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Happy Accidents
IFC Films


9.0

based on 22 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

based on 12 votes
Read user comments
Rate this movie

FILM:

Internet Movie Database

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

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...

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.

Chicago Reader Staff (Not Credited)

Best of all, and unusual for a screenwriter, Anderson handles the science consistently (maybe even scientifically).

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.

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.

Philadelphia Inquirer Carrie Rickey

Happy Accidents is romantic perversity in reverse.

San Francisco Chronicle Bob Graham

The actors have enough appeal to keep it moving over the speed bumps.

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.

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.

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

Essentially silliness crossed with science fiction. The actors make it fun to watch.

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.

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.

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?

Chicago Tribune Michael Wilmington

Doesn't have the negative qualities of many big-studio romantic comedies, but it doesn't quite take flight.

Village Voice Ed Park

The leads smooth over the plot holes endemic to all 4D fables, making the movie more than mere déjà vu.

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.

New York Post Lou Lumenick

This is an overlong film interesting chiefly for its performances.

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."

Los Angeles Times Jan Stuart

If you're willing to suspend a barrel or two of disbelief, then Happy Accidents has its moments.

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.

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.

Portland Oregonian Kim Morgan

All guts, no glory and, worse, bad story.

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.

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.

Happy Accidents IFC Films

Happy Accidents
IFC Films