The Enduring Appeal of the Sweater Movie
Fall brings with it a certain melancholy—summer is gone, adults don’t get to shop for fun school supplies—and to combat the autumnal blues, it’s important to have a strict set of annual rituals in place. For some this means baking pumpkin pie; others like to leaf-peep or force their recalcitrant partners to go apple-picking. Personally I like to make myself as small as possible under 40 blankets and watch a sweater movie.
What’s a sweater movie, you ask? Good question. The sweater movie is a sibling of the fall movie, but it's not necessarily set in fall; it's any movie in which the cast, no matter how good, is equaled by the excellence of the sweaters they wear. A sweater movie is not always a good movie, mind you, but it has an inherent element of coziness to it, regardless of plot or cinematography.
Here’s our list of the eight all-time best sweater movies; let them take you to new heights of coziness this fall. (No, The Big Lebowski sweater is not on here, because men don’t need any more encouragement to dress like they’re in The Big Lebowski.)
Mona Lisa Smile
Ah, Mona Lisa Smile, arguably the ur-sweater movie. Though not a critical hit, this film will always reign supreme in the category of most cardigan sweaters onscreen in a single film. The true standout, though, is the green, buttonless cardi that Julia Roberts’s students drape around her during an initiation ceremony for their college secret society. The best part? She was already wearing a sweater. So they made her exchange a sweater for...a sweater. Classique.
Bonus sweater content: Dominic West in this beauty.
Something’s Gotta Give
Nobody does a sweater like Nancy Meyers. When the sweater happens to be a simple white turtleneck wrapped around the frame of one Ms. Diane Keaton? That’s when I see God. (Thank you, Nancy, for giving us the iconic Chunky Beach Sweater, a look that endures still.)
When Harry Met Sally
You simply cannot talk about sweater movies without mentioning When Harry Met Sally. The quintessential fall film features all manner of enviable outerwear, but the definitive moment comes when Harry dons a white fisherman’s sweater to solicit Sally's help in moving a rug. How did she not realize she was in love with him right then and there?
Good Will Hunting
Robin Williams in a patterned button-down cardigan is exactly what I want to see when I zone out in front of the TV after Thanksgiving dinner.
Dead Poets Society
Another Robin Williams classic made all the better by the inclusion of this itchy-looking but oh-so-collegiate crewneck on Robert Sean Leonard.
The Parent Trap
Move over, Mona Lisa Smile, because Annie James is here in a prim yellow button-up cardigan to give you a run for your money. Yes, The Parent Trap is categorically a summer movie, but this scene is autumnal as hell.
Bridget Jones’s Diary
I know, I know, don’t yell at me, this is a Christmas movie. But how can we talk about sweater movies without discussing Colin Firth’s holiday finery? As 30 Rock’s Jack Donaghy once succinctly put it, “That man can wear a sweater.”
St. Elmo’s Fire
When Andie MacDowell stepped out of the ski chalet in that nubby, oversized white knit? That’s when the first frost fell.
Honorable mention: The Sopranos
Okay, this is a TV show and thus is obviously not a sweater movie (unless you, like me, do a full Sopranos rewatch come every harvest season), but look at surly, housebound Uncle Junior in his threadbare cardigan! A cozy king for the ages, truly.
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