As we all suffer through this time, and many of us are turning to movies to fill the days and night, Sequential Planet still has your back! I know that films like Contagion are climbing the list and having a resurgence, but let’s be honest, that is glib. The hourly news cycle is enough to depress the masses. You need something to lift you up. Something that makes you forget. Something to put a smile on your face in this crisis. Luckily, I’m here to give you my Top 10 Feel-Good Movies for you to enjoy, and as always, I will try to nail down where they are available.
10. Naked Gun Trilogy
This might be cheating because it is three movies, but they are hilarious and are sure to get you laughing. They are also so light that there is really no way to get down or overthink anything here. The jokes are all rapid-fire, and while the third installment, The Naked Gun 33⅓, is the least funny in my opinion, there are still laughs to be had, so why not complete the trilogy. Some of the gags are definitely dated now, and some of them my 8-year-old laughs at, so there is something here for everyone.
The Naked Gun: From the File of Police Squad – Netflix
The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear – Netflix
Naked Gun 33⅓: The Final Insult – Amazon Prime
9. Amélie
This one appears on a lot of lists like this, and for a good reason. It is an adorable movie with very little in the way of happiness. Taking place mostly in a cute Parisian cafe, Amélie has broken out from being a sleepy foreign film and has made its way into plenty of American hearts. Very few people will be able to argue with this lovable from 2001.
Streaming on Cinemax GO
8. Love, Simon
Love, Simon is a recent film to make this list. While it does deal with some heavy issues of a closeted gay teenager, it is so endearing. Simon and his friends are such lovable characters, and while the movie has some less-likable people, by the time the credits roll, your heart will be overflowing for Simon.
Not Streaming
7. About Time
About Time is a romantic time-travel movie that MIGHT bring a tear to your eye, but always for a good reason. Domhnall Gleeson and Rachael McAdams truly sparkle in this movie, and you’ll wish for this once in a lifetime love. We have all seen romance, and we all know Back to the Future, but this movie has a truly original take, which is always refreshing in today’s Hollywood.
Not Streaming
6. Sing Street
This is the first entry on the list that is the definition of “feel good.” Sing Street will actually make your heart sing as you follow a group of Irish kids around desperate to make a music video and to make music. Spoiler Alert: by the time the last song plays, you will want to buy the soundtrack. Everything about this movie will make you feel good, and its a guaranteed happy film.
Streaming on Netflix
5. Chef
At the halfway point, it another top to bottom joyful movie. There are very few films that have no real conflict and no lull in their action. Chef is one those. It is constant feel good, and it never becomes anything else. It is just a really good time in from of your TV. Also, if you like Cuban sandwiches, then you might just enjoy this one a little more.
Not streaming, but worth the rental
4. Everybody Wants Some!!
The truth is 90% of Richard Linklater’s movies fit the bill for this list. I could have gone with the more popular Dazed and Confused, or the first two installments of the Before trilogy. Possibly even Boyhood. Maybe Bernie, which is a hilarious movie about a real murder (go figure). I chose a more recent favorite of mine. Everybody Wants Some!! is a simple comedy about a college baseball team and all the different personalities. Almost every actor here is on-point, and they all shine here. It is movie that I can rewatch over and over and never tire of.
Not streaming, but worth a purchase for me
3. His Girl Friday
We think of the black and white era as dramatic and classic and Citizen Kane and “Frankly, my dear…” However, at the same time that Hitchcock was doing the laugh-free Rebecca, Cary Grant was making heads fall off as Walter Burns, a newspaper editor that is so sharp-witted it makes me mad. We all want to be like Cary Grant, and here he just reminds us again why he was one of the greatest actors ever to live both comedically and dramatically.
Streaming on Amazon Prime
2. Big Trouble
For some, this movie lives in obscurity. For me, I saw it in theaters and fell in love with it. Let me take the time to let you know why this movie deserves your time: Tim Allen, Rene Russo, Patrick Warburton, Ben Foster, Zooey Deschanel, Stanley Tucci, Tom Sizemore, Johnny Knoxville, Dennis Farina, Janeane Garofalo, Heavy D, Omar Epps, Jason Lee, and Sofia Vergara. This cast is so stacked, and no one steals the show. Everyone has their part, and that is why this movie works. It is pure comedy. No darkness. Directed by Barry Sonnefeld just in case the cast didn’t entice you.
Not streaming, but track it down today
1. Begin Again
This is much in the same vein as Sing Street. It is just a fun time. The music is amazing. The mood is lighthearted. Everyone is having fun. When I can get incredible original music and feel good, then I take it without looking back. If you have not seen this movie, you need to seek it out now. Unless you just despise music and are allergic to a good time…in that case, I guess Dirty Harry is playing on TBS or something…
Not streaming, but rent this immediately
In all honesty, I probably have another 10 or 20 of these so if the lockdown’s keep extending, we might do this again…once you have all found your way through this list.