Abstract: The non-degradability of traditional plastic film products leads to serious environmental and social issues, which promotes the development of biodegradable composite film materials. Recent advances in abundant natural polymeric materials with different structural properties and excellent biodegradability were presented. Lignin, as the most abundant aromatic polymer, is considered a promising choice to manufacture multifarious advanced and functional film materials. From the perspective of sustainable development, the structure, chemical characteristics, fractionation methods of lignin are first introduced, and then a review focuses on the preparation of biodegradable composite film material and recent progress of lignin-derived biodegradable film materials with designed functionalities for different applications, such as degradable plastic film material, packaging materials, sensor response materials, antibacterial, and UV protection. Finally, the main problems faced by lignin-based biodegradable composite film materials are discussed, and the potential development directions for environmental-friendly lignin-based functional membrane materials in the future are proposed.