Barbara and I watched the 2010 movie “Morning Glory”, last week.
In a pivotal screen Rachel McAdams who plays a young producer of a network morning show, is arguing with Harrison Ford, who plays the crusty veteran reporter, the two are fighting over fluff versus the news, at the end of the scene,
and this is the key point to Morning Glory
McAdams’ character turns to Ford and says “we’ve had this argument for 20 years and your side lost”
She’s right the “the brainless fluff won and we all lost.
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| James L. Brooks |
James L. Brook one of the producers’ of the great social commentary tv show The Simpsons produced, wrote and directed Broadcast news, a wonderful film about the direction Tv news was heading, and his theme was its heading straight towards Morning Glory's of the world.
The 1985 film has a stellar cast including Holly Hunter, Albert Brooks, and William Hurt.
The whole cast does an amazing job and Brooks handles them with solid direction, letting them all shine without anyone of them outshining the other.
Brooks, who doesn’t make enough films, has a keen eye when it comes to creating real characrtors, with a touch of being touched, but not the over doneness of Woody Allen, just enough that makes the charactors interesting and fun.
Sometimes Brooks slides into a TV slapstick gimmick,
and that’s ok, maybe Brooks could be tougher on the world of network news,
god knows they certainly deserve it,
but I’m not sure its in his nature, Brooks cut his teeth on nice,
Mary Tyler Moore, Room 222, Taxi, Rhoda and the Andy Griffith show,
BUT his main story line hits hard with a satirical punch, and sometimes he serves that up spread on top with a little nice-
In one scene, the nincompoop network manager is telling a veteran reporter that he is being laid off, the old reporter tells the nincompoop in a smooth calm voice, after the manager ask him if there is anything he can do for him,
“Well, I certainly hope you’ll die soon.”
I’m afraid they didn’t die soon, and they did win. And that’s the way it is
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