatty—less a plot than an excuse for Rock to riff on comedy, failure, and what matters. For anyone who's ever felt trapped by their own success.

TMDb rating

3.0

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you enjoy chatty, verbal comedy about ego and fame, where the jokes come out of people getting honest with each other while walking around a city.

Skip it if your patience for rambling, self-regarding monologues runs thin, since much of the pleasure is in long conversations that circle the same anxieties about success and respect.

What it asks of you: It runs about an hour and forty minutes of mostly talk, moving between quick stand-up-style jokes and quieter, more exposed stretches, so it rewards settling in rather than skimming.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

The 40 Year-Old Virgin2005

A similarly warm comedy about a man realizing what he's been missing, built on genuine affection for its characters rather than easy cynicism. Steve Carell's vulnerability anchors it the way Rock's does here.

But The sexual humor lands harder and more frequently than Top Five's, and it's closer to mainstream comedy than introspective drama.

Knocked Up2007

Judd Apatow's best work: a romance that takes both people seriously, digresses constantly, and trusts that watching characters figure things out is enough. Same generous spirit as Top Five.

But It's messier and longer, and Seth Rogen's stoner routine won't appeal to everyone. The gender politics have aged unevenly.

Punch-Drunk Love2002

Paul Thomas Anderson's intimate film about a lonely, frustrated man finding connection. Like Top Five, it's more interested in the person than the plot, and finds comedy and tenderness in the same moments.

But It's deliberately strange and visually experimental in ways that can feel alienating. Quieter than you might expect for a film with Adam Sandler.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Top Five

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

American: The Bill Hicks Story2010

Both are about comedians trying to be taken seriously while mourning the self they're leaving behind.

A documentary about a stand-up comedian's life and death, built from footage, interviews, and animation. It's a portrait of someone wrestling with the gap between who they are and who they're allowed to be—exactly Top Five's obsession.

But It's a documentary about a dead comedian you may not have heard of, and it can feel like an inside-baseball project. The rotoscoped animation won't appeal to everyone.

Trainwreck2015

Amy Schumer and Judd Apatow make a rom-com about two people who don't believe in love finding it anyway. Sharp, funny, and genuinely interested in how two people talk to each other.

But Schumer's comedy style is abrasive, and some of her material won't land if you're not in her audience. The basketball subplot is a genuine detour.

Chasing Amy1997

Kevin Smith's best film: a scrappy, dialogue-heavy romance about two artists navigating incompatibility and self-delusion. It understands that relationships are conversations, not moments.

But It's messily written, occasionally self-indulgent, and some of Smith's politics haven't held up. The film itself knows it's trying too hard.

Forgetting Sarah Marshall2008

A breakup comedy that actually cares about the pain underneath the jokes. Jason Segel and Mila Kunis have real chemistry, and the script finds laugh lines in genuine hurt.

But It's a lighter film than Top Five—more concerned with being funny than introspective. The Dracula musical subplot is intentionally ridiculous.

Funny People2009

Apatow's ambitious three-hour comedy-drama about comedians, mortality, and whether you can grow up. Adam Sandler does real dramatic work, and the film earns its length with actual observation.

But It's long, self-indulgent, and the tonal shifts won't work for everyone. The third act asks a lot of patience and generosity from the audience.

Ed è subito commedia2023

A sharp, funny deconstruction of rom-com tropes starring Kumail Nanjiani and Seann William Scott. It understands the genre well enough to subvert it, and the writing is genuinely clever.

But It's self-aware to the point of never quite letting you forget you're watching a movie about movies. Can feel slight if you're not engaged with the meta-commentary.

I Love You, Man2009

Paul Rudd and Jason Segel navigate friendship and marriage in a comedy that's sunny without being stupid. It finds real warmth in small moments and doesn't shortchange its emotional logic.

But It's gentler and more conventional than Top Five, and some viewers will find it too earnest. The bro-friendship subplot can overshadow the romance.

Breakfast at Tiffany's1961

Both structure themselves around a single day in New York, and both believe that watching two people genuinely connect is more interesting than plot.

A film about two people from different worlds spending a day in New York, talking and discovering each other. The script is witty without being cold, and it understands that romance is conversation.

But It's a mid-century artifact—the pacing is leisurely, and Audrey Hepburn's character has contradictions that read differently now. It's very much of its time.

Thick as Thieves2009

Both are interested in men confronting what they've sacrificed for success, and both trust that conversations between people matter more than external events.

A surprisingly tender drama about two aging criminals reconnecting after decades apart. It's stripped down and mostly dialogue, about people trying to reclaim something they've lost.

But It's slow and quiet—a drama about old men, not a comedy. It has almost no plot, and if that frustrates you, the film won't convince you otherwise.