IT COULD HAPPEN TO YOU
A film review by James Berardinelli
Copyright 1994 James Berardinelli
Rating (0 to 10): 7.2
Date Released: 7/29/94 Running Length: 1:51 Rated: PG (Language, mature themes)
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Bridget Fonda, Rosie Perez, Wendell Pierce,
Isaac Hayes, Stanley Tucci
Director: Andrew Bergman
Producer: Mike Lobell
Screenplay: Jane Anderson
Cinematography: Caleb Deschanel
Music: Carter Burwell
Released by TriStar Pictures
Those with a cynical bent will not enjoy IT COULD HAPPEN TO YOU. If you don't like happy endings, think Christmas is just for kids, and feel vaguely ill while watching IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE, you would do well to stay away from this movie. On the other hand, if you're looking for a late summer, "feel good" romantic comedy, there aren't too many around more affable than this one.
Depth is one thing this film does not have, nor is it especially strong in the originality department. It's easy to predict what's going to happen, especially for those who have seen IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE, from which IT COULD HAPPEN TO YOU borrows heavily (with Rosie Perez taking on the Lionel Barrymore role!).
As every summer is plagued by a new offering from Pauly Shore, so there's at least one romance. Often, while not a great motion picture, it's good enough to capture some favorable reviews and positive word-of-mouth. In 1993, the title was SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE. This year, if the public finds the attraction between Nicolas Cage and Bridget Fonda to be irresistible, it may be IT COULD HAPPEN TO YOU.
Charlie Lang (Nicolas Cage) is a New York cop, and a genuinely nice guy--so nice, in fact, that when he doesn't have the change to tip his coffee shop waitress Yvonne (Bridget Fonda), he promises to split his winnings from a lottery ticket with her--if he wins, that is. Yvonne, who is having a bad day (she declared bankruptcy before coming to work), doesn't give the offer a second thought--until Charlie returns the next day with the news that he's $4 million richer. Despite the pleadings of his wife Muriel (Rosie Perez) to "stiff" the waitress, Charlie lets his conscience guide him, and sticks to his promise.
Love is in the air, as the old John Paul Young tune goes. You know from the beginning that Charlie and Yvonne are going to get together. If you can't figure that out, you've probably gone to the wrong movie. The chemistry between Fonda and Cage is tangible--not the sultry, sexy kind that often characterizes boy-meets-girl stories, but something cuter and more fanciful.
Often, relationships in romantic comedies are contentious. Not so in IT COULD HAPPEN TO YOU. Charlie and Yvonne are two kind-hearted people who don't yell at each other. Instead, all scenes of conflict are reserved for vain, gold-digging Muriel, who begrudges Charlie every penny he gives away. She's the obvious villain of the piece, IT COULD HAPPEN TO YOU's version of Mr. Potter.
I'm not sure if Rosie Perez does a great job of acting or not, but her character is really, really annoying. The word "shrill" doesn't begin to do her justice. Watching most of her scenes is like sitting in a classroom while someone scrapes their fingernails across the blackboard. Screeeeeeeeech!
IT COULD HAPPEN TO YOU is the most inoffensive of motion pictures, and that's precisely where the core of its charm lies. Other than a little suspension of disbelief, it doesn't demand a heavy investment from its audience. Of course, you have to enjoy this sort of movie to appreciate its appeal. If you do, IT COULD HAPPEN TO YOU will convince you that the magic of Frank Capra isn't dead in Hollywood after all.
- James Berardinelli (blake7@cc.bellcore.com)
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