I am an admitted news junkie therefore I love any film that has to do with the subject of the media. Hollywood's most recent foray on the topic is Morning Glory, the Diane Keaton-Harrison Ford romantic comedy (Rachel McAdams is the real star of this film) about a daytime news show. "Daybreak" is last in the ratings and the former beauty queen host and legendary anchor of course clash while Adams as producer tries to keep the show --and her life -- from unraveling.
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| Rachel McAdams |
Perhaps my favorite film is Broadcast News (1987), director James L. Brooks story of a tv news producer (Holly Hunter), the brilliant writer who is secretly in love with her (Albert Brooks) and the handsome yet awkward on camera anchor (William Hurt). The film is hilarious yet poignant as the Washington news bureau suffers the fate of many in television today -- downsizing due to the economy. Brooks steals the show with some of the best one liners on film. And for a piece of trivia, Debra Winger was supposed to play the female lead but pregnancy got in the way.
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| Hunter, Brooks and Hurt |
Desk Set (1957) is the story of what happens when computerization hits a television network research department. Spencer Tracy stars as the engineer ordered to reshape the department and Katherine Hepburn as Bunny, the sharp tongued head researcher. There is lots of witty dialogue and banter, not to mention sterling performances. The film was originally a play and rumored to be based on an actual CBS researcher (and IBM!).
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| Hepburn and Tracey |
Network (1976) is perhaps the quintessential film on the news business, albeit a dark one. The fictitious Union Broadcasting System suffers from poor ratings and places their somewhat deranged head anchor Howard Beale (Peter Finch) as an angry prophet with his own "entertainment" show, adding "I'm mad as hell and not going to take it anymore" to the national lexicon. Faye Dunaway won the Oscar as the cold, calculating producer Diana Christensen. It's satirical, brilliant and a must see.
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| Dunaway as uber producer Diana Christensen |
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| The Infamous Morning After shot: Dunaway with her Oscar by the pool |
And last but not least....
All The President's Men (1976) is the political thriller based on the non-fiction book of Washington Post reporters Bob Woodward and Cal Bernstein as they uncover the unraveling of the Nixon presidency. Everything clicks with this film -- the performances, direction and story are first rate. The film won an Oscar for Best Art Direction as production designer George Jenkins dutifully recreated the Post headquarters on a Warner Brothers soundstage, right down to the phone books.
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Hoffman and Redford
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Jason Robards as Post Editor Ben Bradlee. Designers measured and copied
original newsroom desks for an authentic recreation |
Photo credits: Columbia Pictures, Warner Brothers, Twentieth Century Fox
It's Rachel McAdams, not Amy Adams.
ReplyDeleteOf course and thanks, I just made the change -- never blog when tired!
ReplyDeleteHello.
ReplyDeleteThis is really cool. I love it!
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It is interesting that TV Newsroom sets have creatively evolved so little over the years, save for the japanese inventing plasma screens. You have "truth" blue with glass, lots of wood for warmth, and now the "monitors in the background" impression that they are a nerve center. The technology changes but the idea is the same.
ReplyDeleteI knew a news director that would pay extras to cross behind camera with papers to make it look like election results were coming in! Nice post, thanks.