Per Masterclass, breaking the fourth wall is a term that describes a moment in a television series or film where a character addresses the audience directly. This mechanism is written into films across genres and is a popular technique in filmmaking. The technique is used to trigger comedic timing, and creates a more intimate relationship between the character and the audience. By breaking this imaginary fourth wall, the viewer becomes an active part of the film, bringing an entire new meaning to a 3-D experpiece.
The 2000s hit series Malcolm in the Middle featured the character breaking the fourth wall in almost every episode entirely. This allowed for the episodes to read more like personal journal entries being acted out rather than scripted scenes. The trend was popular long before the 2000s and was featured in the 1977 romance Annie Hall, where the main character Alvy Singer addresses his audience directly in order to explain his actions while narrating his story. These are the best movies where characters break the fourth wall, ranked.
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7 The Wolf of Wall Street
Paramount Pictures
The Wolf of Wall Street is the dramatically comedic retelling of the life of Jordan Belfort, a former stockbroker who committed financial fraud by manipulating penny-stocks. Belfort, masterfully articulated by Leonardo DiCaprio, begins his journey on Wall Street at an entry-level job before finding his own firm. The film is a true-and-true product of Martin Scorsese, whose lens maneuvers the criminal world with ease. However, Scorsese’s real talent is his ability to bring his criminals to life and actually making them half likable. DiCaprio and Scorsese have a long history of collaborations, which undoubtedly is what helps the film thrive. Yet, one of the glowing attributes about The Wolf of Wall Street is when Belfort breaks the fourth wall and addresses the audience directly. What sets this film in particular aside from others that utilize the same technique is DiCaprio’s ability to promptly break character and explain the circumstances to the audience. The distinction between Belfort and DiCaprio is so subtle, but the various deliveries throughout the film make it one of the best parts of a rewatch.
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6 Gremlins 2: The New Batch
Warner Bros. Pictures
Director Joe Dante’s Gremlins was a huge success in 1984 and easily cemented itself in pop culture and horror. The classic Chrismas horror flick received the green light for a sequel in 1990, Gremlins 2: The New Batch, and the overall plot premise reads complete chaos on paper. Yet, the series delivers a variety of memorable moments, one of which was the cameo by professional wrestler Hulk Hogan. When the gremlins begin wrecking havoc in the building, Billy (reprised by Zach Galligan) is trying to find out where they are, but the film begins to seem as if there are projector issues. The reel cuts and the screen goes white, only to reveal that the gremlins themselves have taken over the screen. Shortly after, Hulk Hogan appears on-screen and threatens the gremlins directly, all before addressing the audience to assure them that the mishap won’t happen again. Gremlins 2 has many memorable attributes that range from the spider gremlin to the self-aware placing of a poorly timed joke. However, this scene and Hulk Hogan’s cameo easily make it the most memorable of the film by far.
5 Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
The 80s birthed cult classics across all genres. It was the era for practical effects for horror and John Hughes movies that changed the teen comedy forever. Ferris Bueller’s Day Off is, in fact, one of these Hughes classics. Ferris Bueller, played by Matthew Broderick, is determined to cut class one more time before graduation and the day turns out to be one of his grandest yet to come. The film has Ferris address the camera directly throughout the entirety, making it feel more like a diary entry than a film technique. Ferris is constantly explaining to the audience something about the day or himself, but the most memorable scene of all is the post credit scene: Ferris peeks out of the bathroom, looking confused. He addresses the audience one last time to tell them to go home.
4 Fight Club
Fox 2000 Pictures
The Narrator in Fight Club, played by Edward Norton, meets a soap salesman named Tyler Durden (played by Brad Pitt), and soon after, the two form an underground club where men can fight other men. The film is often ranked as one of the movies that made 1999 an iconic year for cinema, and often suffers backlash for the graphic controversial content. The Narrator addresses the audience various times throughout the film, but the most important to note are when he is speaking on Tyler. This is especially true after the reveal that Durden does not exist, and the Narrator is actually Durden himself. The weight of this reveal serves purposeful on a re-watch, with the understanding that the Narrator is confessing his own actions to the audience while placing blame on a fictitious piece of his imagination.
3 Goodfellas
Warner Bros.
Arguably the greatest gangster film of all time, and also Scorsese’s best film ever made, Goodfellas focuses in on Henry Hill (played by Ray Liotta) and his life as a gangster. Hill serves as a narrator throughout the film, but Goodfellas has an abundance of notable performances that carry throughout, from Robert De Niro to Lorraine Bracco to Joe Pesci. In the opening scene, Hill alerts the audience that he always wanted to be a gangster, and the film capitalizes heavily on his journey to get there. Yet after all is said and done, Hill ends up in witness protection, and it is in this moment that he addresses the audience directly, looking straight into the camera and smiling. The voiceover states where he is and how he misses the life he once had, easily putting a cherry on top of a perfect ending.
2 Deadpool
20th Century Studios
Deadpool’s ultra self-aware comedic beats won over audiences, and proved to be an overall success. This ultimately resulted in a sequel and an upcoming third installment. It is nearly impossible to pick an instance where Deadpool breaks the fourth wall as a favorite because he does it constantly throughout the film. This technique works as well as it does in the Deadpool comic book series because it grants the illusion that the self-proclaimed “Merc with a Mouth” is taking the audience on his journey with him rather than showing them. There is no doubt that Deadpool 3 will deliver the same comedic timing, and self-aware commentary just as the first two did.
1 Annie Hall
Rollins-Joffe Productions
Annie Hall is a romantic comedy that uses New York City for its unbeatable landscape. Overall, the film is a love story with a rather amicable ending, and the performances are authentic. Annie Hall won Woody Allen the Academy Award for Best Director in 1978, which is a feat all its own. Allen directed, wrote, and acted in the film, all while continuously breaking the fourth wall and addressing his audience directly. Allen uses this technique to assert not only his alternate profession as a stand-up comedian, but that of the film’s hero Alvy, whom he portrays. Breaking the fourth wall holds no specific genre and can be found in both television and film, and helps to create a better relationship between the main character and the target audience.
