If John Belushi was part of it, my father loved it, and the same went for the British comedy troupes and the early "Saturday Night Live" crew. Ensemble comedies were the thing, and back in the day, every comedian wanted a piece of the action. Come up with a funny idea, and there was a gang of six - or eight - who would sign on the dotted line.

Then something changed in the 1990s. As we all became fixated on the movie star, comedies started to lose their breadth. Think back to the days of Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts; all you need to make a successful blockbuster was the right star. This mentality transferred to comedies, as well. I can vividly remember when Jim Carrey shocked the industry, commanding $20 million to star in "The Cable Guy."

My, how the times have changed.

In recent years, we’ve seen that it’s the franchise that reigns: familiar characters or titles like Thor, Captain America, "Pirates of the Caribbean" and "X-Men." What once was a "Tom Hanks movie" is now a "Batman movie."

Where you once used to go see "that new Clint Eastwood movie," you now set out to see "that new superhero movie starring that guy with the beard."

One can see this mentality transferring over to the comedy world in the form of Judd Apatow movies. The writer, director and producer has made a career out of building dynamic ensemble experiences - movies like "40-Year-Old Virgin," "Knocked Up" and "Funny People," which have less to do with one major star than with a clan of hit humorists.

Going to a Judd Apatow movie nowadays is less about a specific actor or actress than a general sense of camaraderie and chemistry. It’s about the vibe, of witty and wily adults cracking wise.

The apex of this shift, moving from a star-oriented comedy scene to one of ensembles, was 2009’s "The Hangover." Starring a clan of B-level actors, pushed into theaters with a decidedly non-mainstream R rating, and marketed almost exclusively to men, the film nevertheless went on to become the highest-grossing R-rated film of all time. It remained in theaters for more than half a year.

Now with "The Hangover Part II" set to open next week, and the Judd Apatow-produced "Bridesmaids" already in theaters, it’s clear that chemistry is the thing in comedy, and that writing - not the A-list star - is the key ingredient. A smart joke, told well, now trumps the recognizable brand value of a Kate Hudson or a Matthew McConaughey.

The times have changed, and I, for one, couldn’t be happier. As a critic, we crave movies that are creative and unique, where experimentation is valued over formula. And when it comes to the likes of "Bridesmaids" and "The Hangover," the envelope is being pushed, not photocopied.