Film

Rumor Has It...

Name: Rumor Has It...
Genre: Comedy, Romance
Released: 2005
Cast: Jennifer Aniston, Kevin Costner, Shirley MacLaine, Mark Ruffalo, Richard Jenkins

Comedy
Light-hearted

A rom-com that leans on *The Graduate* mythology: Jennifer Aniston's character discovers her small California town inspired that film, and possibly that she's the secret love child at its centre. It's a breezy, star-studded movie about family secrets and whether you can escape your own legend. Charming fluff, heavy on winking nostalgia.

TMDb rating

2.8

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you like breezy romantic comedies that play with a family's tidy self-image, and you're happy to let a slight premise carry a lot of easy charm.

Skip it if the romance is more pleasant than gripping, so if you need real stakes you'll find the charm thin and the coincidences hard to swallow.

What it asks of you: Ninety-seven minutes of light, unhurried banter, asking for little more than a willingness to enjoy the small, warm moments between its well-matched leads.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

The Graduate1967

The film that haunts this entire movie. Dustin Hoffman and Anne Bancroft in a perfect performance as the older woman. It's genuinely great, and you'll understand every joke *Rumor Has It* is making.

But 1967 pacing feels glacial now. It's a slow-burn character piece, not a plot engine, and that will test your patience.

Something's Gotta Give2003

Jack Nicholson and Diane Keaton in a romantic comedy about age and desire. Funny, warm, grown-up, and Nancy Meyers knows how to make a film feel like a luxury experience you want to sink into.

But The plot is gossamer-thin. It's a mood and a setting more than a story, and if you need actual stakes you'll feel short-changed.

In Good Company2004

Dennis Quaid and Topher Grace as boss and employee who bond over a newsroom in flux. Smart, witty, and interested in how people actually talk. It's got real warmth without being saccharine.

But It's minor. Nothing about it stays with you, and the romance feels obligatory rather than earned.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Rumor Has It...

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

The Poseidon Adventure1972

Both use ensemble casts to explore whether you're trapped by your origins. The Poseidon adventure is literal (a sinking ship), *Rumor Has It* is metaphorical (a town's mythology), but both ask: how do you escape what's already decided about you?

A disaster film where the entire ensemble cast—Ernest Borgnine, Shelley Winters, Gene Hackman—gets caught in an upturned ship. It's operatic and ridiculous and utterly committed. Pure spectacle, and it's made with real craft.

But It's slow and talky by modern standards. The gender politics are actively offensive. And the central conceit—that capsizing a ship means certain death—gets repetitive.

Maid in Manhattan2002

Jennifer Lopez and Ralph Fiennes in a Cinderella story that knows exactly what it is. It's fun, it's pretty, and it doesn't pretend to be anything deeper. Pure escapism, well executed.

But The class politics don't hold up to any scrutiny whatsoever. It's fantasy in the laziest possible way.

You've Got Mail1998

Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan in peak rom-com form. Sharp, fast, brimming with genuine jokes. It captures that specific 90s New York magic and the screenplay is genuinely clever.

But It's incredibly dated now in ways that feel more awkward than nostalgic. And the central premise—catfishing—lands differently than it did in 1998.

The Ugly Truth2009

Katherine Heigl and Gerard Butler in a battle-of-the-sexes rom-com that's raunchy, energetic, and doesn't take itself seriously. It's trash in the best possible way, with real comedic timing.

But The gender politics are actively regressive. And it's aggressively stupid in ways that test the patience of anyone over twenty-five.

Failure to Launch2006

Matthew McConaughey and Sarah Jessica Parker in a rom-com about a guy who won't move out. It's silly, but it's got charm, and the supporting cast (Zooey Deschanel, Justin Long) elevates everything around it.

But The premise is paper-thin and the movie knows it. You're watching for the stars and the warmth, not because the story matters.

Ghosts of Girlfriends Past2009

Matthew McConaughey in a *Christmas Carol* riff about love and commitment. Michael Douglas and Jennifer Garner anchor it with real stakes, and it's genuinely funny in stretches.

But The third act loses the thread badly. And there's something vaguely icky about the central fantasy that the movie doesn't quite know how to handle.

Playing It Cool2014

Chris Evans and Michelle Monaghan in a rom-com that tries—earnestly—to do something different. It's meta and self-aware, and there's real affection underneath the irony.

But The meta stuff feels dated immediately. And it's caught between wanting to be a traditional rom-com and wanting to deconstruct one, so it lands nowhere.

Boyhood2014

Where *Rumor Has It* asks 'are you defined by your family's past?', *Boyhood* asks 'are you anything other than the sum of the years that pass?' Both are obsessed with time's weight and whether you can outrun your own story.

Richard Linklater filmed the same cast over twelve years, watching them age in real time. It's patient, funny, heartbreaking, and like nothing else. By the end you've lived a life.

But It's three hours and almost nothing happens. If you need plot momentum, this will feel like watching paint dry. Some people hate it on principle.

Crimes and Misdemeanors1989

*Rumor Has It* treats family secrets as romantic comedy fodder. *Crimes and Misdemeanors* treats the same material as a moral reckoning. Both are about what happens when you find out your parents aren't who you thought they were—one laughs, one despairs, both hit the same nerve.

Woody Allen at his best: a dark, smart, genuinely funny film about morality, infidelity, and whether the universe cares about your choices. Martin Landau gives a performance that will devastate you.

But It's bleak in ways that sneak up on you. And the Woody Allen stuff—the neurotic comedy—can feel like nails on a chalkboard if you're not in the mood for it.