There really is nothing like an honest-to-goodness feel-good movie.
It has to thread the line between being too schmaltzy and too emotional whilst, at the same time, looking completely effortless. Many have tried down through the years and there's some excellent examples, but we've picked out five feel-good movies that are perfect for any time of day.
Take a look.
5. BIG FISH
Tim Burton's films might be marked weird spectacles, heavy eye-liner and Helena Bonham Carter floating around the background somewhere, however Big Fish was a departure from his usual flights of fancy. What's more, Big Fish took on a very personal meaning for Burton as his own father passed away a couple of years before the film was released. The film itself, for those who haven't seen it, focuses on the reconciliation between a father and son. It's pretty moving stuff, to say the least.
4. ROMY AND MICHELE'S HIGH SCHOOL REUNION
Although some might dismiss this film as Lisa Kudrow's attempt to launch a film career in the middle of Friends, Romy & Michele's High School Reunion is a wonderful slice of nostalgia that still makes you chuckle now just as much as it did back in 1997. Plus, you've got Janeane Garofalo AND Alan Cumming in the one film. Come on, like.
3. BIG
You can't really focus too much on Big because, if you do, it just really doesn't make any sense. Then again, not everything has to make sense. Also, if you didn't want to dance on that giant piano thing, you didn't have a childhood.
2. LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE
A modern classic, this heartwarming story follows a dysfunctional family, led by Greg Kinnear and Toni Collette, on their way to a beauty pageant contest for their youngest daughter. Along the way, each member of the family deals with their own issues and problems, some more harrowing than others, but all come together in the end to help one another. It also brought back Rick James' Superfreak into the public consciousness and that alone is worthy of mention.
1. E.T.: THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL
Not only is it one of the greatest endings of the '80s, it's probably one of the greatest endings of any decade. John Williams' score, E.T. and the ship arriving, little Elliott learning to move on with his life, it still gets you right in the chest after thirty plus years. Also, how about that Drew Barrymore girl? Where'd she end up after this?