A case exists for Bill Pullman because he finally gets the girl, but his apex is the megaphone speech in Independence Day the following year. — Amanda Dobbins
It is a great movie but no one's apex; Bullock's breakthrough needed the one-two punch of Speed and this film. — Juliet Litman
Wanda the nurse is nominated for doing the most with the least screen time, including her "don't wonder out loud" line. — Amanda Dobbins
Peter Gallagher, in a coma for half the movie, wakes up to what the hosts call an improvised Jell-O line and conveys yuppiness, untrustworthiness and handsomeness from a hospital bed. — Amanda Dobbins
Coma Guy working title; gender-flipped premise; original New York setting; train-track electricity precautions; improvised Oreo moment; Gallagher's real head injury
The hosts report the working title was Coma Guy. — Juliet Litman
The hosts report the premise was originally a man in love with a woman in a coma, flipped as too lecherous and creepy; the hosts think the movie could not be made now at all because of Google. — Juliet Litman
The hosts report the film was originally set in New York with Joe Jr. an over-the-top Brooklyn Italian, which a host calls a stereotype. — Juliet Litman
The hosts report that, shooting on location in Chicago, the crew turned off the track electricity and, worried about conduction in the platform rescue, filmed the train in reverse. — Juliet Litman
The hosts report Bullock is allergic to cats despite Lucy's cat, and say dunking her Oreo in the cat's milk was her improvised idea, echoing Two Weeks Notice. — Amanda Dobbins
The hosts say Peter Gallagher really hit his head filming the train scene, recounted in both the Washington Post and Vulture pieces. — Amanda Dobbins
Monica Kina (as transcribed), who plays Peter and Jack's much younger sister, is one pick because she later turns up as a menacing character on Dawson's Creek. — Amanda Dobbins
Jack Warden is nominated after being seen in about four movies in one week of rewatching; his credits are listed as All the President's Men, Shampoo as his signature role, Being There and The Verdict. — Amanda Dobbins
The hosts say Warden suffered a Korean War injury that left him in pain when walking, which they believe Peter Gallagher recounted in Vulture. — Amanda Dobbins
The mother from Mary Poppins has the most defining look; the hosts debate whether the award is for someone known as someone else or someone in many movies, leaning to the latter. — Juliet Litman
The award goes to Jack Warden, who is more than a that-guy but still prompts an oh-my-God reaction here. — Amanda Dobbins
Julia Roberts is rumored to have passed; one of the writers is quoted saying lots of big actresses passed, which a host believes he told BuzzFeed UK in 2015. A host thinks it is described as one of her most regrettable decisions, but the hosts doubt she was ever seriously considered. — Juliet Litman
The hosts say the Vanity Fair article reports Demi Moore was wanted, which would have been her first rom-com; she would have made it more serious and anxious. — Juliet Litman
The Washington Post oral history is cited for Davis passing, funny because she and Pullman were married in A League of Their Own; when the director signed on, Harrison Ford and Davis were attached and both backed out. — Amanda Dobbins
Harrison Ford would have been great, if more of a jerk and less believable as the spare brother. — Juliet Litman
The hosts cite the Washington Post as saying Dennis Quaid was rumored for Jack; a host speculates he and Meg Ryan shared representation. — Juliet Litman
Patrick Swayze, also mentioned for Jack, is a no: too much charisma for a reticent role, leading into a tangent about Dirty Dancing and Ghost. — Amanda Dobbins
Matthew McConaughey was reportedly a top choice for Jack until his Texas accent got in the way; a host calls it a hard yes and invents a Texas-family fix, noting the grandmother's British accent goes unexplained. — Amanda Dobbins
The hosts report Pierce Brosnan was rumored for Peter; his accent hardly matters since Peter is asleep, and Peter Gallagher plays a yuppie better than almost anyone. — Juliet Litman
James Spater (as transcribed) was mentioned somewhere on the list, probably for Jack, but a host thinks he should have been Peter. — Amanda Dobbins
The Jack role could have worked with several actors, which is a testament to the writing; Jack is probably the best-written character even if Bullock sells hers best. — Juliet Litman
No one looks anything up in the yellow pages or fact-checks anything; today someone would check Instagram, and the obvious move of going to her workplace comes only at the end. — Juliet Litman
Citing the oral history and a Peter Gallagher interview with Vulture, the hosts say the script changed on set for the worse; two throwaway lines about Lucy's body (a flat chest, and fitting into her pants) are out of sync with the rest of her portrayal. — Juliet Litman
Joe Jr. is an unneeded, distracting C plot filling the best-friend comedy slot and is a little scene-chewy; more time with the family would have been better. — Amanda Dobbins
Ultimately the lack of checking up on who she is has aged the absolute worst. — Juliet Litman
The casting is strong enough that the film does not miss a best friend; Lucy only has coworkers, making hers one of the sadder rom-com heroine backstories. — Amanda Dobbins
Her clothes nail an Eileen Fisher aesthetic; the sweaters, jeans and boots feel current, though the muddy long belted skirts at the family house are an exception. — Juliet Litman
Her deep red velvet New Year's Eve outfit echoes Meg Ryan's Christmas Eve outfit in Sleepless in Seattle, and the coat is back in style. — Juliet Litman
The handcrafting furniture maker played by Bill Pullman is an artsy boyfriend ahead of its time, a forerunner of Aiden in Sex and the City, and his furniture has aged better than Aiden's. — Juliet Litman
Walk-up apartments sucked in 1995 and still do. — Juliet Litman
The simple engagement ring is loved and likened to the ring Aiden gives Carrie; it also has to fit under the token slot. — Amanda Dobbins
The film is aspirational but not out of touch with how normal people live. — Juliet Litman
Jack's reversible jean jacket is loved; the hosts cite Ashley Spencer's Washington Post oral history, in which Bill Pullman is quoted as still having and wearing it. — Amanda Dobbins
The ranking settles on casting first, fashion second and the furniture boyfriend third. — Juliet Litman
Lucy's early bedside speech to the comatose Peter, about loneliness, is called extremely moving and the center of a movie about loneliness, grief and family; Saul looking over her adds to it.
Jack and Lucy slipping on the ice as he walks her home after delivering the love seat is a favorite, recalling Cameron Diaz's physical comedy in The Holiday and showing their palpable chemistry. — Juliet Litman
The ice scene is the moment the romance becomes clear, though visible non-iced sidewalks sit on either side; the hosts say Chicago had an unseasonably warm fall during the shoot, so the cold was faked. — Amanda Dobbins
The one-testicle scene, where Lucy volunteers that Peter lost a testicle in a freak basketball accident with a pencil and the family jokes about who will check, is praised as good writing. — Amanda Dobbins
The hosts say the writers wrote 20 scripts together and this was the only one ever made. — Juliet Litman
The wedding that isn't, where Lucy objects at her own wedding, is a favorite rom-com wedding scene; one host calls the ill-fitting sailor-collar dress one of the worst movie wedding dresses, while the other likes it. — Juliet Litman
The confession to the whole family pairs with the coma speech and is compared to Tom Hanks's final scene in You've Got Mail: a character confessing unforgivable things done for love, which only great actors can sell. — Amanda Dobbins
The family ensemble is underrated; having everyone in the room makes it the best-scripted scene, and the real fiancee storming in makes it the most rewatchable too. — Juliet Litman
Saul, played by Jack Warden, telling Peter in the hospital not to be an asshole is another sweet option. — Juliet Litman
The wedding scene ultimately takes the cake; a host adds that Peter Gallagher is just lying there in a coma through it. — Juliet Litman
Kevin Costner was approached for Shooter McGavin and turned it down while doing Tin Cup. — Bill Simmons
Costner might have been too likable and overpowered the movie, though it might have grounded it for critics like Ebert; it would have been a fun career move.
Bruce Campbell lobbied hard for the part, and McDonald turned it down twice before doing it. — Bill Simmons
Ben Stiller is uncredited, and a deleted scene where Happy gets revenge on him is recalled.
Peter Gallagher's eyebrows would have made an interesting Shooter.
