Modern life isn’t easy, and neither is adulthood. Our brains have been frazzled by Big Tech, the admin tasks never end and robots are coming for our jobs. To that end, the best feel-good movies serve a crucial function: to offer some much-needed escapism and light-hearted relief. Because, sometimes, we might not be in the mood for a gritty documentary or a cerebral epic. Sometimes, we might just want to consume the cinematic equivalent of a digestive biscuit. So why deny yourself the pleasure? Below, find 30 feel-good movies to curl up on the sofa with the next time you need a dose of cosiness.
13 Going on 30 (2004)
If you need a reminder of just how cool it can be to be an adult (your own apartment! No curfew! Money that, at least theoretically, is all yours to spend how you will!), rewatching angsty teen Jenna Rink morph into her 30-year-old self overnight is just the thing.
If you’re not averse to repeating the same day over and over (in a movie, anyway), then this classic comedy starring Bill Murray and Andie MacDowell might be just the thing to get you smiling and feeling some sense of gratitude for the normal passage of time.
Is this charming film about a rat who moonlights as a chef in a fancy Paris kitchen technically for kids? Sure. Has it turned a bad day around for me more times than I’m willing to publicly admit? Absolutely.
(2001)
Finding out that you’re the princess of a small European country led by Julie Andrews isn’t quite as much fun as one might think (at least, not for protagonist Mia Thermopolis), but watching this movie with some popcorn and a fuzzy blanket extremely fun.
I can think of easily over a dozen occasions when I’ve put on this high-school cheerleading comedy to pull myself out of a not-so-great mood, and zero occasions when it hasn’t worked. “I’m wanted, I’m hot, I’m everything you’re not! I’m pretty, I’m cool, I dominate this school!”
A League of Their Own (1992)
As Jess on says, this movie is “about sisterhood… and the war.” Accordingly, there are some tense moments, but mostly A League of Their Own concerns lusting after a young Tom Hanks and watching Madonna and Rosie O’Donnell run around in period softball costumes – AKA instant serotonin.
Sure, this one’s for kids, but after that terrifying opening scene (you know the one I mean), it’s pretty much smooth sailing, like an “underwater” screensaver with a touching plot about family, friendship, bravery and independence attached. (Thomas Newman’s rousing score doesn’t hurt, either.)
Parisian waitress Amelie Poulin’s whole mission in life is to help people find joy, and this movie is sure to help you do the same every time you rewatch it.
Arguably the most feel-good entry in Nora Ephron’s oeuvre, this movie comes in handy just when you’ve convinced yourself that love is dead after one too many break-ups. Why didn’t Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan ever costar in anything else?
Actually, is the most feel-good Nora Ephron movie of all time? Meryl Streep, Stanley Tucci, and the endless shots of mouthwateringly flaky crust and melting butter all say .
A great film for anyone who’s ever been a teenage girl with a mother. Siri, play “Girl, so confusing” by Charli XCX featuring Lorde.
And here we have another one that’s for kids but, much like before it, and after it, there are just enough little winks to make it fun for adults too. And who doesn’t shed a tear when Shrek learns to love fellow ogress Fiona?
No offence, but if you can get to the end of this Greek island romp without singing along, there’s something incurably wrong with you.
Arguably the Austen rom-com adaptation against which all others must be measured, this movie is excellent PR for nosy popular girls.
Poor Bridget, living alone at the grand old age of 32 in her own central London apartment with not even a man to keep her warm at night! Luckily, as with any rom-com of the Noughties, it all works out in the end. And then it works out again in all three of the sequels.
Yes, is about a six-year-old girl who’s neglected by her parents and also had an entire generation of millennials terrified of something called “the Chokey”, but this beloved Roald Dahl adaptation is still a delightful comfort watch. Come for the nostalgia, stay for the moral tales.
How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days (2003)
Bring back rom-coms about journalists being sent on vaguely problematic assignments! And also, while we’re at it, rom-coms starring two actors with chemistry that practically fizzes off the screen! The sequel couldn’t come soon enough.
Look, I may be inching ever-closer to “football retirement age”, and haven’t kicked a ball around since school, but that doesn’t stop me from wanting to become the next David Beckham every time I watch this classic.
How could a Pixar film about a grumpy old man attaching thousands of helium balloons to his house and flying to somewhere called “Paradise Falls” with a boy scout make you feel warm and cosy?
There are admittedly quite a lot of Noughties films on this list, but that’s millennial optimism for you! It was quite simply a happier time. If you enjoy quirky indie fare with both warmth and charm, then this one’s a no-brainer.
And here we have the film responsible for one million drunk accidents (if you haven’t tried “the lift” after a few tequilas have you even lived?). In all seriousness, the ’80s music, the undeniable chemistry between Jennifer Grey and Patrick Swayze (RIP) and of course the dancing in this movie makes it a sort of eternal pick-me-up.
has no business being as cosy it is (her parents turn into greedy pigs! She has to work in a bathhouse!). But it’s hard to deny the feel-good appeal of this movie – even just in terms of the cartoon food alone.
was so good it inspired a slew of similarly unruly, wedding-based comedies, though none recreated the magic of the original. The first time I watched this I almost wet myself laughing, and it still holds up just as well today.
Aside from being one of the best popstars of her generation, did you know that Britney Spears is also a very good actor? Most likely yes if you’ve seen the 2002 movie – but if not, then what are you waiting for? It’s worth it for the “I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll” scene alone.
Despite the dystopian setting and general peril throughout, is a joy to watch – probably because it’s centred on a really cute cat. Just because it’s a cartoon for all ages doesn’t mean it’s smooth-brained, though – there’s a reason it won both an Oscar and a Golden Globe.
If you want a dopamine injection of a film, then look no further than the ’80s – specifically , which stars a baby-faced Matthew Broderick as our charismatic titular character who skips school with his girlfriend and best mate to do fun things instead. Jennifer Grey is gold dust in this film, too.
The film that spawned a thousand girls and gays who grew up to be lawyers, is like one intricate and protracted revenge fantasy (but in a fun way). Killer outfits, a tiny chihuahua, Reese Witherspoon… this Robert Luketic comedy really does have it all.
Sometimes a “feel-good” movie actually just means a film you’ve seen so many times that you could mouth the words along with the actors. I often find myself quoting throughout the day without even being fully conscious of it (“Get in loser, we’re going shopping” etc, etc).
If you want to feel good about being alive, then look no further than Wim Wenders’ 2023 film , which follows a janitor in Japan as he drives between jobs listening to rock music and taking photos of trees. It’ll rewire your brain in the best way possible.
It’s been a long, long time since teenagers were able to pick up a pen and go on tour with a famous rock band for a magazine article just because they wanted to – which is partly what makes so fun to watch now. That and all the impeccable outfits, obviously.
