Life is full of ups and downs. It is important to find healthy ways to manage the negative emotions we feel when we go through life’s inevitable—and sometimes brutal—“downs.” During tough times, we might lean more heavily on our support system or devote more time than usual to activities that help us relieve stress, like journaling or working out. I often find myself engaging with pieces of art to help me handle difficult moments in life, especially movies. It can be nice to turn your brain off for an hour and a half and lose yourself in a story. With everything going on in the world, and as we inch closer to finals season, I thought it could be helpful to share my seven favorite comfort movies for anyone else who could use a pick-me-up.
A few quick notes to keep in mind: the movies on this list are hopeful, silly and sweet. Their stakes are low. They all have happy endings. They are, in short, feel-good movies. These are boxes all comfort movies should fill. While consuming movies that dig into negative emotions and explore themes like loss, loneliness or despair can be helpful, sometimes you need to take a break from those feelings. When I am feeling down, watching something happy and light is one of the easiest ways to improve my mood.
Additionally, many of the movies that made the list were films I first watched as a kid. They have an element of childhood nostalgia and familiarity to them that makes me feel safe. This means that the criteria for a good comfort movie may be very personal, so this list may not resonate the same for people who did not grow up with these movies. Nonetheless, I think these are some really special films, and I enjoyed writing about them almost as much as I did watching them.
1: “The Princess Bride”
Odds are you have already seen this movie at some point and for good reason. “The Princess Bride” is an exceptionally funny and entertaining movie with a genuinely sweet romance at its core. It is essentially a bedtime story brought to life; it opens with a grandfather reading to his grandson, and we understand the rest of the movie to be events from that story. The beautiful maiden Buttercup falls in love with farmhand Wesley. They plan to marry, but Wesley appears to die while seeking a fortune overseas. Buttercup is betrothed to the evil Prince Humperdinck, but after being kidnapped before the wedding, she has a revelation that throws her future in limbo once more. I think it might be impossible to dislike this movie. There is love, revenge, fencing, pirates and Rodents of Unusual Size—which terrified me while I was growing up. The poison scene between Wesley and Vizzini is especially great.
Genre: Fantasy/Comedy/Romance
Available to subscribers on: Disney Plus, Hulu, IMDb TV (Free with ads)
2: “Scott Pilgrim Versus the World”
This movie is an adaptation of a series of graphic novels, and it really shows in the visual style, which also has a lot of video game influences as well. The main character, Scott Pilgrim, is a 22 year old musician living across the street from his parent’s house. He falls for an Amazon delivery girl, Ramona Flowers, but in order to date her he has to defeat her “seven evil exes,” who inexplicably have superhero-level fighting abilities. Simultaneously, Scott has to navigate a local music competition with his band as they try to earn a record deal. There is also the problem of dumping his current girlfriend, Knives Chau, a bubbly high school student who Scott is mostly indifferent to and who definitely deserved better. This is another extremely funny movie, and it has lines that I often reference with friends, such as, “Bread makes you fat?” The fight scenes are extremely well choreographed and fun to watch. Another reason I love this movie is the amount of effort that was put into the editing, visual effects and sound design; you can rewatch it several times and still discover new details that you missed on previous viewings.
Genre: Action/Comedy/Romance
Available to subscribers on: IMDb TV (Free with ads)
3: “Mean Girls”
“Mean Girls” is a classic piece of early 2000s cinema. The main character, Cady Heron, is the new girl at her high school, having just moved from Africa. Although the social environment is extremely cliquey, she eventually makes friends with fellow loners Janis Ian and Damien Leigh. She then gets involved in a plot to infiltrate and sabotage the “Plastics,” the most popular girls in school. There are so many iconic lines and scenes in this movie, and I especially love Rachel McAdams’s performance as Regina. This movie definitely had far too much of an influence on how I pictured high school as a 7th and 8th grader—the reality was far less dramatic.
Genre: Comedy
Available to subscribers on: N/A
4: “Ratatouille”
Aspiring chef Remy has a perfect palate and a knack for creating unforgettable dishes. The only issue is that he is a rat, the last creature most humans would want to see in a kitchen. The other rats in his colony scrounge through garbage for food and do not understand Remy’s interest in cooking. Luckily, Remy finds a friend and human marionette in Alfredo Linguini, a garbage boy at the restaurant Remy’s cooking hero founded, who Remy hilariously controls by tugging his hair from inside his puffy white chef’s hat. I could watch Remy struggle to achieve his dream and prove the world wrong forever—Pixar really knows how to tell a good story and hits the right emotional beats every time. The setting, soundtrack and animation style in this movie are also fantastic and work together to create a very distinct atmosphere which I adore.
Genre: Animation/Adventure/Comedy/Family/Fantasy
Available to subscribers on: Disney Plus
5: “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off”
Charismatic, carefree high schooler Ferris Bueller fakes an illness to skip school for the upteenth time. He brings along his girlfriend Sloane and his best friend Cameron, who is actually sick. The trio steal Cameron’s father’s Ferrari and drive to downtown Chicago, where they spend most of the day. The ever-present threat of getting caught by either Cameron’s father, an overly-dedicated member of the school staff looking to expose Ferris for truancy, and Ferris’s parents keeps the story interesting. I love how tight the plot is and the attention the movie gives to its characters. While this movie is primarily a comedy, there are some really powerful introspective moments too—the scene at the art museum is one of my favorite scenes from any movie, period.
Genre: Comedy
Available to subscribers on: N/A
6: “My Neighbor Totoro”
The main characters in this movie are two sisters, Satsuki and Mei. They move into an old house with their father and quickly encounter a number of spirits, including Totoro, a friendly creature that looks like it could be a cross between a bear, a cat and a rabbit. Other spirits include the susuwatari, house spirits that appear as round dust balls with eyes, and Catbus, whose yellow eyes light up like car headlights and whose hollowed-out furry midsection is perfect for carrying passengers across the countryside. “My Neighbor Totoro” is a slow-paced movie with no antagonist and a fairly unfocused plot, but for me that is a big part of its charm. This movie captures the magic and beauty of childhood better than any other film I have seen. It also shows a deep reverence for the natural world in its lavishly animated landscape shots and its rural setting. The soundtrack is lovely and so iconic that hearing just a few notes immediately takes me into the world of the movie and makes me nostalgic.
Genre: Animation/Family/Fantasy
Available to subscribers on: HBO Max
7: “About Time”
At the age of 21, Tim Lake’s father tells him a closely-guarded secret: all the men in his family have the ability to travel through time. There are some rules, however: for instance, you can only travel to moments from your own memory. Nevertheless, this power gives Tim the freedom to relive and/or redo days, weeks or even years of his life. What makes “About Time” so effective is that it occurs over the course of many years of Tim’s life—we watch him make tough choices, fall in love, have children and endure loss. Despite Tim’s fantastic abilities, he ultimately lives a fairly ordinary life, and this movie demonstrates that an even ordinary human life is something of immense beauty. Watching this movie made me feel more awake to my own life and helped me appreciate what I have more fully.
Genre: Romance/Drama/Fantasy
Available to subscribers on: Netflix
A good movie can go a long way in turning around a bad day. That being said, self-care looks different for everyone. If you end up watching one of the films on this list I would be thrilled, but I would be just as thrilled if this article prompts you to listen to your favorite album, meet up with friends for dinner or even just take a moment to let yourself breathe—whatever activity that you find most helpful. At the end of the day, the most important thing is to be kind to yourself and remember that bad times never last forever.