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It Could Happen to You (1994) More at IMDbPro »

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57 comments in total

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31 out of 39 people found the following comment useful :-
The nearest any film's ever come to breaking me..., 5 June 2002

Author: Dave Robinson from Manchester, England

...as a cynic.

I, through whatever reason, am absurdly cynical. A cynic, lest we forget, is somebody who puts very little faith in the good nature of humanity. Somebody who considers all good deeds to be selfishly motivated.

Somebody who should absolutely hate this film.

But I can't. I love this to pieces. No film has ever done as much to give me some faith in people. If Charlie can do the decent thing and split his ticket with Yvonne to fulfil a promise, despite the demands of a furious Muriel; if despite reaching a financial and emotional low they can still invite Angel in to put some food in his belly; and if the New York public can show their appreciation by doing whatever little they can to help out; then maybe, just maybe, there might be hope for the rest of us.

This. Is. Beautiful.

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22 out of 26 people found the following comment useful :-
so hard to dislike, 7 March 2002
Author: Special-K88

Warm, enchanting, simply wonderful romantic comedy plays out like a fairy tale brought to life. Cage is a gracious, good-natured New York cop who wins the lotto; against the wishes of his demanding, mercurial wife (Perez), he splits it with a hard luck waitress (Fonda) as repayment for not leaving a tip! Predictable every step of the way, and hard to believe (though it's supposedly based on a true story), but it's so well-performed, so irresistibly charming, so sweet and romantic that you really don't mind. Not only a good showcase for the film's three ideal leads, but also a kindhearted film that gives hope to the notion of human decency. ***

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19 out of 21 people found the following comment useful :-
Excellent romantic, feel-good film!, 2 January 2003

Author: LebowskiT1000 from Escondido, California, USA

I'm not really the type of person that gets all excited about romantic films, but there is just something about this film that makes you feel good all the way through.

Not only is the film very touching and quite romantic, but it also has something to say about honesty and greed in the world. Although, this isn't the first movie in history to touch on these subjects, but I'm pretty sure it has never been done quite like this before.

The cast in this film is just plain excellent. Nicolas Cage is as great as always, no big surprises or let downs in that department. Bridget Fonda is spectacular in her role. She delivers a very heart-felt performance and looks nothing less than fantastic throughout the film. Both characters played by Nicolas Cage and Bridget Fonda were excellent characters and really seem like people that you enjoy being around. Rosie Perez was very good in her role, I actually HATED her character, not in the sense that she did a poor job, but that her character was an unlikeable person. Wendell Pierce's character (Bo Williams) was great too, also a person you would be proud to call a friend. Isaac Hayes was nice touch in the film. The rest of the cast was very good as well.

I would definitely recommend this film to anyone that likes Nicolas Cage, Bridget Fonda, romantic-comedies or just feel-good movies. I really enjoyed this film quite a bit and I hope that you will too. Thanks for reading,

-Chris

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15 out of 18 people found the following comment useful :-
Sweetest romantic comedy possible, 28 May 2003

Author: Amy Adler from Toledo, Ohio

It Could Happen to You certainly meets any criteria for a good romantic comedy. It's got a handsome male lead (Nicolas Cage), a sweet damsel in distress (Bridget Fonda) and a villian (Rosie Perez). Add a plot that swivels between wonderful scenes of the interested parties falling in love and the chaos erupting from the bad woman with an attitude and you have a story that captures and holds the interest of the viewer. Isaac Hayes does a wonderful job narrating the story as it unfolds. This is one of my favorite movies of all time and I highly recommend it for anyone who wants to curl up in an easy chair and watch an adorable romantic comedy with some touching dramatic scenes.

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7 out of 8 people found the following comment useful :-
"Cop Gives Waitress $2 Million Tip!" was working title, 6 March 2006

Author: S.R. Dipaling from Topeka,Kansas,USA

I've read that,among other people,critic Roger Ebert liked the afore-mentioned title for this movie as opposed to the name it actually got. Am I alone in the only one who thinks that the original title was NOT a good idea? Think about it:how easily would the title of above roll of the tongue when discussing movies or going to the ticket window? Titles that have indirect subjects in their sentences to me,seem like they're trying to test the memory of the viewer wanting to see the film as much as they are trying to get his or her attention.

OK,'nuff said about that.

As for the movie: Unapologetically sweet,this is one part fairy-tale,one part morality lesson(like those two elements COULDN'T be one and the same thing!),using none other than the Big Apple as its backdrop.

Honest beat cop Charlie Lang(Nicolas Cage in possibly one of the least conflicted and cleanest character portrayals he's given)is short of change one day and,while stopping for coffee at a street diner,uses in lieu of a tip,part of his lottery ticket to the harried but pretty and good-natured waitress(Bridget Fonda,in a word:likable). When that ticket wins a large,metro-area jackpot,Charlie does the right thing and splits his portion of the winnings with the waitress,who needs that money desperately: she's in debt to her ears and has a mooch of an ex-husband(Stanley Tucci)who won't leave her alone. This act of generosity does not sit well at all with Charlie's vain wife Muriel(a screechy,believable Rosie Perez),who eventually acts to have Charlie--and in the process Yvonne the waitress--cut from the winnings entirely.

People who like to complain that movies these days have no sense of either morality or sentimentality would be wisely steered in the direction of this flick. Even though it's over a decade old,it's story is easily transferable and,while I am usually loathe to suggest remakes,would actually be receptive to a remake of this film(provided the screenwriter and director were willing to change some elements of the story,like location,circumstances or even genders). A film that seems to have been made by the ghost of Frank Capra,who would've been possessing Andrew Bergman(who successfully directed Mr.CAge in "HOneymoon in Vegas" a few years before). A good rent for anyone who likes a little sentimentality in their comedy.

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6 out of 7 people found the following comment useful :-
Truly romantic and a lovely movie., 17 January 2004

Author: triple8 from Conn

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

This is one of the sweetest and most touching films to come out of the nineties. Anyone who enjoys touching heartwarming stories that touch the soul should watch this. The plot concerns a kindhearted cop(Cage) and his materialistic wife(Perez) who win several million in the lottery. The day they win, the cop had been in a restaurant earlier, where he came up short on money and couldn't tip his waitress(Bridget Fonda).Fonda's character is a down on her luck waitress with a heart of gold who gets treated like garbage by her boss and has an estranged husband who ran up her credit card bill and forced her into bankruptcy. So, since Cage has no money for a tip and he feels bad,he tells Fonda he has a lottery ticket and if he wins he'll split the winnings with her. When he does indeed win he honors his promise to Fonda, a woman he's met for all of a few minutes, much to the dismay of his wife who wants all the money. So she decides to divorce him and try to keep all the money for herself.

Of coarse, the cop and the waitress start to fall in love but I wouldn't call this just a typical romantic comedy-It is a beautiful tale of integrity, decency and kindness of spirit.I'm not going to go into what happens to Cage and Fonda as they go through both good times and very very low times. I will say that Karma figures a lot into this story-how Cage and Fonda are ultimately paid back for what they give up is gloriously poignant and I also love the scene where Cage first tells Fonda that she's a millionaire-and her gradual realization that he's telling her the truth.

The characters are very well acted, Perez will make you absolutely hate her, Fonda's character is so real I wanted to take a ride to her restaurant when the movie was over and grab lunch-she is very good in this-as is Cage as the kindly hardworking cop. The way the story is narrated is great and the last couple of scenes are some of the most heartwarming I've ever seen.

This movie, I think will have the ability to make even the toughest person cry. Is this based on a true story as is said in the beginning?

Maybe, maybe not but truth or fiction, the fact remains:this is one darn good movie!

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7 out of 9 people found the following comment useful :-
Cage and Fonda Deliver Nice Performances in This Nice Film., 6 July 2002
Author: tfrizzell from United States

Heart-warming little comedy that uses old Hollywood tactics to tell a fairy tale story that works really well on the big screen. New York cop Nicolas Cage does not have a tip for diner waitress Bridget Fonda so promises to split his earnings if he wins the state's lottery. Amazingly he does win. His share is $4 million and true to his word he gives half to Fonda to wife's Rosie Perez's dismay. Perez is the boss in a loveless marriage. Cage and Fonda then start to fall in love with each other and Perez decides to divorce Cage just out of spite and try to get the entire $4 million for herself. A really beautiful romantic film that works due to quiet, but highly effective performances by Cage and Fonda. Perez steals every scene here and the film's good screenplay makes it a nice success. 4 stars out of 5.

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8 out of 11 people found the following comment useful :-
Good one, 11 March 2002

Author: sagitario from Paraguay

I have seen this movie some time ago, and I really enjoyed it. It`s simple, nice, romantic, at times sad, and isn't that what life's about? Things and circumstances change, but the personality should remain, and the hope also. It shows a straightforward cop, a nice waitress and a posesive and nasty wife. I liked the story, I liked the acting of Cage and the lovely Bridget Fonda. She's cute. Good movie, I recommend it. See ya around.

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10 out of 15 people found the following comment useful :-
An enjoyable piece of escapism, 30 June 2005

Author: Philip Van der Veken from Tessenderlo, Belgium

The question that probably everybody once asked to himself / herself and many others is: what would you do if you won the lottery? Well, I know what I would do with it. I wouldn't change much to my lifestyle, but for those who don't know what to expect, this movie gives a good idea of how gaining a lot of money in a short period of time can influence your entire life... But I don't watch movies to know what to do with my life and neither should other people. Movies are entertainment and this one certainly offers plenty of that.

When Charlie Lang, a New York cop with a heart of gold, can't give a tip to Yvonne, a waitress at a small diner, he promises her that he will come back the next day to give her the double of her money or, in case he wins anything, half of his share of the state lottery. Of course she doesn't believe him, but when he comes back the next day and offers her the chance to chose between the two options, she goes for the lottery option. Only than he tells her that he has won 4 million dollars and that she will get half of that. But there is only one problem: his wife Muriel. She gets greedy, certainly doesn't want to share her money with a waitress she doesn't know, but doesn't even want to share it with her own husband. As Charlie and Muriel grow apart, Charlie and Yvonne grow together and it doesn't take long before Muriel files for divorce, grabs all the money and leaves with a rich man by her side...

There are plenty of romantic comedies nowadays and it is very hard to find a really good one. Well, this might be one of the few. I really liked it and there are many reasons for that. One certainly is that, despite the fact that we live in a world full of greed and egoism, some writers still try to give us hope by showing that not everything in the world is bad. OK, that may sound incredibly naive, but I really am not that stupid as you might think. I'm a business man in heart and soul, but sometimes I can really enjoy this type of positive escapism.

The fact that Nicolas Cage and Bridget Fonda play an important role in this movie also helps of course. And it has to be said, they really played their roles well and very convincingly. But they weren't the only ones, because the same can be said about Rosie Perez. She's incredibly good as the money-hungry bitch and despite what many people might think, she doesn't exaggerate. I've known people to change into someone just like her character once they had a bit of money in their hands... Overall this is a nice, perhaps a bit naive movie with some good acting and an interesting story. I really liked what I saw and find this one of the better romantic comedies I've ever seen. I give it a score of at least 7.5/10, although I think that even an 8/10 isn't exaggerated.

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3 out of 4 people found the following comment useful :-
Why Good Things Occasionally Happen To Good People, 28 December 2007

Author: theowinthrop from United States

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

In 1954 Garson Kanin, George Cukor, and Judy Holliday made a delightful comedy/social satire called IT SHOULD HAPPEN TO YOU, regarding the difference between earned fame and celebrity in mid-century New York City. Four decades later the issues of celebrity and it's pitfalls were returned to in this similarly titled film starring Nicholas Cage, Bridget Fonda, Rosie Perez, and Isaac Hayes. Again a comedy, IT COULD HAPPEN TO YOU is not about how fake celebrity is quickly achieved (as Holliday does it by renting a billboard and plastering her name and face on it for all New York to see), but how rival agendas can cross and fight over the rights to that celebrity.

Cage is a good natured cop in New York City in 1994. He is, unfortunately for himself, married to Perez who is apparently a fun loving decent wife (and a hair dresser). Cage has purchased a lottery ticket at Perez's insistent (she's always gambling), and he goes to his favorite diner for dinner. Fonda is a waitress there, and despite salary (and tips) has just filed for bankruptcy. Cage is about to leave the diner after eating, but has no money as a tip - so he leaves half of the lottery ticket as a tip for her (he thinks there is no harm in it). Unfortunately that ticket wins a four million dollar prize, and half of that is two million. Cage and Fonda are both quite happy with this, as Fonda now can avoid being bankrupt, and can settle her debts. Perez at first is happy too, but greed slowly surfaces in her personality. She always was more forceful than Cage was, but now she sees a chance to shine in high society. And soon this begins to mingle with a growing jealousy of just how friendly Cage and Fonda are (or is Perez actually building up grounds to push Cage away from that huge sum of money too). Watching over this is Hayes, as one of moviedom's angels among us. He is narrating the story, and acts as a final kind of deus ex ma-china towards the end to settle the tale.

IT COULD HAPPEN TO YOU is a fantasy - unless you do believe in angels like Hayes (and why shouldn't you?). All the performers are good, in particular Perez who probably got her signature role as the selfish, pretentious wife here. While IT SHOULD HAPPEN TO YOU had more social criticism in it (after all, how many people win lotteries), this is a fitting follow up comedy.

Now if only some clever script writer could write a third comedy called IT WOULD HAPPEN TO YOU!

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