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Rachel McAdams stars as the young, ambitious workaholic Becky. She is an assistant producer at a TV company in the United States, and is considered by all her colleagues to be in line for a promotion. So it comes as a huge shock when she’s told that, sadly, they have to let her go. Someone else is being appointed as senior producer, and they have to make cuts.
Stunned, she starts applying for any job she can find - and is eventually offered one at a low-rated company whose breakfast show is not doing very well. She is convinced she can turn it around, although the staff are not exactly encouraging. Diane Keaton is wonderful as Colleen, one of the newsreaders - but Colleen is pretty fed up of the series of producers that have come and gone, some of them good, some of them not - none of them staying long.
Becky’s first move is to fire the other newsreader - or ‘anchor’ as they call them - due to his rather creepy suggestions. And then she’s stuck, needing someone else to work with Colleen, unable at first to find anybody suitable. But she does her research, and realises that Mike Pomeroy, a former serious journalist and newsreader, is under contract to her TV company, and is currently paid for doing almost nothing.
Harrison Ford is excellent as the grumpy, self-centred Mike who thinks breakfast television is beneath him. He cares about serious news stories, but nobody wants those when they’re having their early morning coffee. And he and Colleen don’t much like each other so their ‘banter’ - when he eventually agrees, reluctantly, to do the job - is decidedly unusual.
There’s much more, of course. All the staff throw their questions and problems at Becky in a way that felt quite overwhelming to me, and I was sitting on a comfortable chair just watching! Her energy is astonishing, her commitment and love of her work admirable, though they make it difficult for her to sustain any kind of relationship. I found her style somewhat exhausting, clearly intended as an exaggeration and effective in the way the story is told, with rapid scene changes, and snippets of Becky in many locations, mostly on her phone.
There isn’t a whole lot of plot, but it’s a different story from the norm; there is unsurprisingly a romantic element but it’s kept very low-key. Adam (Patrick Wilson) is great as the guy who is quite attracted to Becky - and even, somewhat, understands her compulsion to keep thinking about her job.
I wouldn’t class it as one of my favourite films, but it was well-made, with some great acting and superb timing by the principal characters. We loved the grumpy Mike, contrasted with the exaggeratedly bright Colleen, and appreciated some insights into a busy American breakfast TV show. It was also good to see Diane Keaton in a role very different from her more normal roles as a harassed but competent mother.
The rating is 12; I wouldn’t be comfortable showing it to anyone under the age of about 14 or 16, as the romantic thread does become somewhat steamy, though there's nothing explicit. But I can’t imagine younger teens or children would be the slightest bit interested. The only ‘extra’ is a deleted scene that wouldn’t have added anything much to the film.
Recommended for a light evening’s viewing that doesn’t need much thought.
Review copyright 2022 Sue's DVD Reviews