The 15 best feel-good films on Amazon Prime Video (2023)

What does it take to provide the serotonin you desperately need to even get up in the morning? You can always see what's going on with some of the best feel-good movies on Prime Video.

Feel-good movies don't really belong in an established genre. At least not in the horror, western or fantasy sense. A genre film usually focuses on certain concepts and types of atmospheres. While feel-good movies are likely to hit certain emotional undertones, they really can come from anywhere. Some of them are comedies. Some of them have a strong penchant for drama.

Some people think of Leprechaun 4: In Space as a feel-good movie.

Hey, if that's one of you, more power to you.

However, I tried to provide at least some focus in compiling this list of the best feel-good movies to watch on Amazon Prime. After all, the movies that excite me don't necessarily work for you. This thought was taken into account when selecting the films that eventually make up this list. Using other lists and my own personal selections, I've tried to focus on movies that are generally considered feel-good movies.

FIRST FILMS TO FEEL GOOD: the Goodbye|the whole amount|Harold e Maude|The hero|Hoosiers|hot rod|Moonrise Kingdom|obsessed with the moon|Paterson|Stolz|o terminal|Show the Truman|Tucker and Dale contra o mal|UHF|Tio Frank

The best feel-good movies on Prime Video

1. Farewell (2019)

Director:lulu money

Is there a "good" lie?the Goodbyetakes us into some pretty uncomfortable and deeply emotional territory with this question. With that question really addressed and explored to a wholly satisfying conclusion, The Farewell has enough space to tell an extraordinary story about a young immigrant writer named Billi (a spectacular and difficult performance by Awkwafina) who, during a transitional high, It gets chaotic moment of your family life.

Stories about someone with cancer, in this case a grandmother named Nai Nai (Zhao Shu-zhen is a scene stealer), can go either way. Feeling inspired by such a story can sometimes require an almost pornographic approach to exploring the material. That is not the case here. Writer-director Lulu Wang tells a rich story of family and growing up, and also gives us an absolutely perfect ending.

2. The Whole Month (1997)

Director:Pedro Cattaneo

I don't think I really know anyone who hates the 1997 smash hit The Full Monty. I'm sure these people exist, but they seem to be in short supply.

I imagine some of us are a little tired of this story of a bunch of out-of-work steel workers turned strippers due to the movie's massive success. It was one of those movies that you really couldn't pass up seeing. You really didn't. The film is about as unassuming as it gets, but it finds both funny and occasionally sadder undertones with equal attention and success.

The Full Monty also lets strong characters and actors like Robert Carlyle and Tom Wilkinson set the pace, with witty dialogue and an unforgettable soundtrack.

3. Harold e Maude (1971)

Director:Hal Ashby

Outside ofthe mixed receptionIt received an acclaimed release (now out of print) from prominent critics in its heyday incriteria collection, the journey of Hal Ashby's definitive counterculture film, Harold and Maude, was as strange as the title characters themselves.

Whether or not this movie warms your heart the way we've talked about is easy to find out.

If you don't like this movie in which an aggressively morbid young man (the wonderful Bud Cort) falls in love with a cruelly cheerful, slightly criminal old woman (Ruth Gordon, whom I suspect you'll like even if you don't like 'don't do it, I I don't like the movie) you'll know for sure within the first fifteen minutes. This movie has its own style, and the romance that develops between Harold and Maude might be too sweet for your tastes.

Not for me. I love these crazy kids.

4. The Hero (2017)

Director:Brett Haley

Sam Elliott is an actor who can seemingly ground any movie or character, no matter how weird (The Big Lebowski) or even ridiculous (The Man Who Killed Hitler and Then Bigfoot) the premise might be.

At times, The Hero turns into a fairly standard drama about an elderly person facing a particularly difficult time in their life. That's not a slap in the face, which is really nice. However, that's not really enough to warrant inclusion on this list of the best feel-good movies to watch on Prime Video.

However, with a story that focuses on Sam Elliott as a western legend, with most of the film allowing him to create an impressively memorable character, The Hero goes up a few notches, I think.

5. Hoosiers (1986)

Director:David Anspaugh

Hoosiers is a movie that frequently appears on lists like this one. Even those who hate sports movies, inspirational sports movies, or inspirational sports movies set in small towns (I grew up in one of those towns and don't have much patience for these types of movies in general) seem to like Hoosiers quite a bit.

Why? Gene Hackman as the aggressive but well-meaning new coach of a struggling high school basketball team is probably part of that. Few actors have been as consistently attractive, regardless of film or role, as Hackman, who seems satisfied with that these days.write booksand continues to enjoy his retirement.

Dennis Hopper on the return track is another reason to recommend this on Prime Video. What really matters, however, is that this is another simple, straightforward, actor-driven film. Like The Full Monty, Hoosiers is unpretentious.

6. Hot Rod (2007)

Director:Akiva Schaffer

What's the appeal of watching an impressively unique kid try to become the greatest stuntman of all time? Apparently a lot.

Andy Samberg is an exceptional actor. However, by 2007, he was best known for his work on Saturday Night Live. what originally wasa vehicle for Will Ferrellit would be the first significant opportunity not only for Samberg as a comic book lead actor, but also for The Lonely Island, a comic book trio that Samberg was and still is a part of, to exist in a universe larger than a short film on SNL.

Despite the bad money andcritical reception, the film found audiences with surreal humor, a large and tremendously funny supporting cast, and a bizarre sweetness that you can find in many other projects that The Lonely Island and Samberg have embraced as solo actors over the years. Hot Rod is one of the goofiest movies on this list. It's also one of the cutest. If you think you know these types of movies, give it a try anyway. You might be surprised.

7. Moonrise Kingdom (2012)

Director:Wes Anderson

An aggressively whimsical comedy about kids running away from home to be together? Wes Anderson has shown his talent for unique family comedies, with dramatic punches sometimes arriving when you least expect it. Moonrise Kingdom continues Anderson's trend of going deeper and deeper into worlds that couldn't exist anywhere else.

The fact that these words are so specific for lack of a better word can sometimes annoy people. However, I think Moonrise Kingdom's appeal is greater than almost any Wes Anderson film to date. The children, played by Kara Hayward and Jared Gilman, are very friendly.

It also doesn't detract from the likeability, or the fact that you'll probably feel pretty good when this movie is over, that its supporting cast includes Bill Murray, Frances McDormand, Edward Norton and Bruce Willis in what could be the best work he'll ever do as actor.

8. Moonstruck (1987)

Director:Norman Jewison

Winner of three well-deserved Academy Awards (including Best Supporting Actress for the late and truly great Olympia Dukakis), Moonstruck is a romantic comedy that may have had a little too much to drink before it started. This is a big noisy movie filled with performances that manage to find high comedy amid ever-chaotic circumstances.

I'm not sure I really want to have dinner with any of these people, played by a young Nicolas Cage, Dukakis, the late John Mahoney, Danny Aiello and Cher in the Oscar-winning role. At its core, Moonstruck is a film that depicts various romantic and familial relationships.

Moonstruck thrives on manic energy and a very interesting group of performers - it works perfectly.

9. Paterson (2016)

Director:Jim Jarmusch

We live. We work. We die. We hope that one day we can enjoy a little bit of our work and find people who love us as much as we love them. Some filmmakers look for an existential crisis in this. Jarmusch, who is no stranger to portraying people in crisis mode, takes a different approach with the slow, almost intoxicatingly gentle Paterson.

The movie is perhaps the easiest on this feel-good Prime Video movie list. A bus driver (Adam Driver, who might be doing my favorite performance of his) lives a life observing the world around him, hanging out with his wife and dog, driving his bus and writing poetry.

And that. That's the entire movie. A few events occur, but nothing at the level you'd expect from a movie. We are encouraged to find our own parrels about this character as we absorb the remarkable remarkableness of a life that seems to be very well lived. Personally, I can't help but find great encouragement in this and the film's ability to convey anything.

10. Stolz (2014)

Director:Matthäus Warchus

Based on the UK Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners campaign, which ran from 1984 to 1985, Pride has an intriguing fish out of water premise, with gay and lesbian activists teaming up with striking British miners to fight to create an inspirational force.

Every trailer for this film promises a few laughs, the appropriate and expected drama, a great cast (including the always brilliant Bill Nighy and Imelda Staunton), and respect for the material and its humanity.

While Pride isn't the highest bidder for a movie, it does tick all the boxes I mentioned above. He also manages to bring some surprises in his plot and character relationships. Given the breadth and talent of this cast, and given theater director Matthew Warchus' knack for pulling together a great cast impressively and tightly together throughout the story, you shouldn't be surprised at just how enjoyable Pride actually is.

11. O Terminal (2004)

Director:Steven Spielberg

Is the 2004 movie The Terminal the weirdest movie Steven Spielberg has ever directed? I speak specifically in connection withthe filmmaker himself.

As long as I think honor can belong2001 AI Artificial intelligence(Are these two films really only 3 years apart?) I have to admit that one of the things I really like about The Terminal is that it's one of the best arguments for Spielberg having more versatility than he sometimes gets credit for in the advertisement. Even I've been blamed a few times for firing him, particularly on some of his recent work.

But when he's good, or at least interesting, he's an unstoppable authority on must-see movies. While The Terminal still speaks of a penchant for the underdog and that certain sentimentality that is unique to it, it's another film on this list that will surprise first-time moviegoers. Tom Hanks traveled a lot more miles than you might think as an immigrant who was stuck in New York's JFK airport for an extremely long time.

Terminal deserves its happy ending with one of the best performances by Hanks and one of the best casts in Spielberg's entire filmography - congratulations.

12. Die Truman-Show (1998)

Director:Peter Weir

I won't deny that The Truman Show clearly showcases Jim Carrey's unique energy as a comedian.

However, and this is all the more impressive to me given the fact that it came just five years after Carey's breakthrough in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, The Truman Show emphasized that the guy who could play Ace Ventura could do a lot more with wider subjects. dark, strange and especially sadder. The Truman Show, directed by one of Australia's finest, Peter Weir, was an impressive undertaking for Carrey at the time. It never ceases to amaze fans of this film that his work was not justified.as much as an Oscar peek.

The story of a man who doesn't know his life is a 24/7 documentary that can easily outdo itself. This is not the case here, the happy ending being yet another example of what his characters deserve, in particular Laura Linney, as someone to whom Truman responds with a love that surprises even himself.

The Truman Show promises a lot and does not disappoint.

13. Tucker and Dale Contra o Mal (2010)

Director:Eli Craig

Two extremely likable rednecks (Tyler Labine and Alan Tudyk, and the world desperately needs more movies starring these two men) are mistaken for wild redneck cannibal maniacs by a group of seemingly clean and unlikely college students. The result is a horror comedy so good it could be number one on my personal list of movies I wish someone would make a sequel to.

Tucker and Dale vs Evil is funny for the chemistry between the leads, for appearances like Katrina Bowden as the college student who might actually have a soul, and for its repeated, good-natured attacks on horror movie tropes. The roles are obviously reversed here, with the hillbillies simply being victims of misperception and timing, and the film finds every imaginable touch of humor in this plot.

What makes this film a feel-good candidate? It's one of the best portraits of friendship ever seen on screen. It also has one of the most charming romantic subplots of all horrors. Maybe in every movie. i just fucking love itIt's movies.

14. UHF (1989)

Director:Jay Levey

No one will dispute that Weird Al Yankovic's (I'm not exaggerating) cinematic masterpiece UHF is really just there for Yankovic to work on as many parodies as possible. Covering a range of then-popular TV shows and movies, these parodies are all funny for one reason or another. Almost everything still holds up, or at least is funny for the weirdness and not necessarily the context.

A raucous comedy is a blast, but where does the feel-good component come in?

As with many of Weird Al's best parody songs, there's more under the surface than we're seeing. This is just an amazing cast working together beautifully, including Fran Drescher, Kevin McCarthy and Michael Richards in at least his best film role.

The script and story ultimately show respect and kindness to outsiders that are not only popular but drive the plot forward in a way that has managed to excite me almost without exception for over 30 years.

15. Tio Frank (2020)

Director:Alan Bola

Although I'm an Oscar winner (for writing American Beauty), I didn't go into Alan Ball's heartwarming family drama Uncle Frank with high expectations. Amazon is pretty aggressive when it comes to the merchandising products they release.

There are so many instances where you can show me a compelling story of a gay man (a highly memorable Paul Bettany) taking his college niece (getting better) to a family gathering he wished he hadn't attended before saying "Well, well , I'm interested."

While Amazon's personal release schedule for movies and shows follows an oddly wide trajectory, there are plenty of strong movies to be found, whether you're digging yourself or trusting Amazon to pester you with a few hundred TV commercials a day.

Uncle Frank makes you significantly less cynical about Amazon's seemingly haphazard approach to greenlighting projects once the film begins. Because then it becomes a warm love story between a man and his niece. What makes Uncle Frank special is the many different ways it explores love and family, but never in a way that goes to the heart of the titular character, his niece, or the crossroads of potential they all find themselves at.

Uncle Frank is another entry on this list of the best feel-good movies on Prime that more than deserves its place and the strength of its ending. This film deals with lighthearted comedy, good dialogue and some of the more complicated notions of family with a depth that underscores Alan Ball's clear talent for writing and directing.

KEEP READING: The Best Documentaries on Amazon Prime

Some of the coverage you'll find on Cult Vultures contains affiliate links that earn us small commissions based on purchases made by visiting our site. we protectgame news,movie reviews,The ringand much more.