Broadcast News

12/16/19872h 13m

Theatrical Release (US)

~ It’s the story of their lives. ~

Overview:

Basket-case network news producer Jane Craig falls for new reporter Tom Grunnick, a pretty boy who represents the trend towards entertainment news she despises. Aaron Altman, a talented but plain correspondent, carries an unrequited torch for Jane. Sparks fly between the three as the network prepares for big changes, and both the news and Jane must decide between style and substance.

Director:

James L. Brooks

Status:

Released

Language:

English

Buget:

$20,000,000.00

Revenue:

$67,330,500.00

Key words:

journalist
washington dc, usa
love triangle
workaholic
journalism
television producer
neurotic
tv news anchor

Cast

Holly Hunter

~ as ~

Jane Craig

William Hurt

~ as ~

Tom Grunick

Albert Brooks

~ as ~

Aaron Altman

Robert Prosky

~ as ~

Ernie Merriman

Lois Chiles

~ as ~

Jennifer Mack

Joan Cusack

~ as ~

Blair Litton

Peter Hackes

~ as ~

Paul Moore

Christian Clemenson

~ as ~

Bobby

Jack Nicholson

~ as ~

Bill Rorich

Robert Katims

~ as ~

Martin Klein

View full cast & crew

Reviews (2)

CinemaSerf
Written 3 year(s) ago
7
Centred around the cut-throat environment of an American newsroom at a time when the focus of the bosses was switching from strong journalistic values to those more ratings-based, we are provided with this premiss. William Hurt ("Grunick") is certainly the more handsome man for the anchorman's chair, but he has nothing like the knowledge or gravitas of colleague and rival "Altman" (Albert Brooks) with his superior, borderline condescending on-screen style. Executive producer "Jane" (Holly Hunter) is charged with trying to keep things on an even keel, whilst unsure which, if either, of the two men she wants to date. At times there atmosphere here is electric, with quickly paced activity, acerbic wit and a wonderfully portrayed dog-eat-dog mentality that lends a great deal of authenticity to this most competitive of workplaces. Ocassionally, it is cluttered up by a romance that is simply not required - the triumvirate just didn't need it, but in the main Hunter is on super form. She effortlessly plays a multitude or roles as she tries to juggle her personal and professional feelings for these two men who offer us characterisations that we can laugh at and loathe in almost equal measure. I worked in live television for a great many years, and always admired the skills of those who can talk, listen, look and react all at the same time - the scene with poor old "Altman" losing half his bodyweight whilst on air still makes me squirm even now. It has lost some of its potency over the last 35 years, but recalling that this was amongst the first to illustrate just how tough these jobs are, it's still a great watch.
k
kevin2019
Written 1 year(s) ago
10
"Broadcast News" is desperately overlong and it stubbornly insists upon indulging in irrelevant mini-prologues of the three main characters at the beginning which has absolutely no bearing on them as adults, but other than this the film does successfully provide a fascinating insight into the pressurised and competitive world of television journalism and it must be applauded for highlighting the unfortunate trend of elevating news anchors to celebrity status and they are out to sell news to the public as if it were nothing more than another product. This is an alarming turn of events when the image of the news anchor supersedes the importance of global events simply because they are capable of bringing in substantial viewing audiences for a particular channel and furthering their own careers by doing so and established journalistic ethics be damned instead of their top priority always being the persistent pursuit of the truth.