Movie Review (Classic)-----CHANCES ARE

I live with a true Romantic. Yes, it annoys me when Troy sits for hours at a time the month of December watching the Hallmark Channel and movies like THE DOG WHO SAVED HANNUKAH and A CHRISTMAS WISH....but he also has a great appreciation for romantic movies. The sappier the "chick flick", the better. His favorite movie of all time is SOMEWHERE IN TIME starring Christopher Reeve and Jane Seymour. Incidentally, that was my mother's favorite movie as well. Last night, Troy wanted to watch a movie. He was looking at my DVD/BluRay collection and made the mistake of saying...."I've never seen CHANCES ARE." I immediately pounced since CHANCES ARE is one of my favorite movies from the 80's and might be in my top ten romantic comedies of all time. I couldn't believe he hadn't seen it, as big of a sap as he can be for those kind of movies. Now, I measure the moments in my life through music. Hearing a certain song on the radio can immediately flash me right back to high school or to other important times that I've experienced. Some good, some bad. When I hear the opening notes to AFTER ALL, the love theme from CHANCES ARE recorded by Peter Cetera and Cher, it immediately takes me back to a night in Columbia, Missouri circa 1988/1989. I drove from my dorm in Springfield, MO to the campus of Mizzou in Columbia, MO to spend a weekend with a few of my high school friends. On Saturday night, we were waiting to go to a party that wasn't beginning until what now sounds like the ungodly hour of 10pm so we decided to go to a movie. We got to the local cinema and the only movie that hadn't started yet was CHANCES ARE. Three of us bought a ticket not knowing anything about it except that Cybill Shepherd from MOONLIGHTING was in it. Two hours later, I was head over heels for everything about the movie and it has remained one of my favorites to this day. And yes, Denise and Melynda, I think of you both everytime I hear that song. Cybill Shepherd plays a woman whose husband is hit by a car in front of her eyes and killed. She is suddenly a pregnant widow left to raise a daughter alone with the help of her husband's best friend, played by Ryan O'Neal. Flash Forward several years and the daughter is now graduating college, the best friend is now hopelessly in love with Ms Shepherd, and Robert Downey Jr gets thrown in as the reincarnated soul of Ms Shepherd's first husband. Is it predictable? Of course it is. But it's so romantic and there are some genuinely warm wonderful moments. Cybill Shepherd is sensational. Aside from never looking more beautiful, the role fits her like a glove. Ryan O'Neal is incredibly charming and funny. Mary Stuart Masterson adds great support and Robert Downey Jr is wonderful. I now understand that Downey was "high" for 90% of the shoot, but you can't tell. He's terrific and the chemistry between he and Ms Shepherd is very sexy. I was worried watching it again that it may not have the same appeal and magic to me as it did in 1989, but it holds up. At one point, I looked over at Troy and he was simply smiling. This movie wasn't a big hit and a lot of people have never heard of it. CHANCES ARE will not be for everyone. The whole notion of reincarnation and the coincidences that come to play in this movie might be too much for some people to accept. But this is at heart a romantic screwball comedy, and if that's your cup of tea, then CHANCES ARE could be a nice surprise for you. "After all that we've been through, it all comes down to me and you...." Sniffle.