Chances Are

From the opening credits of "Chances Are," it is apparent we are in nostalgia country. If it weren't for the names Cybill Shepherd and Robert Downey Jr., we'd almost expect this to be the beginning of an old Doris Day movie.

And indeed, "Chances Are" leaps off of a tried-and-true area, that of light comedy dealing with heavenly intervention. From "A Guy Named Joe" to "Here Comes Mr. Jordan" (later remade as "Heaven Can Wait") to more recent incarnations, usually with a reincarnation motif, such as "Made in Heaven" and "Hello Again," or even the more artful "Wings of Desire."

The main thing "Chances Are" does to update the idea is combine it with a sort of "body-switch" angle, capitalizing on the many recent films of that nature.

The story begins in the '60s with the wedding of Cybill Shepherd and Christopher McDonald. Meanwhile, best friend Ryan O'Neal stands by silently, though he is in love with Shepherd himself.

A year later, on their first anniversary, Shepherd announces she is pregnant. Later in the day McDonald is accidentally killed.

We then follow McDonald to heaven, where he makes a stink, insisting he was not supposed to die yet and demanding to return to earth to be with Shepherd. He is rushed back to be born into another family elsewhere in the country, but the angel in charge neglects to give him the injection that will wipe out the memory of his previous life.

The film then takes a two decade leap to the present day: McDonald is now Robert Downey Jr., Shepherd is still pining for her late husband, her daughter has grown up to be Mary Stuart Masterson and Ryan O'Neal is still quiet about his love for Shepherd.

Where the film goes from there isn't hard to figure out, as Downey at first is attracted to Masterson, but then remembers his life with Shepherd and goes after her.

It's all fairly predictable and light, often staying on the level of a TV sitcom (though there is a subplot about a corrupt judge that bookends the film and seems rather out of place). But there are also quite a few bright moments, thanks to the charming cast and occasionally witty script.

No great shakes, but "Chances Are," rated PG for some mild profanity, violence and sexual situations, is an amusing diversion.

— DIRECTOR EMILE ARDOLINO took his time before agreeing to direct "Chances Are." His last film was the surprise 1987 hit "Dirty Dancing."

"I'm not the kind to do two things at once," Ardolino said during a telephone interview from Denver last week, where he was in the midst of a promotion tour for "Chances Are."