You've Got Mail

PG

Released Dec 18, 1998

1 hr. 59 min.

Romance

Comedy

List

70%

89 Reviews

Tomatometer

73%

250,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

Struggling boutique bookseller Kathleen Kelly (Meg Ryan) hates Joe Fox (Tom Hanks), the owner of a corporate Foxbooks chain store that just moved in across the street. When they meet online, however, they begin an intense and anonymous Internet romance, oblivious of each other's true identity. Eventually Joe learns that the enchanting woman he's involved with is actually his business rival. He must now struggle to reconcile his real-life dislike for her with the cyber love he's come to feel.

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Critics Consensus

Great chemistry between the leads made this a warm and charming delight.

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Emma L

I thought this was a very cute rom com that had good story telling elements. Although I was born before its creation, the story line still resonated with me. I did think that a couple of references when over my head and didn't age well. The movie romanticizes a pre 2000's New York city and late stage capitalism through a "will they won't they" love story between Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan. I'm in love with the soundtrack and currently listening to it on Spotify.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

04/11/24

Full Review

Katie L

Always has and always will be my favorite movie of all time. I can remember the day, seeing this in the theater, when it first came out. I was taken away!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/28/24

Full Review

Erica K

I knew that this movie was going to be a oldie romance film, but it was way better than i expected. I know that i always like a movie after i completely understand and watch it (if its good), but this movie was just on another level of cute! This movie was the definition of cute tbh. The story, even though serious, was light and fluffy (having like the perfect feel to it of battle but also comedy). The competition of the businesses was good and was shown really well/the progress of loss and or growth of the businesses. Cut away comedy scenes were just brilliant and were not dragged out (even down to the small film details). And the timing, even though slow, was also kind of perfect! The background characters weren't focused on TOO TOO much but they were also so likable and well portrayed. It was by itself just a cute movie about business enemies to lovers and even made me smile :) Coming back to my timing comment, i wanna specify, even though a little slow at the beginning (i thought), it carried it out throughout the whole movie good! it took time to show the process and progress of characters and their situation throughout the whole story, and the movie carried it out REALLY well with emotion, action, movements, personality, etc. Even when after Kat shut down her business and Joe and her became friends; even though seeming like a whole different movie, it still made sense and didn't make the movie look bad or lazy finishing off. It was cute how this whole story had 2 parts; one being their online hidden friendship, and one being their business rivalry: And both were just so interesting and a great concept to portray. Therefore, cute movie, made me feel fluffy and happy, interesting (keeps attention), good comedy, i definitely reacted to some scenes with excitement for these two's romance journey, and DEFINETLY would recommend! :)

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

03/11/24

Full Review

Kelly K

One of Nora Ephron's best romantic comedies!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

12/25/23

Full Review

Laura S

This is a total SNOOZE fest!! SMH. I have it on today/now 12.21.23 4:30pm and it's just as I recall from back in 1998 when it was released... TERRIBLE. The writers totally missed the mark with humor and more!! Love Meg Ryan but Tom Hanks is NOT romatic comedy material whatsoever! Someone of Meg's beauty & artistic style should've been matched up with a guy that similarly has more "game" going for him & who is more handsome for sure... not someone who looks and acts like a total dork!!!

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

12/21/23

Full Review

Peter D

A decent adaptation of the original, "The Shop Around the Corner," a 1940 gem with Jimmy Stewart. Watch that one first, then this. This AOL Commercial worked well for me until the last act. Major spoilers to follow, read at your own risk if you haven't seen it yet. ... Spoiler space ... OK, she gets her guy (as you'd expect in a rom-com), but he took something beautiful away from her—and the community—and there was no grand gesture to at least try to make up for it. Two young people out of work and a neighborhood treasure gone. Sorry, but that really bothers me 24 years after it first premiered.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

12/18/23

Full Review

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Nora Ephron

Director

Tom Hanks

Joe Fox

Meg Ryan

Kathleen Kelly

Parker Posey

Patricia Eden

Greg Kinnear

Frank Navasky

Jean Stapleton

Birdie Conrad

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Lisa Alspector

Chicago Reader

The coincidences that make the destined lovers' paths cross aren't contrived with much finesse, but the characters get in some decidedly clever lines.

May 27, 2011

Full Review

Nell Minow

Common Sense Media

Predictable-but-sweet romantic comedy.

Rated: 4/5

Dec 29, 2010

Full Review

Geoff Andrew

Time Out

The clumsily loaded characterisation not only treats almost every other figure as dispensable, but doesn't even bother to make Meg and Tom properly sympathetic.

Feb 9, 2006

Full Review

Laura Bradley

The Daily Beast

As I’ve gotten older, my affection for the story still lingers.

Dec 5, 2022

Full Review

Hanif Abdurraqib

4Columns

The most worthwhile tension in You've Got Mail lies in the simple but pure ecstasy of receiving an email from a person you are excited about. Long live the parts of the film that refurbish the excitement of our sometimes-misguided yearnings.

Oct 2, 2020

Full Review

Danielle Solzman

Solzy at the Movies

What Nora and Delia Ephron do is update The Shop Around the Corner for the digital era. Or at least how the era looked in the mid-1990s.

Rated: 4/5

Jul 9, 2020

Full Review

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Synopsis

Struggling boutique bookseller Kathleen Kelly (Meg Ryan) hates Joe Fox (Tom Hanks), the owner of a corporate Foxbooks chain store that just moved in across the street. When they meet online, however, they begin an intense and anonymous Internet romance, oblivious of each other's true identity. Eventually Joe learns that the enchanting woman he's involved with is actually his business rival. He must now struggle to reconcile his real-life dislike for her with the cyber love he's come to feel.

Director: Nora Ephron
Executive Producer: G. Mac Brown, Julie Durk, Delia Ephron
Screenwriter: Miklós László, Nora Ephron, Delia Ephron
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures
Production Co: Warner Brothers
Rating: PG
Genre: Romance, Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Dec 18, 1998, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 1, 2008
Box Office (Gross USA): $115.7M
Sound Mix: Surround, Dolby Digital

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