It Could Happen to You (1994)
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71% of critics liked it
(34 reviews) -
54% of users liked it
(47,170 ratings)
Loosely based on a true story, this uneven romantic comedy depicts the unexpected way in which a winning lottery ticket unites a pair of strangers. Waitress Yvonne (Bridget Fonda) first meets police officer Charlie (Nicolas Cage) when he eats in her restaurant. Realizing that he doesn't have… More Loosely based on a true story, this uneven romantic comedy depicts the unexpected way in which a winning lottery ticket unites a pair of strangers. Waitress Yvonne (Bridget Fonda) first meets police officer Charlie (Nicolas Cage) when he eats in her restaurant. Realizing that he doesn't have enough money to give her a tip, Charlie promises Yvonne to split any winnings from the lottery ticket he just bought. The skeptical Yvonne dismisses Charlie as just another cheapskate until he wins four million dollars and, much to Yvonne's surprise, decides to honor the agreement. His action becomes front page news and wins public acclaim, but it doesn't go over nearly so well with Charlie's wife Muriel (Rosie Perez), who has her own plans for the money. Muriel's shallow, greedy behavior disgusts Charlie, who finds himself spending more and more time with Yvonne, developing a friendship that threatens to blossom into something more. Jane Anderson's screenplay stresses the relationship between Charlie and Yvonne's characters over the situation's comic potential; this earnest tone will please romance fans but may disappoint viewers expecting the farcical comedy of writer/director Andrew Bergman's and Cage's previous effort, Honeymoon in Vegas. ~ Judd Blaise, Rovi
- Directed By
- Andrew Bergman
- Genres
- Drama, Romance, Comedy
PG,
- In Theaters
- Jul 29, 1994 Wide
- On DVD
- Oct 30, 2001
- Studio
- Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
Critic Reviews
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Brian Lowry, Variety
Bergman...really brings home the homage to Capra with the pic's warm, bordering-on-irresistible finale.
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Geoff Andrew, Time Out
Perez has a field day as Muriel, injecting a welcome note of good old-fashioned greed into what is otherwise a relentlessly edifying story.
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Peter Travers, Rolling Stone
Sweetness is fine as far as it goes, but this oddball romance could have used a twist of lemon.
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Hal Hinson, Washington Post
Simply and without pandering or insults to your intelligence, the movie delivers more of the old-style pleasures of moviegoing than any other picture in a long while.
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Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
Bergman never goes for heavy-handed schmaltz, and the whole movie has the same lighthearted big city spirit as the New York Post headlines that follow the story.
See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
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Cast
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Nicolas Cage
as Charlie Lang
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Bridget Fonda
as Yvonne Biasi
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Rosie Perez
as Muriel Lang
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Wendell Pierce
as Bo Williams
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Isaac Hayes
as Angel
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Seymour Cassel
as Jack Gross
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Victor Rojas
as Jesu
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Stanley Tucci
as Eddie Biasi
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Mina Bern
as Muriel's Neighbour
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Red Buttons
as Walter Zakuto
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Ranjit Chowdhry
as Mr Patel
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Willie Colon
as Mayor
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Angel David
as Esteban
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Ann Dowd
as Carol
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John Louis Fischer
as Plaza Bellhop
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J.E. Freeman
as Sal Bontempo
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Merwin Goldsmith
as Bankruptcy Judge
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Richard Jenkins
as C.Vernon Hale
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Kay Tong Lim
as Sun
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Anna Lobell
as Korean Deli Customer
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George J. Manos
as Loto Official
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Feiga Martinez
as Jesus' Mom
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Vincent Pastore
as Bowling Team Member #1
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Frank Pellegrino
as Water's Edge Maitre d'
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Rene Rivera
as Julio
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Beatrice Winde
as Judge
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Ginny Yang
as Mrs Sun
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Felipe Luciano
as Television Reporter
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Charles Busch
as Timothy
- Robert Dorfmann
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Alan Muraoka
as Television Reporter
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John Norman Thomas
as Mr Muktananda
- Emily Deschanel
