Life or Something Like It (2002)

28% of critics liked it
(120 reviews)
47% of users liked it
(43,738 ratings)

An egotistical TV reporter learns to appreciate the good things in life thanks to an eccentric, homeless clairvoyant in this old-fashioned romantic comedy from director Stephen Herek (Mr. Holland's Opus). Seattle native Lanie Kerrigan (Angelina Jolie) has spent most of her adult existence trying to… More An egotistical TV reporter learns to appreciate the good things in life thanks to an eccentric, homeless clairvoyant in this old-fashioned romantic comedy from director Stephen Herek (Mr. Holland's Opus). Seattle native Lanie Kerrigan (Angelina Jolie) has spent most of her adult existence trying to live down her gawky, geeky adolescence: She toils for hours at the gym to keep cellulite at bay; she's managed to snag an engagement to a star baseball player (Christian Kane); and through her chipper puff pieces on the nightly news, she's cultivated a loyal following of couch potatoes who pester her for autographs. She's ready to take the next step to national news when her boss suggests she further hone her skills with ace cameraman Pete Scanlon (Edward Burns), who also happens to be an old flame of Lanie's. Her comfortable but shallow existence begins to change the moment she and Pete do a story on Prophet Jack (Tony Shaloub), a sage soothsayer who spouts unusually accurate predictions to passers-by in exchange for spare change. Jack offers up the theory that Lanie will not get her cushy promotion; in fact, he says she'll die within a week. When Jack's other prophecies start coming true, Lanie starts living each day as if it were her last -- much to the dismay of her co-workers and her fiancé. ~ Michael Hastings, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: PG-13, 1 hr. 43 min.
Directed By: Stephen Herek
Written By: John Scott Shepherd, Dana Stevens
Genres: Comedy, Romance

In Theaters: Apr 26, 2002 Wide
On DVD: Oct 15, 2002
Studio: 20th Century Fox

Critic Reviews

Michael Wilmington, Chicago Tribune
Life, though funny and sometimes charming, doesn't give Lanie a believable context in which to stop and smell the roses.
Rex Reed, New York Observer
Formulaic, delusional and about as accurate a depiction of life in television news (or something like it) as a Pillsbury bake-off.
Mark Holcomb, Village Voice
Cloaks a familiar anti-feminist equation (career - kids = misery) in tiresome romantic-comedy duds.
Richard Roeper, Ebert & Roeper
[A] fun romp...
Desson Thomson, Washington Post
Lanie, who suggests a blow-dried human Q-tip, is so jarring on the eyes, it's difficult to concentrate on the story.
Stephen Hunter, Washington Post
Oh, please. Stop and smell the manure.
Nell Minow, Common Sense Media
Old fashioned date movie for older teens.
David Nusair, Reel Film Reviews
...mostly just dull and forgettable.
John R. McEwen, Film Quips Online
...Clearly displays the workmanlike instincts of its creative team, instincts which neither inspire greatness nor fail altogether.
Urban Cinefile Critics, Urban Cinefile
What begins as a somewhat predictable Hollywood romantic comedy, spirals into a tender, sweet love story and opens the door to life's deeper and more meaningful issues.

Read all 10 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

Bethany M

Not that bad of a film and you really can't predict the ending at all.
xGary X

Angelina is told she's going to die by a tramp and so sets about learning what's "important" in life by shagging a flat, characterless bloke who uses his young estranged son to get in her pants, and making Stockard Channing cry on national TV. I feel positively… More
Angelina is told she's going to die by a tramp and so sets about learning what's "important" in life by shagging a flat, characterless bloke who uses his young estranged son to get in her pants, and making Stockard Channing cry on national TV. I feel positively enlightened. The only appeal to this tackily directed piffle is Ms. Jolies easiness on the eye. Except in this she looks like a heroin addict with Margaret Thatcher's hair do.
Cassandra M

As a huge fan of Angelina, I read about this movie and I thought "What the hell? Oh, I bet this is gonna be lame... nice title." but after a while I started wanting to see it more and more until on opening night I HAD to go. And I have to say the movie wasn't awful..… More
As a huge fan of Angelina, I read about this movie and I thought "What the hell? Oh, I bet this is gonna be lame... nice title." but after a while I started wanting to see it more and more until on opening night I HAD to go. And I have to say the movie wasn't awful.. and it wasn't, like, the best movie I've ever seen. But it was fun.. I loved it.. and I'd definitely like to watch it again. The scene where the crowd was singing was kind of stupid and unrealistic.. but it was funny.. and like a lot of things I couldn't stop laughing at it. Haha. This is the kind of movie you watch when you just want to have some fun with a bunch of friends.. and if that's all your looking for then you'll love it too. Angelina was awesome, as usual, and the rest of the cast did pretty good too. If you thought this was a bad movie then you're probably just expecting too much from it. I thought it was great!
Michael G

Y.A.W.N. The alternate title for this was a good movie or nothing like it.
Leigh R

Great movie.
Mouhannad S

Before any thing I want to say that Angelina Jolie with white-blonde hair in an homage-to-Marilyn style is just so, so wrong. 'Life or something like it' I really enjoyed this film. While it wasn't the greatest, it most certainly wasn't the worst. A few… More
Before any thing I want to say that Angelina Jolie with white-blonde hair in an homage-to-Marilyn style is just so, so wrong. 'Life or something like it' I really enjoyed this film. While it wasn't the greatest, it most certainly wasn't the worst. A few particularly hysterical funny moments with the majority of the film making everyone smile or chuckle.
Panta O

It's hard not to like movies with Angelina Jolie, even this one where she is Lanie Kerrigan (Angelina Jolie), a reporter for a Seattle television station... but I wasn't impressed... Story is interesting and reevaluation of the life in that age is something common for… More
It's hard not to like movies with Angelina Jolie, even this one where she is Lanie Kerrigan (Angelina Jolie), a reporter for a Seattle television station... but I wasn't impressed... Story is interesting and reevaluation of the life in that age is something common for most of us... But the story gets lost somewhere between the prophecy, attempts to reconcile with the sister and father, consolations and the boyfriend (Christian Kane), her lifelong ambition... I wasn't sure that cameraman Pete Scanlon (Edward Burns) had a better life formula but it seems that Lanie Kerrigan thought so! I like the acting... rest was below the average!
Deb S

Lanie Kerrigan (Angelina Jolie) is a stuck up news reporter who is being considered for a posh job in New York, but first she must prove herself in the field by working with Pete, an experienced cameraman (Edward Burns) whom she supposedly hates. One day, she interviews a strange… More
Lanie Kerrigan (Angelina Jolie) is a stuck up news reporter who is being considered for a posh job in New York, but first she must prove herself in the field by working with Pete, an experienced cameraman (Edward Burns) whom she supposedly hates. One day, she interviews a strange street prophet and he announces that the blonde Angelina Jolie will die within a week. She doesn't believe him at first, but after he makes some other predictions that come true, she begins to realize that she is in fact going to die. As Thursday (D-day) quickly approaches, the reporter re-evaluates her own life and decides to change the way she lives. All in all an interesting movie, with a message worth pondering `if you suddenly discovered that you might only have a week more to live, how would you spend that remaining time and what changes would you make to your life?'
Joseph E

I never quite felt Intigued by this story, and after 32 minutes, I understood why.
Sylvester K

It's too cliche, predictable. Angelina Jolie Played the character well, but the story fell apart, at times confusing. Disappointing twist at the end
Sunil J

Something about this movie was very charming. I liked the characters and the humor even though it was very predictable.
Robert F

I thought this was going to be kinda freaky and different whereby the prophecy of Angelina's fate would actually come true at the end. Sadly, they went with a lame loophole in the hobo's vision and and a happy ending ensued. Why was Stockard such a bitch to Angelina at the… More
I thought this was going to be kinda freaky and different whereby the prophecy of Angelina's fate would actually come true at the end. Sadly, they went with a lame loophole in the hobo's vision and and a happy ending ensued. Why was Stockard such a bitch to Angelina at the end?