28 years later, ‘While You Were Sleeping’ is still the best holiday rom-com. Here’s why
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The holiday season is associated with Christmas cheer. But sometimes, a deep loneliness sets in.
Instead of having a warm morning spent unwrapping gifts, some find themselves working out in the cold on Christmas morning — like in a train tollbooth.
That’s exactly where Lucy Moderatz, the protagonist of 1995’s “While You Were Sleeping,” finds herself on Christmas morning. Her father has died after Lucy spent years caring for him. She lives alone with her cat. Her friends are busy with their own families.
With no one to spend Christmas with, Lucy is forced to man the tollbooth. But then, something terrible (and also kind of miraculous) happens — a beautiful man falls onto the train tracks and Lucy saves his life.
Thus begins the zany plot of “While You Were Sleeping.” The story should feel outrageous, horror-like even, but instead it makes for a touching and earnest film.
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Romantic comedies are often dismissed as frothy, substance-less films. But as Billy Mernit, author of “Writing the Romantic Comedy” and story analyst and script consultant at Universal, told me, rom-coms, at their core, are about people. Great rom-coms should feature both insightful character development and clever jokes.
“What makes a really good rom-com good is that it’s about something,” Mernit said.
“While You Were Sleeping” is about loneliness. And, quite often, it’s incredibly funny. Pairing loneliness with comedy requires a precarious balancing act, but the film successfully pulls it off with a sweet gentleness and an outstanding supporting cast.
The making of ‘While You Were Sleeping’
Before the film became what it is today, it went through surprising iterations: The original script was about a man who fell in love with a woman in a coma.
“Nobody liked it,” Daniel G. Sullivan, co-writer of “While You Were Sleeping,” told The Washington Post in 2020.
“So we decided to flip it, and once we made that switch, everything worked.”
Armed with the new story, which was first called “Coma Guy,” Sullivan and Lebow approached producer Arthur Sarkissian and sold the script to Disney’s Hollywood Pictures.
Who turned down the lead role in ‘While You Were Sleeping’?
A few well-known actors were interested in the film: Harrison Ford and Geena Davis were originally attached to the project, but eventually “backed out,” director Jon Turteltaub told The Washington Post.
Other actresses were considered to play Lucy, including Demi Moore, Julia Roberts, Meg Ryan and Nicole Kidman, whom they “came very close to” hiring, according to Turteltaub.
Eventually, the team behind the movie landed on Sandra Bullock. “Sandy has that overwhelming charm that makes her so irresistible,” Turteltaub said. “As soon as she left the room, (producer) Joe Roth stood up and said, ‘That’s our girl.’”
As for Jack, quite a few famous actors were in talks for the role. James Spader and Dylan McDermott auditioned, as well as then-newcomer Matthew McConaughey.
Eventually, they landed on Bill Pullman. “Bill had an innate sweetness and a nice working-class feel,” casting co-director Cathy Sandrich told The Washington Post.
Why is ‘While You Were Sleeping’ still a classic after 28 years?
The premise of “While You Were Sleeping,” on paper, reads like a thriller: a woman poses as the fiancé of a man in a coma and infiltrates his family.
But there are many elements that ground the campy plot: Bullock’s sweet portrayal of Lucy. The earnestness of the Callaghan family. And the palpable chemistry between Lucy and Jack.
The kindness, and loneliness, of Lucy
The bitter undercurrent of loneliness in Lucy’s life is what I found most touching during my recent rewatch. As she tells Jack on New Year’s Eve, “I don’t have anyone.”
But despite her loneliness, Lucy is kind. She gives her landlord a Christmas gift. She is acutely aware of others. It is her kindness that motivates her to withhold the truth from the Callaghan family, fretting over Elsie’s health. This is a family she just met. How can she be so loyal to them?
The answer lies both in Lucy’s kind nature and in the Callaghans’ earnestness. As soon as they find out that Lucy is Peter’s alleged fiancée, they warmly welcome her with open arms.
How could Lucy say no? After being alone for at least a year, she finds herself swept away in family — something that, as Lucy tearfully tells them, she hasn’t had in “a long, long time.”
Lucy is understandably endeared to the Callaghans and we, the audience, are endeared with her — while being endeared to her. How could we not root for Lucy, with her messy hair and too-big sweaters?
The quirky Callaghan family — and other side characters
Beyond the authenticity of Lucy’s loneliness and the romance between Jack and Lucy (more on that later), my favorite element of the movie is the Callaghan family, plus the other quirky side characters.
Much like my other favorite Christmas rom-com, “Moonstruck,” most of the comedy of “While You Were Sleeping” lies with the family. It’s a smart move on Sullivan and Lebow’s part — the heaviness of Lucy’s forlornness is lightened by a talented and hilarious roster of secondary characters.
Some of the film’s strongest (and most memorable) moments of comedic dialogue come from the Callaghan family. My favorite is the dinner scene, when over the family’s endless, zany chatter — about roast beef, Argentina, the height of famous actors and more — Lucy and Jack exchange incredulous and conspiratorial looks.
Such antics could be grating, à la the extended family’s behavior in “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation,” but the Callaghans’ loving authenticity grounds them.
Beyond the lovable Callaghan family, “While You Were Sleeping” has a stellar cast of supporting characters, including Joe Jr. and Ashley Bartlett Bacon.
As Turteltaub told The Washington Post, “Whether it was Joe Jr. or Ashley Bartlett Bacon or the guy in the hospital bed next to Peter, we didn’t overlook any of these people. Everyone got a moment.”
Lucy and Jack’s love story
When pouring her heart to a comatose Peter, Lucy reveals that, sure, she has a lot to be thankful for — but, “It’s just, I never met anyone I could laugh with.”
Enter Jack. At first, he’s wary of Lucy — why hasn’t Peter mentioned a fiancée before? — but he’s soon disarmed by Lucy’s sweet charm and finds himself falling for her.
For Lucy’s part, once Jack stops interrogating her, she opens up to Jack and finds herself laughing with him. A lot.
One of my favorite scenes is when Lucy and Jack slip and slide on the ice in front of Lucy’s apartment when walking back together from Peter’s apartment. It’s hilarious — they’re cracking up the whole time and Jack rips his pants after a nasty fall — but, most importantly, we see the first glimmers of the great chemistry between Bullock and Pullman.
“While You Were Sleeping” is keenly aware of two key components in a sincere love story: chemistry and humor. Lucy and Jack have both in abundance, often laughing together while clearly wanting to be together.
It’s sweet and endearing. It’s also something I think is often lacking today’s romantic comedies, which likely is why this holiday rom-com remains a classic.
Is ‘While You Were Sleeping’ worth the watch?
“While You Were Sleeping,” which is currently streaming on Disney+, is absolutely worth the watch. It is the perfect holiday rom-com, with just the right amount of Christmas magic (a sprinkle, not a fistful), a hilarious cast and an excellent love story.
Plus, it’s a movie the whole family can watch — and even the cast agrees.
As Bullock told The Washington Post in 2020, “I think it’s time to make my kids watch it. In this next week, I’m going to watch it with them. I avoid looking at myself, like all actors, but when I see it through my kids’ eyes, then I can enjoy it.”
