5 dad jokes for Father’s Day: cringey comedies and feel-good family flicks

Whether watching him scratch, grunt and grumble in the morning is like your personal wildlife encounter, or Mr Strong and Silent is making your eyes well up in pride with rare words of praise, he’s your dad. Your father. Your papa. So whatever model dad your mom installed in your home, give him his due this Father’s Day, 18 June 2023.

And since there’s no childhood delight more treasured than having Mr Suit & Tie slip you a dad joke, it’s your turn to share a laugh as you bond over these five comedies. To get you in the mood, we’ve thrown in a groan-worthy dad joke to go with every title.

I Love My Dad (from 15 June)

Dad joke

Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Disguise!
Disguise who?
Disguise your boyfriend!

When writer-actor-director James Morosini was around 20 years old, he fell in love online. But he was being catfished. The woman of his dreams had been made up by his own estranged father, Claudio Lichtenthal. Dad was using the profile to try to reconnect with his son after James blocked him on social media. Now in this comedy movie, Patton Oswalt plays overreaching dad Chuck, whose son, mentally troubled Franklin (James Morosini), thinks he’s found The One in the lovely Becca (Claudia Sulewski) – a young woman whose pictures he’s seen online, and who now acts out their interactions in his imagination.

The scenes of Becca and Franklin together are cut with scenes of what’s really happening – father and son together. Prepare to cringe yourself inside out, because intimacy has never been more terrifying!

Selfie Dad

Dad joke

I have this great construction joke, but I’m still working on the build up.

Husband, father and former stand-up comedian Ben Marcus (played by real-life stand-up comedian Michael Jr) thinks he can find a new platform as a social media star. Thanks to his social-savvy son Jack (Jalon Christian), Ben goes from being the mild-mannered production house editor for TV gardening show Rosie’s Roses and its demon of a host, Rosie (Chonda Pierce), to the bumbling “star” of his own home reno account on a major online video platform that won’t be named for legal reasons.

When Ben uses his platform to recommend bible study after his teen daughter Hannah (Shelby Simmons) does something naughty, sponsors flee. Even his wife Jesse (Dahlia Waingort) suggests that Ben should delete the video. But there’s an audience for Ben’s growing faith, he just needs to build them up with the same love, care, and acceptance of imperfection that he’s giving his renovations.

My Dad Wrote A Porno

Dad joke

What did the elephant say to the nudist?
How do you breathe out of that!?

First came the horrifying discovery. Next, the podcast. Now, tune in for the comedy special as Jamie Morton and his friends James Cooper and Alice Levine read and critique excerpts from the novel Belinda Blinked. The literary work in question is an erotic potboiler about the sexy adventures of Belinda Blumenthal, the sales director for Steeles Pots and Pans who’s serving the company’s bottom line by flashing hers.

The author is Rocky Flintstone, aka, Jamie’s dad, a retired builder. The muses have graced “Rocky” with a knack for words that makes Belinda come across as the world’s most convincing Austin Powers impersonator on paper. For a fun time, guess which part of Belinda’s body this line refers to: “They were now as large as the three-inch rivets which had held the hull of the faithful Titanic together.” Go on, pour out a big glass of the old eye bleach and get watching. You’ll regret it, but the way you regret an outrageous bachelor party.

The Napsta: My Dad Would Always Say

Dad joke

A man is washing his car with his son, and the son asks, “Dad, can’t you just use a sponge?!”

Looking for family-friendly comedy? In this one-hour stand-up special filmed at Rhema church in Johannesburg, the Napsta digs down into South Africa’s quirks and racial divides in naming our animals and our children, how we strike, and who’s out there demanding discounts on everything, including free events. Halfway through the set, following a violent altercation with his puppet pal, the Napsta gets into the real meat of this special as he talks about his own father – or his two dads, the sober one and the drunk one – and the father figures in his life. You might feel that jolt of recognition as he talks about the male generation that doesn’t express feelings.

And we can all relate to Napsta chatting about the trauma of being scolded by your dad’s friends. But with his comedic twist, he’ll reveal how the experience gave him a certain creative freedom with the English language. Watch it with your dad, watch it with your granddad, watch it with your kids. And if you want to head straight to the dad stuff, skip ahead to around the 33-minute mark.

Father of the Bride (from 19 June)

Dad joke

It has been a very emotional day: even the cake is in tiers.

Sneaking in late to Father’s Day on Monday, 19 June, this remake of the classic 1951 and 1991 comedy movie is a love letter between dads and daughters. Andy Garcia plays doting Cuban immigrant dad Billy, who becomes a complete dadzilla in the run up to his eldest daughter Sofia’s (Adria Arjona) wedding, while trying to process his own looming divorce from his wife Ingrid (Gloria Estefan). Generations clash when hyper-masculine Billy meets Sofia’s fiancé Adan (Diego Boneta), a yoga loving, vegetarian, non-profit immigration lawyer who wants the new couple to move to his home country, Mexico, after the wedding.

And cultures clash when Sofia’s clueless wedding planner Natalie (Cloe Fineman) jumbles up all Latin American nations in a cultural appropriation grab bag for a flamingo-flamenco wedding theme. And then the mega rich in-laws arrive and Billy compares Adan’s dad Hernan (Pedro Damián) to a James Bond movie villain. Pray for Billy, he’s packing a lot of baggage for this trip down the aisle. In true dad form, he’s raised an independent, headstrong achiever and now he feels it has come back to bite him (but he’s still so, so proud).

Happy Father’s Day, and keep the jokes coming!