''Chances Are'' is a 1989 American

romantic comedy Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a sub-genre of comedy and Romance novel, romance fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount all obstacles. Ro ...

film directed by

Emile Ardolino Emile Ardolino (May 9, 1943 – November 20, 1993) was an American television and film director and producer, best known for his work on the films ''Dirty Dancing'' (1987) and ''Sister Act'' (1992). He won an Academy Award for Best Documentary F ...

and starring

Cybill Shepherd Cybill Lynne Shepherd (born February 18, 1950) is an American actress, singer and former model. Her film debut and breakthrough role came as Jacy Farrow in Peter Bogdanovich's coming-of-age drama '' The Last Picture Show'' (1971) alongside Jef ...

Robert Downey Jr. Robert John Downey Jr. (born April 4, 1965), also known as RDJ, is an American actor. One of the highest-grossing actors of all time, his films as a leading actor have grossed over $14 billion worldwide. In 2008, Downey was named by ''Time ...

Ryan O'Neal Charles Patrick Ryan O'Neal (April 20, 1941 – December 8, 2023) was an American actor. Born in Los Angeles, he trained as an amateur boxer before beginning a career in acting in 1960. In 1964, he landed the role of Rodney Harrington on the ...

, and

Mary Stuart Masterson Mary Stuart Masterson (born June 28, 1966) is an American actress and director. After making her acting debut as a Child actor, child in The Stepford Wives (1975 film), ''The Stepford Wives'' (1975), Masterson took a ten-year hiatus to focus on ...

Panavision Panavision Inc. is an American motion picture equipment company (law), company founded in 1954 specializing in cameras and photographic lens, lenses, based in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, Woodland Hills, California. Formed by Robert Gottschalk a ...

. The original music score was composed by

Maurice Jarre Maurice-Alexis Jarre (; 13 September 1924 – 28 March 2009) allmusic Biography/ref> was a French composer and conductor. Jarre is best known for his film scores, particularly for his collaborations with film director David Lean composing all of ...

Plot

Young district attorney Louie Jeffries is hit by a car and dies in 1964, but manages to slip by the

pearly gates ''Pearly gates'' is an informal name for the gateway to Heaven (Christianity), Heaven according to some List of Christian denominations, Christian denominations. It is inspired by the description of the New Jerusalem in : "The twelve gates were ...

and is reborn as Alex Finch. In 1987, twenty-three years later, his widow Corinne still misses him, ignoring the devotion of his best friend Phillip Train, who has raised Louie's only daughter Miranda as his own. Miranda, while a student at

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

, meets Alex Finch, who works in the library but is about to graduate. After graduation, Alex heads to Washington, D.C., and reaches the offices of ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

''. His first attempts to meet with

Ben Bradlee Benjamin Crowninshield Bradlee (, 1921 – , 2014) was an American journalist who served as managing editor and later as executive editor of ''The Washington Post'', from 1965 to 1991. He became a public figure when the ''Post'' joined ''The ...

thwarted, he schemes his way into his office by pretending to be a delivery man. Alex walks into Bradlee's office, with Phillip behind him. Confounded by the young man, Bradlee asks who he is. When Alex attempts to remind him of their meeting at Yale, Phillip vouches for him, which changes his mind about giving him a meeting. However, Bradlee feels Alex needs more time working on smaller papers before he can offer him a job. Feeling defeated, Alex leaves his office. Phillip finds Alex in the lobby, who offers him a ride, during which Phillip invites Alex to meet the Jeffries family over dinner. While at the Jeffries' home, which he had not ever been to, Alex begins to have flashbacks of a previous life. Anguished, he begins to act crazed and confused. Alex eventually realizes that he is Louie Jeffries reincarnated. Miranda, wanting to continue the flirtation that started when they met, is confused when Alex rebuffs her, sending her to her room when she kisses him. Alex then goes to Corinne and tries to convince her that he is Louie. At first she does not believe him, but he mentions details about their life together that only Louie would know. Corinne gives in, and they kiss. Taking a trip together away from town, she is disturbed when people think that Alex is her son. Louie/Alex wants to have sex, but Corinne reveals she has not had sex since Louie died. One night, when Alex and Corinne are together, they are caught by Phillip, who accuses Alex of being a gold digger. Louie/Alex then reminds Phillip he declared his love for Corinne to Louie on their wedding day. Phillip is confused and tries to punch him but gets knocked out instead. Corinne rushes to Phillip's side, and yells at Alex to leave the room. Louie/Alex realizes then that she loves Phillip too, so Louie must let go. Corinne slips a note under Alex's door, apologizing and saying that she will visit him later. Alex puts the still-unconscious Phillip in his bed, so that when Corinne arrives, thinking that he is Louie, she accidentally kisses Phillip. He is ecstatic, and Corinne realizes she loves him too. They have sex. Alex spends the night in his car. The next day, he bursts into a courtroom and accuses the judge of accepting a bribe (Alex remembers himself as Louie taking incriminating photographs of the judge in 1964). Phillip, who is also in the courtroom, realizes that only Louie would know that fact, and now believes Alex is Louie. Alex tells Phillip the location of his camera with the photographs. Attempting to escape from the commotion in the courtroom, Alex falls down the stairs, hits his head, and ends up in the hospital. While unconscious, Omar the angel visits him, and gives him the special "shot" he should have gotten twenty-three years before, to forget his past life. When Alex wakes up, he has forgotten about being Louie. The last thing he remembers is kissing Miranda in the kitchen of her house. She is relieved and delighted. Newspaper headlines show the judge charged with accepting the bribe. Impressed by Alex's journalistic prowess in exposing the corrupt judge, Bradlee offers him a job as a reporter at the ''Post''. Corinne and Phillip get married, and at their wedding, Alex says that he is in love with Miranda, just as Phillip told Louie he was in love with Corinne on their wedding day all those years earlier.

Cast

as Corinne Jeffries *

as Alex Finch/Louie Jeffries *

as Phillip Train *

as Miranda Jeffries *

Christopher McDonald Christopher McDonald (born February 15, 1955) is an American actor. McDonald is best known for playing the villainous professional golfer Shooter McGavin in the 1996 comedy '' Happy Gilmore'', a role he’d later reprise in 2025’s sequel '' H ...

as Louie Jeffries *

Josef Sommer Maximilian Josef Sommer (born June 26, 1934) is a German-American retired stage, television, and film actor. Early life He was born in Greifswald, Germany, and raised in North Carolina, the son of Elisabeth and Clemens Sommer, a professor of Ar ...

as Judge Fenwick *

Joe Grifasi Joseph G. Grifasi (born June 14, 1944) is an American character actor of film, stage and television. Early life and education Grifasi was born in Buffalo, New York, the son of Patricia (née Gaglione) and Joseph J. Grifasi, a skilled laborer. Gri ...

as Omar *

Henderson Forsythe Henderson Forsythe (September 11, 1917 – April 17, 2006) was an American actor. Forsythe was known for his role as Dr. David Stewart on the soap opera ''As the World Turns'', a role he played for over 30 years (1960-1991), and for his work on th ...

as Ben Bradlee *

Fran Ryan Frances Mary Ryan (November 29, 1916 January 15, 2000) was an American character actress featured in television and films. She was born in Los Angeles, California. Career Ryan began performing at the age of six at Oakland's Henry Duffy Thea ...

as Mavis Talmadge * James Noble as Dr. Bailey *

Marc McClure Marc McClure (born March 31, 1957) is an American actor. He is known for playing Jimmy Olsen in the ''Superman'' series of films released between 1978 and 1987, and Dave McFly in the ''Back to the Future'' films. Career McClure appeared in the 1 ...

as Richard *

Susan Ruttan Susan Ruttan (Born Susan Diane Dunrud; September 16, 1948) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Roxanne Melman on ''L.A. Law'' (1986–1993), for which she was nominated four times for a Primetime Emmy Award. Early years A n ...

as Woman in the Bookstore *

Mimi Kennedy Mary Claire "Mimi" Kennedy (born September 25, 1948) is an American actress, author and activist. Best known for her roles in television sitcoms, Kennedy co-starred in numerous short-lived sitcoms before her role as Ruth Sloan on '' Homefront'' ...

as Sally *

Kathleen Freeman Kathleen Freeman (February 17, 1923August 23, 2001) was an American actress. In a career that spanned more than 50 years, she portrayed acerbic maids, secretaries, teachers, busybodies, nurses, and battle-axe neighbors and relatives, almost i ...

as Mrs. Handy *

Dennis Patrick Dennis Patrick (born Dennis Patrick Harrison; March 14, 1918 – October 13, 2002) was an American character actor, primarily in television. Early life Patrick was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Patrick served in the U.S. Navy during W ...

as Archibald Blair * Martin Garner as Mr. Zellerbach *

Gianni Russo Gianni Vito Russo (born December 12, 1943) is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Carlo Rizzi in the 1972 film ''The Godfather''. Life and career Russo was born in Manhattan on December 12, 1943 and raised in Little Italy and R ...

as Anthony Bonino *

Lester Lanin Nathaniel Lester Lanin (August 26, 1907 – October 27, 2004) was an American jazz and pop music bandleader. He was famous for long, smoothly arranged medleys, at a consistent rhythm and tempo, which were designed for continuous dancing. Lanin ...

as Conductor

Production

The film was known prior to production as ''Life After Life'' and ''Unforgettable''. ''Chances Are'' was Cybill Shepherd's first film in a number of years. Her profile had risen since she starred in the television series ''

Moonlighting Moonlighting may refer to: * Side job, a job taken in addition to one's primary employment Entertainment * ''Moonlighting'' (film), a 1982 drama film by Jerzy Skolimowski * ''Moonlighting'' (TV series), 1985–1989 American television series, s ...

'', and she made the film during a production hiatus from the series. Many scenes were filmed in Georgetown, along the Mall, Glen Echo Park, Smithsonian museums, and other parts of Washington, D.C.

Reception

''Chances Are'' received generally positive reviews from critics, but did not do well at the box office. As of May 2024, the film holds a rating of 67% on

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...

from 33 reviews.

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert ( ; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American Film criticism, film critic, film historian, journalist, essayist, screenwriter and author. He wrote for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. Eber ...

of ''

The Chicago Sun Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily nonprofit newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has long held the second largest circulation among Chicago newspapers ...

'' gave the film 3 and 1/2 out of 4 stars saying, “"Chances Are" is a lighthearted romance about reincarnation, told with wit and a certain irony.”

Awards and nominations

Soundtrack

The soundtrack included the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

''s Top 10 single hit song " After All" (composed by

Tom Snow Thomas Righter Snow (born 1947 in Princeton, New Jersey) is an American songwriter. Biography Snow has written songs for Gayle McCormick "( Even a Fool Would Let Go" with Kerry Chater – a song covered by a number of artists including Kenn ...

and lyrics by

Dean Pitchford Dean Pitchford (born July 29, 1951) is an American songwriter, screenwriter, director, actor, and novelist. His work has earned him an Oscar and a Golden Globe Award, as well as nominations for three additional Oscars, two more Golden Globes, e ...

) performed by

Cher Cher ( ; born Cheryl Sarkisian, May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Goddess of Pop", she is known for her Androgyny, androgynous contralto voice, Music an ...

and

Peter Cetera Peter Paul Cetera Jr. ( ; born September 13, 1944) is a retired American musician best known for being a frontman, vocalist, and bassist for the American rock band Chicago from 1967 until his departure in 1985. His career as a recording artist ...

. The song peaked at #6 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in May 1989. Another is the song of the same title as the film sung by

Johnny Mathis John Royce Mathis (born September 30, 1935) is an American singer. Starting his 69-year career with singles of standard (music), standard music, Mathis is one of the best-selling recording artists of the 20th century and became highly popular as ...

. Although the film contains other songs, a soundtrack album has never been released.

References

External links

* * * * * {{Emile Ardolino 1989 films 1980s fantasy comedy films 1989 romantic comedy films 1980s romantic fantasy films American fantasy comedy films American romantic comedy films American romantic fantasy films Films about reincarnation Films directed by Emile Ardolino Films scored by Maurice Jarre Films set in 1964 Films set in 1987 Films set in Washington, D.C. Films set in museums Films shot in California Films shot in Maryland Films shot in Washington, D.C. TriStar Pictures films 1980s English-language films 1980s American films English-language romantic comedy films English-language romantic fantasy films English-language fantasy comedy films