Switching Channels **** (1988, Kathleen Turner, Burt Reynolds, Christopher Reeve, Ned Beatty, Henry Gibson) – Classic Movie Review 6932

Switching Channels (1988) is none other than Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur’s 1928 Broadway newspapers comedy melodrama The Front Page spruced up for the satellite era, with the newspaper reporters of the original play updated to television reporters and none of the original dialogue retained.

It comes complete with three excellently cast and on-form stars: Kathleen Turner as the cocky top star TV reporter Christy to quit the news business, Burt Reynolds as her canny boss and ex-husband Sully, the producer of a cable news network programme, and Christopher Reeve as her fiancé, Blaine, a sporting goods maker.

The lady wants to retire to wed socialite Blaine but Sully plots elaborate schemes to stop her. His chance comes when an innocent man is about to be executed.

It is cheeky, perhaps, to re-film a play that already has already has three superb versions (the 1931 The Front Page directed by Lewis Milestone, the 1940 His Girl Friday by Howard Hawks and the 1974 The Front Page by Billy Wilder), but it is different from all those and funny enough to be a welcome addition. If you include the four TV remakes, this is actually the eighth version of The Front Page.

Turner is a confident hand at comedy, it is rewarding to see Reynolds in a decent role, and fun to see the movies Superman suffering with a vertigo problem. It is also helpful that there is amusing support from Ned Beatty (as Roy Ridnitz), without whom no Reynolds film seems to be complete, and from creepy Henry Gibson as Ike Roscoe, the man facing the electric chair.

Switching Channels (1988) is an excellent, underrated movie that was undeservedly a box-office flop. It cost $18 million and grossed only $9 million in the US.

Also in the cast are George Newbern, Ken James, Joe Silver, Al Waxman, Barry Flatman, Ted Simonett, Anthony Sherwood, Charles Kimbrough, Monica Parker and Allan Royal.

Switching Channels is directed by Ted Kotcheff, runs 105 minutes, is produced by TriStar Pictures and Switching Channels Inc, is released by TriStar Pictures (US) and Rank Film Distributors (UK), is written by Jonathan Reynolds, is shot by Francois Protat, is produced by Martin Ransohoff, and is scored by Michel Legrand.

Switching Channels follows His Girl Friday in changing the male lead Hildebrand ‘Hildy’ Johnson to females (Hildegaard ‘Hildy’ Johnson and Christy Colleran respectively).

In March 2018, the 82-year-old Reynolds said his advice to his his younger self would be: ‘Don’t work with Kathleen Turner’, his allegedly prickly leading lady in Switching Channels. Allegedly, there was harsh infighting between Reynolds and Turner during filming. Reynolds also opined the most overrated actor in the Seventies and Eighties was Kathleen Turner. What’s that all about, then?

The Front Page first edition 1928.

The 1928 hit Broadway comedy The Front Page was based in part on MacArthur’s experiences at the City News Bureau of Chicago.

A Broadway revival opened at the Broadhurst Theatre on 20 September 2016, with Nathan Lane as Walter Burns, John Slattery as Hildy Johnson, and John Goodman as Sheriff Hartman.

© Derek Winnert 2018 Classic Movie Review 6932

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