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5 Feel Good Movies For a Rainy Day

Movies & TV

By Olivia S.

- Oct 30, 2022

When the days get tough and the weather gets grey, there's nothing better than grabbing some popcorn, wrapping up in a blanket, and settling down for a feel-good film. We all have our favorite comfort picks, but maybe you're looking for something new! Here are five accessible yet underseen movies for you to watch.

Booksmart (2019)

You're young, smart, and destined for great things. This is what dreams are made of! …Except everyone else ALSO got into the great schools, and they had fun doing it. This is the premise of Booksmart, where dedicated students Molly (Beanie Feldstein) and Amy (Kaitlin Dever) realize that there's more to life than sticking your head in a book, and pledging to go all out on their last day of high school. Often compared to the classic teen flick Superbad (2007), watching these two likable characters get in all sorts of good-natured trouble is a hoot.

Booksmart is currently streaming on Hulu (US).

Before Sunrise (1995)

At the end of the day, everyone's a romantic. Follow Jesse (a young Ethan Hawke) as he meets the girl of his dreams, Céline (Julie Delpy) while traveling on a train through Europe. This movie captures that feeling of "love at first sight" we all remember well, wrapped neatly in a day of exploration in scenic Vienna. This film is written and directed by Richard Linklater, who has also made fun films like Dazed and Confused, as well as heartwarming movies like Boyhood. Before Sunrise is the best of both worlds, combining the "hangout movie" feel of the former with the tugging at your heartstrings of the latter.

Before Sunrise is currently streaming on Hoopla.

Little Miss Sunshine (2006)

Want to catch up with some of your favorite stars before they truly broke out? You'll find plenty of that here, as Richard and Sheryl Hoover (Greg Kinnear and Toni Collette) team up with Sheryl's down-and-out brother Frank (Steve Carrell) to make sure little Olive Hoover's (Abigail Breslin) dreams of becoming a beauty pageant queen come true. The dysfunctional family piles into a yellow Volkswagen bus and treks out to California, with plenty of hijinks along the way. Will Olive's brother Dwayne (a young Paul Dano) break his adolescent-fueled vow of silence? How will wild card Grandpa Ed (Alan Arkin) propel the family to the big event? You'll laugh throughout as you find out.

Little Miss Sunshine is currently streaming on Hulu.

Isle of Dogs (2018)

Stop-motion animation is the wonderful (and time-consuming) process of photographing a subject over and over again, constantly changing the subject in the tiniest ways, and putting all the images together to create a moving picture. The results often lead to some of the most heartwarming movies you can watch. This can be said for director Wes Anderson's Isle of Dogs, the story of a boy who embarks on a hero's journey to rescue his dog from "Garbage Island", where the city has banished all dogs after an outbreak of canine flu. Seeing the love this boy has for his dog inspires the other dogs to help him, and the whole thing plays out in stop-motion. It's a movie that makes us want to hug our fluffy friends a little harder.

Isle of Dogs is currently streaming on Disney+.

Raising Arizona (1987)

How about a Coen Brothers classic? Raising Arizona tells the story of reformed convict H.I.'s (Nicolas Cage) attempts at starting a family with Policewoman Ed (Holly Hunter). Their efforts to have their own baby aren't successful, but the Arizona family of made-for-TV fame certainly has more than they can handle! Surely, they won't miss ONE of their many babies…right? This hilarious train of thought drives H.I. and Ed as they try to raise baby Arizona on their own, all while ducking the law and those who want to profit off of a baby's disappearance. If you're a fan of outlandish chase scenes and quirky characters, this may be the movie for you!

Raising Arizona is currently streaming on Hoopla.