Morning Glory

Rachel McAdams is the producer of a struggling regional breakfast television show who is sacked just when she believes she is to be promoted for doing a good job. Unable to find another position, McAdams obtains a producer's position at a once successful national network with the instruction to lift it's miniscule breakfast show ratings. That a national network would turn to this woman of no profile in it's hour of need struck me as an unlikely premise but then the movies are full of unlikely plots.

McAdams finds herself in a hostile environment with the on air talent, Harrison Ford and Diane Keaton, and behind the scenes employees alike, treating her as a passing nuisance who in all likelihood will move on quickly if she is not moved out first.

Burdened by an unlikely premise, McAdams is also presented with the herculean task of portraying two rather contradictory personality traits. On the one hand she presents as a giggling, girlish, clunkily garrulous date whilst at the same time in a hostile work environment she is decisive, manipulative, focussed and determined. As likeable as McAdams is I didn't find her split personalities particularly convincing. In fact, her romantic interludes seem an unnecessary distraction from the remainder of the film.

Keaton is well cast as the former beauty queen who turns the breakfast charm on and off at the cue of a director's finger. Ford looked uncomfortable, behaviour which suited his character but made for less successful comedic effect.

From what I have seen in Australian breakfast television programs and those from the USA which screen here on delay this aspect of television is ripe for satirical treatment. 'Morning Glory' seems to work best with those scenes that portray the ridiculous tightrope these programs walk between hard news and 'human interest' items and especially their tendency towards zany stunts. Some of those scenes generated hearty laughs from the audience at the session I attended. The rest was a bit ho hum.