SYNOPSICS
Switching Channels (1988) is a English movie. Ted Kotcheff has directed this movie. Kathleen Turner,Burt Reynolds,Christopher Reeve,Ned Beatty are the starring of this movie. It was released in 1988. Switching Channels (1988) is considered one of the best Comedy,Crime movie in India and around the world.
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Switching Channels (1988) Reviews
Sooo much better than Broadcast News
This is really worth rediscovering - Turner and co really throw themselves into it and (shock) Reeve sends himself up excellently (particularly good in the 'vertigo in the lift' scene. As revealed elsewhere, it's a remake of The Front Page - in fact right now can't think of a better way to spend a rainy afternoon than a double bill of these two in front of a nice fire :-) So - not going to change your life - but I'll cheer you up.
Very funny
Updating of "The Front Page" to 1988. Star reporter Christy (Kathleen Turner) on the Satellite Network News is burnt out. She takes a vacation and meets big, hunky, rich Blaine (Christopher Reeve) and falls in love (only in movies...). She plans to leave work to marry Blaine, but her ex-husband and boss Sully (Burt Reynolds) is unwilling to let her go and tries to sabotage their plans any way he can. Not as good as 1940s "His Girl Friday" but not as bad as the 1970s "The Front Page"--it really does work. It's quick, loud and never stops moving (especially at the end). It also helps that the entire cast is in full throttle--Turner, Reeve and Reynolds are relaxed, eager and full of energy--they really put across the movie. Turner and Reynolds especially are surprising--who knew they could do comedy? And Reeve kids his goody two-shoes image and his Superman character (he's afraid of heights in this one). Also Ned Beatty has quite a few funny moments as a slimy politician. The updating from the newspaper world to cable TV occasionally doesn't work and there are some really contrived situations here and there but not enough to destroy the movie. Also quite dated--get a look at those HUGE cordless phones! Still I enjoyed this film a lot. A bomb (sadly) in its day--this deserves rediscovery.
Great late 80's comedy
This is my favorite comedy from the 1980's. I really wish this movie was out on DVD but for now I have to settle for my old VHS of it. It is a remake of the old Cary Grant "His Gal Friday" movie from the 1940's. Christopher Reeve, Burt Reynolds & Kathleen Turner play off one another and have great chemistry together. One funny scene has Christopher Reeve in a glass elevator having a panic attack because he has a fear of heights. This movie also stars Chris Reeve's "Superman I & II" co-star Ned Beaty as a crooked politician running for governor. All in all, this a highly fast passed, really funny comedy. I very much recommend renting this from your local video store.
Underrated and overlooked (**REVISED**)
SPOILER This movie should be (but hardly ever is) judged on its own merits as opposed to as a remake of "His Girl Friday" an "The Front Page". It is a fast paced movie full of twists and turns and political satire that I still find hilarious and edgy. Part of what makes it work is that the story takes place at a Chicago-based cable news network. The newspaper, which was regarded as the most up-to-date medium in "The Front Page," is mocked by news anchors as primitive while they check their makeup. Kathleen Turner is Christine Colleran, the tough news anchor with a conscience; Burt Reynolds hilariously plays Sully, her ex-husband/boss who unscrupulously scouts stories while being badgered by the Ted Turner-esque head of the network to put on more "smutless fires". Christopher Reeve plays Christine's one-dimensional yuppie fiance, Blaine Bingham. Henry Gibson makes a surprising turn as the timid Ike Roscoe, who is on death row for killing his son's drug dealer (who happened to be an undercover cop). The story revolves around Roscoe's execution: the gung-ho Attorney General (Ned Beatty) wants Roscoe executed so he can win the upcoming Governor's election. The Governor (a Reagan-esque Charles Kimbrough) wants to pardon Roscoe so he can win the election. TV reporters are scrambling like rats around a carcass looking for a hot (and preferably exclusive) scoop. The only people who seem concerned for Roscoe himself are Christine and Roscoe's attorney girlfriend, Pamela, derisively referred to as "the conscience of America." Meanwhile, Sully is trying to stop Christine from quitting the news business so she can live with Blaine in New York. First, Sully has his interns book all New York-bound flights leaving within the next 24 hours. Then he has Blaine subjected to strip searches and sends the acrophobic Blaine to a skyscraper with a glass elevator. Then Sully tries one last tactic to seduce Christine back into the news business, and subsequently back into his life: to have her do one last interview with Ike Roscoe. It would bring in monster ratings, and oh yeah, it might get the guy pardoned or whatever. And if you're looking for a history lesson, watch Christine talking to Blaine on her "cell phone."
Nice Updating of the Front Page
I thought the updating of the Front Page to the electronic era was surprisingly relevant and poignant. Henry Gibson is a standout in an excellent cast. The laughs and stories are updated for modern audiences and lose surprisingly little in the translation. The chemistry between Reynolds and Turner is pretty hot. All in all quite entertaining.