What Happened Was

What Happened Was...
What Happened Was...
	Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Tom Noonan
Screenplay by	Tom Noonan
Based on	What Happened Was... ; by Tom Noonan
Produced by	Scott Macaulay ; Robin O'Hara
Starring	Karen Sillas ; Tom Noonan
Cinematography	Joe DeSalvo
Edited by	Richmond Arrley
Music by	Ludovico Sorret (Noonan's pseudonym)
Production; companies	Good Machine; Genre Pictures
Distributed by	The Samuel Goldwyn Company
Release dates	26 January 1994 (Sundance); 9 September 1994 (New York);
Running time	91 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Box office	$22,973 (US/Canada)

What Happened Was... is a 1994 American independent film written for the screen, directed by and starring Tom Noonan.^[1] It is an adaptation of Noonan's original stage play of the same name.^[2]

Premise

The film depicts two people, played by Karen Sillas and Tom Noonan, on a first date; their conversation gradually reveals their lonely lives and hidden personalities.^[3]^[4]

Reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 91% of 22 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.5/10/10.^[5]

On the Siskel & Ebert show, Gene Siskel gave the film a thumbs up, stating that "For what is really just one long night of conversation, the stakes and the tension couldn't be any higher if these were two characters having a more conventional action scene." Roger Ebert gave the film a thumbs down, calling it "Contrived" and stating that "There is a lot less here than meets the eye."^[6] The film is a favorite of filmmaker Charlie Kaufman.^[7]

It opened at the Angelika Film Center in Manhattan on September 9, 1994 and grossed $22,973 in its opening week.^[8]^[9]^[10]

Year-end lists

10th – Todd Anthony, Miami New Times^[11]
Top 9 (not ranked) – Dan Webster, The Spokesman-Review^[12]
Top 10 (listed alphabetically, not ranked) – Jimmy Fowler, Dallas Observer^[13]
"The second 10" (not ranked) – Sean P. Means, The Salt Lake Tribune^[14]
Honorable mention – Howie Movshovitz, The Denver Post^[15]
Honorable mention – Jeff Simon, The Buffalo News^[16]

Accolades

It won the Grand Jury Prize and the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award at the 1994 Sundance Film Festival.^[17] Noonan was nominated for Best First Screenplay and Karen Sillas for Best Female Lead at the 10th Independent Spirit Awards.

Planned sequel

Noonan wrote a sequel, which he pitched to both Netflix and Amazon Prime, but it never came to fruition. Noonan and Sillas were to have reprised their roles, and the film would have also co-starred Louis C.K., Charlie Kaufman and Vin Diesel.^[18]

References

^ "The 10 Most Underrated American Independent Films of The 1990s - Page 2 - Taste of Cinema". November 2, 2022. Archived from the original on December 19, 2022. Retrieved December 21, 2022.
^ Levy, Emanuel (January 28, 1994). "What Happened Was". Variety.
^ "Roger Ebert". Archived from the original on March 29, 2020. Retrieved May 22, 2019.
^ "TCM.com". Archived from the original on October 18, 2021. Retrieved May 22, 2019.
^ "What Happened Was". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Archived from the original on June 23, 2021. Retrieved October 9, 2021.
^ "Quiz Show, Milk Money, A Simple Twist of Fate, A Good Man in Africa, What Happened Was…, 1994-Siskel and Ebert Movie Reviews". Archived from the original on January 13, 2021. Retrieved May 22, 2019.
^ ""Anomalisa" Star Reveals E-Mail Trail Sparked Close Bond To Hollywood Great Charlie Kaufman". April 1, 2016. Archived from the original on May 5, 2023. Retrieved September 28, 2020.
^ Klady, Leonard (September 12, 1994). "'Forrest' fires on". Daily Variety. p. 3.
^ Evans, Greg (September 13, 1994). "'Rapa' new; 'Eat Drink' not merry as exclus slow". Daily Variety. p. 3.
^ "Domestic box office". Variety. September 19, 1994. p. 16.
^ Anthony, Todd (January 5, 1995). "Hits & Disses". Miami New Times.
^ Webster, Dan (January 1, 1995). "In Year of Disappointments, Some Movies Still Delivered". The Spokesman-Review (Spokane ed.). p. 2.
^ Zoller Seitz, Matt (January 12, 1995). "Personal best From a year full of startling and memorable movies, here are our favorites". Dallas Observer.
^ P. Means, Sean (January 1, 1995). "'Pulp and Circumstance' After the Rise of Quentin Tarantino, Hollywood Would Never Be the Same". The Salt Lake Tribune (Final ed.). p. E1.
^ Movshovitz, Howie (December 25, 1994). "Memorable Movies of '94 Independents, fringes filled out a lean year". The Denver Post (Rockies ed.). p. E-1.
^ Simon, Jeff (January 1, 1995). "Movies: Once More, with Feeling". The Buffalo News. Retrieved July 19, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
^ "'What Happened Was,' 'Freedom on My Mind' Win Top Honors at Sundance Festival". AP NEWS. January 31, 1994. Archived from the original on June 30, 2019. Retrieved January 22, 2026.
^ Kois, Dan (January 27, 2021). "Tom Noonan on What Happened Was … and the Sequel That Still Might be". Slate. Archived from the original on April 28, 2024. Retrieved April 28, 2024.

External links

What Happened Was at IMDb
Official trailer on YouTube

Awards

Preceded by

Ruby in Paradise
tied with Public Access

Sundance Grand Jury Prize: U.S. Dramatic
1994

Succeeded by

The Brothers McMullen

[pagetwounderratedusindies-1] "The 10 Most Underrated American Independent Films of The 1990s - Page 2 - Taste of Cinema". November 2, 2022. Archived from the original on December 19, 2022. Retrieved December 21, 2022.

[2] Levy, Emanuel (January 28, 1994). "What Happened Was". Variety.

[3] "Roger Ebert". Archived from the original on March 29, 2020. Retrieved May 22, 2019.

[4] "TCM.com". Archived from the original on October 18, 2021. Retrieved May 22, 2019.

[Rotten_Tomatoes-5] "What Happened Was". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Archived from the original on June 23, 2021. Retrieved October 9, 2021.

[6] "Quiz Show, Milk Money, A Simple Twist of Fate, A Good Man in Africa, What Happened Was…, 1994-Siskel and Ebert Movie Reviews". Archived from the original on January 13, 2021. Retrieved May 22, 2019.

[7] ""Anomalisa" Star Reveals E-Mail Trail Sparked Close Bond To Hollywood Great Charlie Kaufman". April 1, 2016. Archived from the original on May 5, 2023. Retrieved September 28, 2020.

[8] Klady, Leonard (September 12, 1994). "'Forrest' fires on". Daily Variety. p. 3.

[9] Evans, Greg (September 13, 1994). "'Rapa' new; 'Eat Drink' not merry as exclus slow". Daily Variety. p. 3.

[10] "Domestic box office". Variety. September 19, 1994. p. 16.

[11] Anthony, Todd (January 5, 1995). "Hits & Disses". Miami New Times.

[12] Webster, Dan (January 1, 1995). "In Year of Disappointments, Some Movies Still Delivered". The Spokesman-Review (Spokane ed.). p. 2.

[13] Zoller Seitz, Matt (January 12, 1995). "Personal best From a year full of startling and memorable movies, here are our favorites". Dallas Observer.

[14] P. Means, Sean (January 1, 1995). "'Pulp and Circumstance' After the Rise of Quentin Tarantino, Hollywood Would Never Be the Same". The Salt Lake Tribune (Final ed.). p. E1.

[15] Movshovitz, Howie (December 25, 1994). "Memorable Movies of '94 Independents, fringes filled out a lean year". The Denver Post (Rockies ed.). p. E-1.

[16] Simon, Jeff (January 1, 1995). "Movies: Once More, with Feeling". The Buffalo News. Retrieved July 19, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)

[17] "'What Happened Was,' 'Freedom on My Mind' Win Top Honors at Sundance Festival". AP NEWS. January 31, 1994. Archived from the original on June 30, 2019. Retrieved January 22, 2026.

[18] Kois, Dan (January 27, 2021). "Tom Noonan on What Happened Was … and the Sequel That Still Might be". Slate. Archived from the original on April 28, 2024. Retrieved April 28, 2024.

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