As someone who works in the news business, I cringe, laugh and cry when I watch Up Close and Personal. It bears almost no resemblance except for a broad outline of what life in local and network TV news is all about. Broadcast News is a far more apt portrayal of the real pressures of a newsroom. And yet, Up Close and Personal is more fun to watch, especially on a rainy afternoon with a big bucket of popcorn and some Kleenex nearby. Robert Redford, Stockard Channing and Kate Nelligan give good performances while Joe Mantegna has one of the most delightful character names ever in a movie: Bucky Terranova. Michelle Pfeiffer is the weakest link and her prison scenes are ludicrous, but her Miami wardrobe and hair are stunning. She plays well off Robert Redford, who for once loses his wooden quality and actually seems to have some chemistry with her. It's hard to imagine that Joan Didion and John Gregory Dunne actually wrote this movie, since it's such a potboiler and nothing like their finest work. But on the other hand, it proves that they really were romantics. I put this in the same category as "The Best of Everything" and "Designing Woman" (the original, starring Lauren Bacall.) You can't call them great movies, but they have charm of their own.
Review of Up Close & Personal
