It Had to Be You (2016 film)

Last updated
It Had to Be You
Directed by Sasha Gordon
Screenplay bySasha Gordon
Story by
  • Levi Abrino
  • Sasha Gordon
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyBobby Webster
Edited byAmanda Laws
Music bySasha Gordon
Release date
  • October 21, 2016 (2016-10-21)
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

It Had to Be You is a 2016 [Note 1] romantic comedy film starring Cristin Milioti, Dan Soder, and Halley Feiffer. Sonia (Milioti), a neurotic and charming jingle writer, is forced by her boyfriend Chris (Soder) to choose whether she wants to join the ranks of her married friends or live out her fantasies without him. Traditional gender stereotypes are reversed as she exhibits fear of commitment and he presses for marriage and starting a family. The film was Sasha Gordon's directorial debut, and premiered at the Austin Film Festival in October, 2015, [1] with its theatrical release on October 21, 2016. [2]

Contents

Plot

Sonia Friedman, [Note 2] a thirty-something young woman, panics when live-in boyfriend Chris Jensen [Note 3] proposes marriage. Her refusal hurts him and he walks out. Her friends Nora, Lee, and Anna arrive to console her, and in flashbacks we're told by Sonia's narration that Lee and Anna are married and that Nora is engaged to Mark. It's through Mark that Sonia met his friend Chris six months before the engagement. In another flashback we see Chris teaching Sonia to dance to the song It Had to Be You . Back in the present the next morning Chris explains they've been in a relationship for over a year, and even though she mocked the idea of marriage back then he thought the past year of seeing her friends married should have helped her change her mind. She apologizes and they agree that she can have some time to think about it.

Alone again, Sonia narrates an inner dialogue and through flashbacks and animation reveals three reasons she's afraid to marry Chris: 1) her fear that they are incompatible; 2) her fear that their sex life is inadequate; and 3) her belief that she is not yet "a woman". In that last, she fantasizes about a woman with whom she regularly commutes, and pictures the woman's "perfect" life. Waking from her reverie she leaves the subway and introduces her workplace. Logging on to her computer she sees her website and recalls how Chris had created it for her, and how she'd rebuffed his invitation to have a coffee because she was having sex with her boss Zach. Nonetheless, she goes out with Chris to see a movie for which she'd composed the soundtrack, and ends up inviting Chris back to her place where they had sex for the first time.

Once again in the present, Sonia and Chris travel with Nora and Mark to their new home; they bought it because Nora's expecting a child after the wedding. Mark advises Chris to force Sonia into a decision and he confronts her to set a deadline for when she'll decide whether to marry him or not. She hesitates and he tells her that even though he loves her and wants to spend the rest of their lives together he cannot remain in limbo forever, and suggests they put their relationship on hold until she makes up her mind.

While shopping Sonia encounters Lara, the fellow commuter from the subway, and they meet. They accidentally exchange shopping bags and Sonia finds Lara's blue thong and tries it on. Feeling sexy in the thong, when Anna suggests that a brief vacation might help Sonia clear her thoughts, she decides to fly to Rome to look up Fabrizio with whom she'd had a crush in college. In Rome, she meets Fabrizio and he and his brother Dezi get her drunk and have her model as a "'hipster" for an ad campaign. Afterwards, they go back to Dezi's apartment where despite Dezi's presence she allows Fabrizio to shave her pudenda and then goes to bed with him. When she wakes in the morning she finds a note from Fabrizio explaining that he's married and his wife is expecting their child so he hopes she won't mind that he "borrowed" all of her cash and her cellphone.

In New York, Nora reveals that Chris has been living with her and Mark since he moved out of Sonia's apartment. She invites Sonia to come to them for supper so that she can casually meet with Chris again but forgets to ensure that Chris will be there. Zach dumps some last-minute work on Sonia delaying her arrival at the dinner, and when she finally arrives Nora and Mark are fighting because Nora chose Gary, a male midwife, to help with the birth. Chris leaves for supper elsewhere to avoid spending time with Sonia.

At Mark and Nora's wedding three weeks after the failed proposal, Sonia begs Mark to be allowed to sit next to him and he agrees "if I don't have to speak to you". Nonetheless, they dance and Chris admits that he still loves her. The next morning they're back together in Sonia's apartment when he gets a call from Google offering him a job in San Francisco. While Chris is torn about what to do Sonia encourages him to take the job; he understands she wants to return to their non-committal relationship and he decides to take the job but break up with Sonia.

Lee tells Sonia that she too is pregnant, and after a discussion with Zach Sonia decides to propose to Chris. She prepares a DVD with photos of them together set to the song It Has to Be You and prepares to fly to San Francisco, but Mark tells her that Chris is in Pennsylvania visiting family. She gets on a bus to see him and encounters Lara who's traveling there for work, and she realizes that Lara's life is far from the perfect fantasy she'd imagined it to be. In the meantime, Nora is giving birth, and Sonia finds out that Chris has traveled from Pennsylvania to New York to be at the birth. She begs the bus driver to let her off, then races back to the hospital to see Gary the midwife presenting newborn Eli Bing to his parents. Chris is uncomfortable in her presence and prepares to leave the hospital room but Sonia begs him to watch the video first. Unfortunately, the sound doesn't work and Sonia hesitantly sings It Had to Be You. The rest of the people in the room start singing along with her and as the words "WILL YOU MARRY ME?" flash on the screen she gets down on her knees and asks him. "Of course I will," he says, and they kiss.

Cast

Release

It Had to Be You was screened at the 22nd annual Austin Film Festival in October, 2015. [1] It was picked up for distribution by Samuel Goldwyn Films and had a limited theatrical release on October 21, 2016, [2] earning $5.3K that weekend, and was streamed beginning December 20, 2016. [3]

Reception

Notes

  1. ↑ IMDb lists the movie's year as 2015 for when it was first screened, but the final film is copyright 2016 and was released in 2016.
  2. ↑ Sonia's family name is only shown on her website: "Sonia Friedman Music" but never mentioned.
  3. ↑ Similarly, the website says "Site built by Chris Jensen" but is never otherwise mentioned.
  4. ↑ Credited as "Mark", his real name is used in the final scene when Nora says that her child's full name is Eli Bing Gessner.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jules Feiffer</span> American cartoonist and author (born 1929)

Jules Ralph Feiffer is an American cartoonist and author, who at one time was considered the most widely read satirist in the country. He won the Pulitzer Prize in 1986 for editorial cartooning, and in 2004 he was inducted into the Comic Book Hall of Fame. He wrote the animated short Munro, which won an Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film in 1961. The Library of Congress has recognized his "remarkable legacy", from 1946 to the present, as a cartoonist, playwright, screenwriter, adult and children's book author, illustrator, and art instructor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sofia Falcone</span> Comics character

Sofia Falcone is a fictional character appearing in DC Comics, primarily in association with the character Batman. Debuting in the 1996–97 comic book limited series Batman: The Long Halloween by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale, she is introduced as a member of the Falcone crime family, who assists her father Carmine Falcone in unearthing the identity of the "Holiday Killer", a serial killer who had been killing Gotham City's citizens in correlation with holidays in the yearly calendar.

It Had to Be You may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robin Scherbatsky</span> Fictional character on the CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother

Robin Charles Scherbatsky Jr. is a fictional character created by Carter Bays and Craig Thomas for the CBS television series How I Met Your Mother, portrayed by Cobie Smulders.

"Stage 5" is the 79th episode of the HBO television series The Sopranos, the second episode of the second half of the show's sixth season, and the 14th episode of the season overall. It was written by Terence Winter and directed by Alan Taylor, and originally aired on April 15, 2007.

Mr. Freeze is the name of two supervillains appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Dave Wood and artists Sheldon Moldoff and Bob Kane, the character initially debuted in Batman #121 as Mr. Zero, a mad scientist with an unknown birth name who, after a physiology-altering mishap, becomes an ice-themed criminal typically armed with freezing weapons and an adversary of the superhero Batman forced to live in sub-zero temperatures and wear a special "cryo-suit" for survival. He was later renamed "Mr. Freeze" after the version featured in the 1966 Batman television series.

Halley Feiffer is an American actress, playwright and television writer, known for her award-winning plays I'm Gonna Pray for You So Hard, Moscow Moscow Moscow Moscow Moscow Moscow and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Gynecologic Oncology Unit at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center of New York City, and for showrunning and writing the entire season of American Horror Story: Delicate starring Emma Roberts and Kim Kardashian.

<i>Sleepwalk with Me</i> 2012 American film

Sleepwalk with Me is a 2012 American independent comedy film co-written by, directed by, and starring Mike Birbiglia. It also stars Lauren Ambrose, James Rebhorn, Carol Kane, and Cristin Milioti. Before making the film, Birbiglia had already told the autobiographical story of his struggles to become a stand-up comedian while dealing with REM behavior disorder and a failing relationship in a one-man show and a book.

<i>Year of the Carnivore</i> 2009 film by Sook-Yin Lee

Year of the Carnivore is a 2009 Canadian romantic comedy film about a grocery store detective with a crush on a man who rejects her because she has too little sexual experience. It stars Cristin Milioti, Mark Rendall, Will Sasso, Ali Liebert, and Luke Camilleri.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cristin Milioti</span> American actress (born 1985)

Cristin Milioti is an American actress. She played Tracy McConnell in the CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother from 2013 to 2014 and Sofia Falcone in the crime drama series The Penguin (2024). She appeared in theater productions such as That Face (2010) and the musical Once (2011–2013), for which she won a Grammy Award and was nominated for a Tony Award.

"TGS Hates Women" is the sixteenth episode of the fifth season of the American television comedy series 30 Rock, and the 96th overall episode of the series. It was written by co-executive producer Ron Weiner and directed by Beth McCarthy-Miller. The episode originally aired on NBC in the United States on February 24, 2011. Guest stars in this episode include Cristin Milioti and Chloë Grace Moretz.

<i>Once</i> (musical) 2011 musical

Once is a musical based on the 2007 film of the same name by John Carney. Like the film, music and lyrics were by Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová, including the Academy Award-winning "Falling Slowly". The book for the musical was written by Enda Walsh. The musical premiered at the New York Theatre Workshop in 2011, before transferring to Broadway in 2012. The production received eleven 2012 Tony Award nominations, and won eight including Best Musical, Best Actor and Best Book. The musical also won the 2012 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Musical and the 2013 Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album. It has since spawned a London production, with a North American Tour which started on 1 October 2013. In the musical, the cast also serves as the orchestra. A minimalist set is used, including a bar in center stage with chairs lining stage left and right. Exiting cast members simply step to the side of the stage and sit down. They serve as the orchestra from these chairs. The bar is used before the show and at intermission as a working bar for theater patrons.

<i>How I Met Your Mother</i> season 9 Season of television series

The ninth and final season of How I Met Your Mother, an American sitcom created by Carter Bays and Craig Thomas, premiered on CBS on September 23, 2013, with two episodes, and concluded on March 31, 2014. The show was renewed for the final season on December 21, 2012, after cast member Jason Segel changed his decision to leave the show after Season 8. Cristin Milioti, who was revealed as "The Mother" in the Season 8 finale, was promoted to a series regular, the only time How I Met Your Mother added a new regular cast member. Season 9 consists of 24 episodes, each running approximately 22 minutes in length.

Something New (<i>How I Met Your Mother</i>) 24th episode of the 8th season of How I Met Your Mother

"Something New" is the 24th and final episode of the eighth season of the American sitcom How I Met Your Mother, and the 184th episode overall. The episode aired on CBS on May 13, 2013. This was the episode that finally introduced the titular character of The Mother, played by Cristin Milioti.

The Mother (<i>How I Met Your Mother</i>) Fictional character on the CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother

Tracy Mosby is the title character from the CBS television sitcom How I Met Your Mother. The show, narrated by Future Ted, tells the story of how Ted Mosby met his children's mother. Tracy McConnell appears in eight episodes, from "Lucky Penny" to "The Time Travelers", as an unseen character; she was first seen fully in season 8 finale "Something New" and was promoted to a main character in season 9. She is played by Cristin Milioti.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sonia Bergamasco</span> Italian actress (born 1966)

Sonia Bergamasco is an Italian actress.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">USS Callister</span> 1st episode of the 4th series of Black Mirror

"USS Callister" is the first episode of the fourth series of the anthology series Black Mirror. Written by series creator Charlie Brooker and William Bridges and directed by Toby Haynes, it first aired on Netflix, along with the rest of series four, on 29 December 2017.

<i>Palm Springs</i> (2020 film) Film by Max Barbakow

Palm Springs is a 2020 American science fiction romantic comedy film directed by Max Barbakow from a screenplay by Andy Siara, based on a story by Barbakow and Siara. Starring Andy Samberg, Cristin Milioti, and J. K. Simmons, it focuses on two strangers who meet at a wedding in Palm Springs only to find themselves stuck in a time loop.

<i>Made for Love</i> (TV series) 2021 American TV series

Made for Love is an American science fiction black comedy-drama television series based on the 2017 novel of the same name by Alissa Nutting. The series premiered on HBO Max on April 1, 2021. It stars Cristin Milioti, Billy Magnussen and Ray Romano. In June 2021, the series was renewed for a second season which premiered on April 28, 2022. Despite positive response to the series, in June 2022, the series was canceled after two seasons following the merger of HBO Max's parent company WarnerMedia with Discovery, Inc. to become Warner Bros. Discovery. It was removed from HBO Max in December 2022.

"Cent'Anni" is the fourth episode of the American crime drama television miniseries The Penguin, a spin-off from the film The Batman. The episode was written by supervising producer John McCutcheon, and directed by Helen Shaver. It was first broadcast on HBO in the United States on October 13, 2024, and also was available on Max on the same date.

References

  1. 1 2 Stoddard, Elizabeth (Nov 6, 2015). "Austin Film Festival Review: IT HAD TO BE YOU". Cinapse . Retrieved Mar 21, 2023.
  2. 1 2 N'Duka, Amanda (September 21, 2016). "Samuel Goldwyn Films Picks Up 'It Had To Be You'". Deadline Hollywood . Retrieved March 23, 2023.
  3. ↑ "It Had to Be You". Rotten Tomatoes . Retrieved March 23, 2023.
  4. ↑ Scheck, Frank (October 21, 2016). "'It Had to Be You': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter . Retrieved March 23, 2023.
  5. ↑ Genzlinger, Neil (October 20, 2016). "Review: 'It Had to Be You' Is a Witty Rom-Com With a 1950s Feel". New York Times .
  6. ↑ Goldstein, Gary (October 20, 2016). "Review: Endearing 'It Had to Be You' summons memories of great rom-coms of the past". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved March 23, 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.