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Morning Glory
| Released |
21 January 2011 |
| Director |
Roger Michell |
Starring
|
Rachel McAdams, Harrison Ford, Diane Keaton, Patrick Wilson, Noah Bean, Jeff Goldblum |
| Writer(s) |
Aline Brosh McKenna |
| Producer(s) |
J.J. Abrams, Bryan Burk |
| Origin |
United States |
| Running Time |
107 minutes |
| Genre |
Comedy |
| Rating |
12A |
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Full of fluff.
By all accounts Morning Glory is not the kind of movie likely to generate much buzz. It lacks a certain depth perhaps, or maybe it's just that the one too many 'gee-whizz' moments negates any burgeoning potential it may have had. Nevertheless one gets the feeling that despite its flaws, Morning Glory was never envisaged as some kind of rom-com trailblazer. South African director Roger Michell (Notting Hill, Venus) clearly knows how best to manipulate an audience by churning out the kind of harmless, cheerful feel-good movie that rarely fails to win favour especially in an age when more and more are turning to the big-screen for escape.
Becky Fuller (Rachel McAdams) is a highly caffeinated young news producer, who after losing her job at 'Good Morning New Jersey' is tasked with turning around the fortunes of an ailing national morning show called 'Daybreak'. She quickly hires famed television journalist Mike Pomeroy (Harrison Ford) to try to turn around the show's fortunes but his reluctance to do anything he considers mildly 'fluffy' leads to conflict aplenty with his bubbly co-host Collette Peck (Diane Keaton). With warring co-hosts, an overly enthusiastic weatherman and a staid show formula, Becky is left desperately trying to come up with creative ways to increase the ratings and save the show before it's too late.
Harrison Ford undoubtedly has a leaning towards roles where he gets to be the cynical and grumpy alpha male who ultimately (and usually reluctantly) unveils a more empathetic human side and here, as the gruff and sarcastic Mike Pomeroy, Ford excels. His bickering with Peck is truly hilarious while his restrained fury that his once illustrious career has come to this-morning television-is always never far from the surface. McAdams is both charming and affable as the klutzy but well-meaning Becky and proves that she has enough talent to carry a movie that ultimately relies on the performance of its cast. However the substory of her relationship with Adam (Patrick Wilson), a handsome and sensitive producer at the same network, seems more like a cynical ploy by Michell and co. to seduce more women to the cinema by interweaving some romance into the story. However it is not needed. A better idea would have been to exploit further the formidable acting talent of Diane Keaton in her role as the bitter former beauty-queen.
Although Morning Glory winds its plot up in the conventional manner, its predictability does not hinder its likeability. It's a funny, easygoing film that can only add to your day should you choose to go see it.
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Louisa McElwee |
