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Happy Accidents
IFC Films

Happy Accidents reviews
Critic Score
Metascore: 60 Metascore out of 100
User Score  
9.0 out of 10
based on 22 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
based on 12 votes
Read user comments
Rate this movie

MPAA RATING: R for language

Starring Marisa Tomei, Vincent D'Onofrio, Nadia Dajani, Tovah Feldshuh, and Holland Taylor

A tale of love and time travel set in contemporary New York.


GENRE(S): Romance  
WRITTEN BY: Brad Anderson  
DIRECTED BY: Brad Anderson  
RELEASE DATE: DVD: December 17, 2002 
Video: December 17, 2002 
Theatrical: August 24, 2001 
RUNNING TIME: 105 minutes, Color 
ORIGIN: USA 

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

83
Seattle Post-Intelligencer Sean Axmaker
Anderson is a hopeless romantic in a cynical world, and for a brief moment he makes the case that true love is the only power that can crack time and space.
Read Full Review
80
Chicago Reader Staff (Not Credited)
Best of all, and unusual for a screenwriter, Anderson handles the science consistently (maybe even scientifically).
Read Full Review
80
LA Weekly Chuck Wilson
Looks drab and doesn't take very good advantage of its New York locations, but the neurotic intensity and emotional honesty of its two leads more than make up for it.
Read Full Review
80
Wall Street Journal Joe Morgenstern
Fresh and flip and enjoyable, it's a sci-fi-tinged romantic comedy that I urge you to seek out.
75
Philadelphia Inquirer Carrie Rickey
Happy Accidents is romantic perversity in reverse.
Read Full Review
75
San Francisco Chronicle Bob Graham
The actors have enough appeal to keep it moving over the speed bumps.
Read Full Review
75
Boston Globe Joan Anderman
D'Onofrio's affably wide-eyed weirdness generates not only pleasure, but a genuinely authentic conundrum, bouncing forward and backward toward the truth.
75
Baltimore Sun Michael Sragow
"Happy Accidents" should retire Tomei's status as part of a show-biz urban legend and establish her once and for all as one of our most versatile and engaging performers.
75
Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert
Essentially silliness crossed with science fiction. The actors make it fun to watch.
Read Full Review
70
TV Guide Frank Lovece
This sweet, lovingly passionate story is nonetheless a charmer. Anderson's technique -- jaggy, product-testimonial close-ups; eerie still-image insertions -- is arresting, but this is an actors' showcase.
Read Full Review
70
Variety Todd McCarthy
A lighthearted yarn designed to stand out by virtue of its intricate structure and trippy time-travel element. But the fanciful material wears thin pretty quickly, the air leaking out of the balloon long before party's over.
Read Full Review
67
Austin Chronicle Marc Savlov
Gleefully silly fun, with a few core concepts on the nature of time, space, and la-la-la-love thrown in for good measure. And who can resist a puffin, anyway?
Read Full Review
63
Chicago Tribune Michael Wilmington
Doesn't have the negative qualities of many big-studio romantic comedies, but it doesn't quite take flight.
60
Village Voice Ed Park
The leads smooth over the plot holes endemic to all 4D fables, making the movie more than mere déjà vu.
Read Full Review
50
Washington Post Megan Rosenfeld
The actors make a good team in this film, and they're playing well-defined characters, but the script is so repetitive that we get mighty impatient for the mystery to be resolved.
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50
New York Post Lou Lumenick
This is an overlong film interesting chiefly for its performances.
50
New York Daily News Jami Bernard
D'Onofrio is a natural for the role of a romantic who just may be a freak. A highly physical actor, he ranges between sweetly awkward and a candidate for the kind of mental hospital shown in "Session 9."
50
Los Angeles Times Jan Stuart
If you're willing to suspend a barrel or two of disbelief, then Happy Accidents has its moments.
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50
The New York Times Stephen Holden
As impressive as it is in the abstract, all the detail ultimately drags the movie down and lengthens it unnecessarily.
Read Full Review
50
Miami Herald Connie Ogle
Put in such an uncomfortable position, the audience needs something to fall back on, like chemistry between its stars. Here that's half-hearted at best.
Read Full Review
42
Portland Oregonian Kim Morgan
All guts, no glory and, worse, bad story.
20
Mr. Showbiz Michael Atkinson
It's a warped kind of romantic comedy in which the whole is substantially less than the sum of the parts.

What Our Users Said

Vote Now!The average user rating for this movie is 9.0 (out of 10) based on 12 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Jenn gave it a10:
I enjoyed the middle of the movie the most dreading the moment when something would ruin it for me and I'd end up hating the movie, but that never happened. for now, this is my favorite movie, i cant get sick of watching this. don't expect sex, drugs or violence. just cuteness. you have to watch it a few times to catch everything. like who the "father" on the phone really is, etc.

Jesse R. gave it a 10:
I saw this movie unintentionally, and it has since become one of my happy accidents. this is an absolutely outstanding. :)

Otilia C. gave it a 10:
This is a quirky romantic movie and little far fetched but adorable. It was refreshing to see a movie that makes you laugh and your heart pitter-patter at the same time. Simply marvelous!

Fay P. gave it a 9:
Any film that has Vincent D'Onofrio in it is sure to be entertaining. He is a wonderful actor and chooses unusual stories to connect with. Very very good film.

Elias C. gave it a 9:
Not just a sublime love story, but also a meditation on the power of storytelling. Suspend your disbelief, and cry at the end like I did. This is what audiences worldwide should be shown as an exemplar of literate, character-driven American film-making at its finest.

Giselle C. gave it a 9:
Took a big chance on this one. It turned out to be witty, orginal and the acting was great!

[Anonymous] gave it a 9:
Extremely believeable characters and relationships override any plot holes. Original writing succeeds where many have failed with the time-travel theme. Individual performances excel.

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