Stimuli-responsive polymer films undergo interesting structural and property changes upon external stimuli. Their applications have extended from smart coatings to controlled drug release, smart windows, self-repair and other fields. This tutorial review summarizes non-covalent bonding, reversible reactions and responsive molecules that have played important roles in creating stimuli-responsive systems, and presents the recent development of three types of responsive polymer systems: layer-by-layer polymer multilayer films, polymer brushes, and self-repairing polymer films, with a discussion of their response mechanism. Future research efforts include comprehensive understanding of the response mechanism, producing polymer systems with controlled response properties regarding single or multiple external signals, combining polymer film fabrication with nanotechnology, improving the stability of polymer films on substrates, and evaluating the toxicity of the degradation products.