Happenstance

Original title: Le battement d'ailes du papillon

2000
R
1h 30m

IMDb RATING

6.7/10

YOUR RATING

Play clip1:40

Watch Happenstance Scene: A Good Samaritan

4 Videos

13 Photos

Comedy Drama Romance

How, thanks to what's known as the "Butterfly theory" (a random series of unlinked events), can a young woman and a young man meet ?How, thanks to what's known as the "Butterfly theory" (a random series of unlinked events), can a young woman and a young man meet ?How, thanks to what's known as the "Butterfly theory" (a random series of unlinked events), can a young woman and a young man meet ?

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.7/10

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 3 wins total

Videos4

Clip 1:40

Happenstance Scene: A Good Samaritan

Clip 1:08

Happenstance Scene: Eccentric Grandmother

Clip 1:08

Happenstance Scene: Eccentric Grandmother

Clip 1:56

Happenstance Scene: Chance Encounter With Metro

Clip 2:29

Happenstance Scene: Pathological Liar

Photos13

+ 6

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
The original French title translates as "the flapping of a butterfly's wings". In Hong Kong it was titled Amelie 2, to capitalise on the success of Audrey Tautou's breakout movie Amélie (2001). Although Happenstance (2000) predates Amelie by a year, the two were released in reverse order in most non-French markets.

Goofs
When the old lady takes the faulty coffee machine back to the store it is seen in a Phillips box, when she arrives back home with the same faulty machine it is in a Moulinex box.

Quotes
Irène: Excuse me...
Waiter: Sorry, I didn't see you.
Irène: I'm the one who's sorry. I'm transparent.
Waiter: What'll it be?
Irène: Coffee.

Connections
References Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999)

User reviews38

Featured review

Another charmer from the French.

Charming little movie about a girl on her way to work on the Metro who has her horoscope told and is informed that today she will meet the man she will fall in love with. The story then divides into a bunch of individual tales about the people on the Metro platform, with each tale in one small way moving the girl closer to meeting her intended. A lot of hilarious and unexpected belly-laughs. A movie one has to trust in as the payoff is uproariously funny. Along the way one wonders how some of the stories will affect the outcome but inevitably they do. The meaning of the title in French - "The beat of a butterfly's wings?" When a butterfly beats its' wings on one side of the Pacific it creates a tidal wave on the other side. A very funny charmer with the gorgeous Audrey Tautou who has all of the delightful screen persona of that other unforgettable Audrey.