As the fall makes its way into our homes, our food, and our weather, it also overwhelms our TV. There’s nothing better than sitting down on your couch, bundled up with blankets and pillows, and turning on the coziest, most calming movie. But what happens when all you can seem to find are summer shows? Here are some of the best autumn movies for when you’re in a rut, that fill you with all the fuzziness of an evening in October.
- Dead Poet’s Society
Dead Poet’s Society is an amazing coming – of – age story that follows a group of teenage boys at an all- boys boarding school as they navigate through the new school year with the guidance of their Literature teacher, Mr. Keating. Although the story may be sad at times, it teaches you great lessons about non-conformity and how to be your own, unique person in a world full of rules. This movie puts you through a roller coaster of emotions, but it is definitely a favorite overall. Carpe Diem!
- Good Will Hunting
The movie Good Will Hunting is a drama film about a young man named Will Hunting who has a genius IQ but is thought to be a misguided person. He is put in high level private classes to help push his amazing math ability, but still needs to find out who he is. With the help of his therapist, Sean Maguire, Will is able to realize not only what he wants to do in life, but also how he will take nothing for granted through it all.
- Fantastic Mr. Fox
The animated comedy film Fantastic Mr. Fox tells about a fox who, after keeping and breaking a promise to his wife, decides to raid his human neighbors, for their food supply. The neighbors’ Boggis, Bunce, and Bean then attempt to find and capture the creatures that did this to them. Mr. Fox now has to figure out how to keep his family and their other animal friends safe after the stunt he pulled at their farms.
- Little Women
Based on the 1868 novel by Louisa May Alcott, Little Women is a story about 4 sisters living in the 19th century finding their way in life as women with little rights, but strong minds. They discover the difficulties of being a girl in a male-run society, but persevere with the help of each other. This movie shows what it means to be part of a tight-knit family, while still finding ways to be independent and your own unique self.
- The Breakfast Club
The Breakfast Club is a true classic, always has been, and will always be. This film tells the story of 5 high school students who were all sentenced to Saturday detention. Even though these teenagers have nothing in common, and never talk during school hours, they still find reasons that show that they do share some interests, and have similar problems. The Breakfast Club talks about the obstacles that average teenagers face, even when they are viewed as rowdy menaces who have no real feelings because they are “too young” to have serious problems.
- Knives Out
Knives Out is a murder mystery with cunning jokes, twists, and turns throughout the whole movie. A detective is called to a large estate to solve a murder that was thought to be a suicide. The house is lived in by a large and extremely wealthy family who all seem to have reasons to hate each other, and the victim. With the help of the victim’s caretaker, the detective solves the crime, leaving the entitled family shocked.
- Legends of the Fall
The 1994 film Legends of the Fall is a western movie about 3 brothers living in the wilderness with their father. At first, they are a close family, who care very deeply about each other, and will do anything for one another. But after certain events take place when the brothers go off to war, the family’s whole dynamic shifts. The brothers begin a feud with each other and their relationship is thrown out of balance. Eventually, they learn not to let small things get in the way of their brotherhood and live peacefully out in the countryside.
- Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone is a movie rendition of the fantasy novel by J.K. Rowling. It tells the tale of a young boy named Harry Potter who was sent a letter inviting him to a school of magic and wizardry. There, Harry meets two other students who become his closest friends and allies. He then finds out the strange truth about his parents’ deaths and the truth about this school.
- The Notebook
The Notebook is a romance movie set in the 1940s that sweeps you off your feet like Noah does to Allie. Noah, a young, poor man, falls madly in love with a wealthy and stubborn girl, Allie. And although it takes some time for her to agree to going out with Noah, the wait was surely worth it. They then spend every second of every day together that summer before Allie. has to leave her summer house and go back to the city. The couple undergo challenges while trying to stay together and fight like never before.
- The Wizard of Oz
The Wizard of Oz, being one of the first movies shot in color back in 1939, is a musical masterpiece. The movie starts off at a small house out in the countryside of Kansas, where everything seems to be dull and grey. (Mostly because that part of the movie is in black and white) But Dorothy, with her peppy attitude and joy sticks out from the farmland. Then, after a not-so-normal tornado hits the house, Dorothy is taken to a magical land full of bright colors, munchkins, witches, both good and wicked, and music to brighten it even more. Dorothy now has to find her way back home even as the Wicked Witch of the West hunts her down.
Bonus! Three Fall TV shows to add to your watch list!
- Gilmore Girls
The hit TV show Gilmore Girls follows the lives of Lorelai Gilmore and her daughter, Rory. Through all of the troubles Lorelai has with raising her teen daughter with her own judgmental parents, and Rory’s complicated love life, they are always able to come back to each other with coffee and loads of gossip. This show has 7 drama- packed seasons and lots of laughs along the way.
- Anne With an E
Anne With an E is a coming of age drama TV show about a young girl named Anne, who, after many failed experiences at orphanages and other strangers’ homes, is sent to live with two older siblings whose lives are beginning to dull as they age. Anne has a bright attitude and a skilled mindset, and with that, she brings life back to her caretakers and the small town she lives in. Anne With an E has 3 seasons, all set in the 1890s, that fill you with the love of a growing town and a bright, curious girl.
- Full House
Rolling from 1987-1994, the sitcom Full House is a pure classic. After talk show host Danny Tanner loses his wife in a car accident, he has no choice but to ask for his hip brother-in-law, Jesse, and his comedic best friend, Joey, to come live with him and help raise his 3 daughters. Although the 3 men don’t know a lot about taking care of 2 little kids and a baby (let alone girls), they figure out how to become the best uncles and father a kid could ask for.
I hope you enjoy all these fall-esc movies and TV shows! They are all so fun and special in their own way, and great for family movie nights. If you’ve seen any of these, what did you think about them? And are there any movies missing? Have a great autumn season!
