While You Were Sleeping
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| While You Were Sleeping | |
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 One-sheet promotional poster |
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| Directed by | Jon Turteltaub |
| Produced by | Roger Birnbaum Joe Roth |
| Written by | Daniel G. Sullivan Fredric LeBow |
| Starring | Sandra Bullock Bill Pullman Peter Gallagher Peter Boyle Jack Warden |
| Music by | Randy Edelman Diane Warren |
| Cinematography | Phedon Papamichael Jr. |
| Editing by | Bruce Green |
| Distributed by | Hollywood Pictures |
| Release date(s) | April 21, 1995 |
| Running time | 103 min. |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $18,000,000 (estimated) |
| Gross revenue | $182,057,016 (worldwide) |
While You Were Sleeping is a 1995 romantic comedy film directed by Jon Turteltaub and written by Daniel G. Sullivan and Frederic Lebow. It stars Sandra Bullock as a Chicago railroad clerk and Bill Pullman as the brother of a man whose life she saves, along with Peter Gallagher as the brother who is saved, and Peter Boyle, Glynis Johns, Micole Mercurio, and Jack Warden as members of the brothers' family.
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[edit] Plot
Lucy Moderatz (Bullock) is a lonely fare collector on the Chicago elevated railway who has a secret crush on a handsome commuter named Peter Callaghan (Gallagher). On Christmas day, Lucy rescues Peter from an oncoming train after a mugger pushes him onto the tracks. Peter falls into a coma, and Lucy accompanies him to the hospital, where a nurse overhears her fantasizing aloud, "I was going to marry him." Misinterpreting her, the nurse tells Peter's family that Lucy is his fiancée. At first, Lucy is too caught up in the panic to explain the truth, and afterward she is too embarrassed.
An orphan with few friends, Lucy becomes so captivated with the quirky Callaghans and their unconditional love for her that she cannot bring herself to hurt them by revealing that Peter doesn't even know her. She spends a delayed Christmas with the family, then meets Peter's younger brother Jack (Pullman), who has taken over his father's furniture-moving business. Jack is suspicious of Lucy at first, then falls in love with her as they spend time together.
Then Peter wakes up. He has no memory of Lucy, but by this time the rest of his family has become so convinced of the engagement story that they assume Peter must have amnesia. Not knowing how to tell them the truth, Lucy confides in Peter and Jack's godfather Saul (Warden), a kindly old man who believes that Lucy belongs in the family, but he can't bring himself to tell them. Peter and Lucy spend time together, but she has already fallen in love with Jack. Saul persuades Peter to propose to Lucy "again", and Lucy agrees despite her feelings for Jack. When Jack visits Lucy the day before the wedding, she gives him a chance to change her mind, asking him "Can you give me any reason why I shouldn't marry your brother?", but he sadly says no.
On the day of the wedding, just as the priest begins the ceremony, Lucy finally overcomes her embarrassment, admits everything, and tells the family she is in love with Jack rather than Peter. Peter's real fiancée, who happens to be married, also arrives to stop the wedding. As the family argues, Lucy leaves, unsure of her future.
Some time later, as Lucy collects tokens from passengers at the train station, Jack places an engagement ring in the token tray of her booth. With the entire Callaghan family watching, he walks into the booth and proposes to her. In the last scenes of the film, Jack and Lucy kiss at the end of their wedding, then leave on a train for their honeymoon. Lucy narrates that Jack fulfilled her dream of going to Italy, and explains that, when Peter asked when she fell in love with Jack, she replied, "It was while you were sleeping."
[edit] Cast
- Sandra Bullock as Lucy Eleanor Moderatz, a young woman who lives in Chicago. Lucy's mother died when she was an infant, and her father died a year ago.
- Bill Pullman as Jack Callaghan, Peter Callaghan's brother
- Peter Gallagher as Peter Callaghan, a law student who uses the train station where Lucy works
- Peter Boyle as Ox Callaghan, Peter's father
- Glynis Johns as Elsie, Peter's grandmother
- Micole Mercurio as Midge Callaghan, Peter's mother
- Jack Warden as Saul, Peter's and Jack's godfather
- Jason Bernard as Jerry Wallace, Lucy's friend and coworker whom she relies on for advice
- Michael Rispoli as Joe Fusco Jr., the swarthy, heavyset son of Lucy's landlord
- Ally Walker as Ashley Bartlett Bacon, Peter's fiancée
- Monica Keena as Mary Callaghan, Peter's sister
[edit] Production
Demi Moore originally secured the part of Lucy, but Sandra Bullock expressed interest in the film, stating that she could relate to the character because she felt she had similarities. When Moore decided to leave the part, she was immediately replaced by Bullock.[citation needed]
[edit] Location
Part of the movie was filmed at the Lake Point Tower building. State/Lake Station was used for exterior shots of the 'L'.
[edit] Response
The film performed very well and was a hit, grossing $9,288,915 on its opening weekend and a total of $182,057,016 internationally for its entire theatrical run.[1] It was the fifteenth-highest grosser of 1995 in the United States.[2] This film, along with Speed, are credited as having launched Sandra Bullock into stardom.
While You Were Sleeping was a critical success. Rotten Tomatoes reported that 85% of critics gave the film positive reviews.
Bullock received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress in a Comedy or Musical - Motion Picture.
[edit] Goofs
When Lucy is going through Peter's personal effects, she finds a can of cat food, one that can only be opened by a can opener. Later when she feeds the cat, it is now a 'pull-open' can.
When Ashley visits Peter in the hospital, she asks him "Lucy who?" and he says he doesn't know Lucy's last name. Seconds later, Lucy arrives and he uses her full name when he asks her to marry him.
[edit] References
- Janet Maslin. "The Blossoming of a Wallflower." The New York Times. April 21, 1995. C16.
[edit] External links
- While You Were Sleeping at the Internet Movie Database
- While You Were Sleeping at Allmovie
- Script-O-Rama: While You Were Sleeping transcript
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