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William Hurt, Albert Brooks, Holly Hunter, Robert Prosky, Lois Chiles ... see more see more... , Joan Cusack , Jack Nicholson , Peter Hackes , Christian Clemenson , Robert Katims , Ed Wheeler , Nat Benchley , Jonathan Benya , Joshua Billings , Amy Brooks , Leo Burmeister , John Cusack , Frank Doubleday , Marita Geraghty , Gennie James , Dwayne Markee , Stephen Mendillo , Stuart Pankin , Kimber Shoop , Martha Smith , Steve Smith , Robert Walsh , Jane Welch , Marc Shaiman , Raoul Rizik , John Badila , Luis Valderrama , Ellen Chenoweth , Maura Moynihan , Richard Thomsen , David Long

Writer/director/producer James L. Brooks scores on all counts with this clear-eyed look at the television news business and the dysfunctional types who work in it. Brooks' intelligent script introduce... read more read more...s us to Jane Craig (Holly Hunter), an ambitious producer at the network news division's Washington D.C. branch, who is calm under fire yet has a good cry at her desk every morning over her empty personal life. Jane works well with Aaron Altman (Albert Brooks), an excellent reporter who lacks the visual charisma to make him a star. Into their lives comes Tom Grunick (William Hurt), a regional newscaster who admits he can't write news and doesn't understand many of the events he's covering, but has the presence and physical appeal that the increasingly entertainment-oriented network wants for its news programs. Jane is also physically attracted to him, which drives her crazy, because Grunick stands for everything she's fighting against in the news business, while Altman is devastated by her attraction because he secretly yearns for Jane. As Grunick becomes a rising star at the network, and layoffs of the old guard loom, the three leads deal with their feelings for each other, their careers, and their values. Hunter, Hurt, and Brooks are all superb, as is the excellent supporting cast (including an unbilled turn by Jack Nicholson as the network's smarmy national anchor). Brooks' script is funny, poignant, gritty, and brutally honest in its examinations of the television industry and the ways in which professionals interact on and off the job. ~ Don Kaye, Rovi

Flixster Users

73% liked it

9,277 ratings

Critics

98% liked it

41 critics

R, 2 hr. 12 min.

Directed by: James L. Brooks

Release Date: December 16, 1987

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DVD Release Date: October 5, 1999

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Stats: 583 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (583)

  • Chiefilms
    October 1, 2011
    Chiefilms
    Network in the 80's without the RAGE!
  • danperry17
    June 27, 2011
    danperry17
    A solid but imperfect love triangle set amidst the ever-declining journalistic standard of info-tainment, Broadcast News rides an excellent performance by Holly Hunter the whole way through. Her charcter, Jane, is a spunky and viciously talented editor in the newsroom, for whom n... read moreothing but the best will do - but when the dim, pretty-boy anchorman Tom (William Hurt) turns up, she can't resist him. Even if he hasn't a fraction of the ethics of her long-time friend and sometime lover, Aaron, who's made into the ideal loveable loser by Albert Brooks. By times funny, deadly serious, and romantic, Broadcast News is a great film, but as with other James L. Brooks films I've seen, it's a little schmaltzy, and it runs on too long. The movie ended three times before it ended. Great performance by a great cast, however, with Jack Nicholson and a wonderfully 80s "big-haired" Joan Cusack in supporting roles. A fine film that's valuable as much for the point it makes as it is for the story it tells. If you're a fan of Neil Postman's books, this film is one of your favourites.

    (Side note: in some shots, I thought Hunter and Hurt looked like Zooey Deschanel and Aaron Eckhart. Remake, anyone?)
  • jennifxu
    April 30, 2011
    jennifxu
    I adore Broadcast News, though it did go on a little too long. But there's so much about it that I love: Holly Hunters sweet little Southern accent, the love triangle, Joan Cusack's breathless trip into the newsroom, the implicit, tense competition between all of them. It's enoug... read moreh to make one want to go into the broadcast biz.
  • DrZeek
    February 15, 2011
    DrZeek
    Aaron Altman: If anything happens to me, you tell every woman I've ever gone out with I was talking about her at the end. That way they'll have to reevaluate me.

    I don't like to add my own baggage to these reviews, as it's generally all about the movies for me, but I have to sa... read morey something about this seemingly random review. Lately I've been busier with other aspects of this movie biz, but I managed to obtain the Criterion Collection Blu-Ray of Broadcast News, and not having seen it in a very long time, I can easily say that this is a fantastic movie that deserves to be revisited. It has been harder for me to be able to review everything I see due to time, but this movie deserves some extra attention, as it is brilliantly written and acted.

    Holly Hunter, Albert Brooks, and William Hurt star in this smartly written romantic comedy about a basket case, a pretty boy, and a nervous talent who all work for a news station in Washington. Hunter plays Jane Craig, the news producer who is amazing at her job, but also needs to desperately work on having her work habits restrain themselves when trying to deal with her relationships. William Hurt plays Tom Grunnick, a new network anchor who has a pretty face, but doesn't have the intelligence to back it up, a quality he is very aware of. Finally, Albert Brooks plays Aaron Altman, a true talent who unfortunately doesn't have the presence for being an anchor. There is not much of a big story that involves the actual news room, beyond a few scenes concerning some big stories. Instead, the film focuses on the relationships between these characters. Jane and Tom go through the motions of liking each other, but Jane has problems with Tom's representation of entertainment news taking stage over substance. Tom is interested in Jane, but also intimidated by her. Aaron has a warm relationship with Jane, but is also secretly in love with her; he also despises Tom and all he represents.

    Paul Moore: It must be nice to always believe you know better, to always think you're the smartest person in the room.
    Jane Craig: No. It's awful.

    Read more at thecodeiszeek.blogspot.com
  • ajv2688
    February 4, 2011
    ajv2688
    I barely remember this movie, I saw it a long while ago on TV, and probably didn't watch the whole thing. So, I'll just say I want to re-watch this one.
  • stevenecarrier
    February 3, 2011
    stevenecarrier
    James L. Brooks' "Broadcast News" is a cultural touchstone for the 1980s. It perfectly captures what the media, and it's cohorts, were like in that decade. Sure, it's wrapped up in Brooks' signature blend of real life romantic comedy and drama, which some may scoff at, but for me... read more, it enhances the picture and it's themes. You also get a trio of first rate performances from Holly Hunter (in one her greatest roles), William Hurt and Albert Brooks. The film may be as chaotic and emotional as it's three leads, but it's also zippy, witty and real. "Broadcast News" is just one example out of many that proves that James L. Brooks is the master.
  • TomBowler
    November 28, 2010
    TomBowler
    You're not gonna find a film much closer to perfection than this. Full review later.
  • movieguru12
    June 16, 2010
    movieguru12
    A pretty good movie but in my opinion I thought that it could of been better.
  • bottcorecords1
    April 2, 2010
    bottcorecords1
    If Broadcast News had been made in the forties, William Hurt's role would've been played by Gary Cooper and Holly Hunter's role would've been played by Barbara Stanwyck, and of course the whole thing would've ended alot differently. Written, produced, and directed by James L. Br... read moreooks, "Broadcast News" plays like a classic hollywood film filtered through the angry perspective of one who was picked on alot by good-looking jocks in school. Jane Craig (Holly Hunter) has to choose between her heart and her intellect, that is, until a big twist at the end torpedoes any dilemma she had and cheats her (and us) out of having to make an unbiased decision. It's odd, and not to get into revealing too many spoilers, but she seems to have no problem forgiving Aaron (Albert Brooks) for being a rotten person but finds Tom's (William Hurt) lack of ethics (in an area he has no emotion invested in to begin with) to be unforgiveable. Tom told her time and again he really wasn't cut out for journalism and that it was just a job for him, something that he lucked into. It's an unsatisfying ending and seems out of character for Hurt's character. Or does it? In the beginning, we see Hurt even as a child is a natural born salesman, conning his dad out of doling out punishment when he brings home a bad report card. Tom recognizes his good looks are a tool to use in getting ahead. Brooks' character is the opposite, he hates the jocks and bullies that tortured him in high school, but never leaves that teenage mentality behind, never matures. He carries that bitter grudge throughout adulthood and seeks to strike back at those who are similar to his tormentors. Things are an absolute moral black and white with him, but only HIS morals and values count, everyone else is either a fraud or "evil". Jane makes a career out of obsessively managing her life down to telling the taxi drivers which route to take during the day. She starts everyday weeping, weeping under the pressure she puts upon herself. These three characters are really well written and they make up a unique and interesting love triangle. True, there is a moral dilemma at the end that feels sort of wrong, but that's just to distract you from the moral dilemma that's been taking place throughout the entire movie.
  • garyX
    July 14, 2007
    garyX
    This film is apparently critically acclaimed. I found it unbelievably bland and middle of the road. If you are going to do satire, don't pull your punches or it's a waste of time.

View All Broadcast News Reviews

Critic Reviews

Richard Corliss
February 2, 2009
Richard Corliss, TIME Magazine

All the performers are tops. Full Review

Variety Staff
April 1, 2008
Variety Staff, Variety

Enormously entertaining. Full Review

Jonathan Rosenbaum
April 1, 2008
Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader

One of the best entertainments of 1987. Full Review

Vincent Canby
May 20, 2003
Vincent Canby, New York Times

The movie is a sarcastic and carefully detailed picture of a world Mr. Brooks finds fascinating and also a little scary. Full Review

Roger Ebert
January 1, 2000
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

Broadcast News has a lot of interesting things to say about television. But the thing it does best is look into a certain kind of personality and a certain kind of relationship. Full Review

Hal Hinson
January 1, 2000
Hal Hinson, Washington Post

The film is so ingratiatingly high-spirited, and the performances so full of sass and vigor, that in the long run it doesn't really matter much. Full Review

Desson Thomson
January 1, 2000
Desson Thomson, Washington Post

Brooks' observations are as keen as Woody Allen's but without the neurotic narcissism. Full Review

Christopher Long
February 26, 2011
Christopher Long, Movie Metropolis

(The) endlessly quotable writing... keeps the film fresh as Tom, Aaron and Jane carom off each other at ever-more oblique angles. Full Review

James Kendrick
February 6, 2011
James Kendrick, Q Network Film Desk

The human element is just as prescient as it was then, while the characters' romantic/professional entanglements now have the added poignancy of the past tense. Full Review

Peter Canavese
January 17, 2011
Peter Canavese, Groucho Reviews

By looking at the small-screen picture...[Brooks] provocatively suggests that America's socio-political problems are pretty much the same as the personal problems of its citizens. [Blu-ray] Full Review

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Facts

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    • Young Tom: What can you do with your life if all you can do is look good?
    • Aaron Altman: I know you care about him. I've never seen you like this about anyone, so please don't take it wrong when I tell you that I believe that Tom, while a very nice guy, is the Devil.
    • Jane Craig: I-I can't help you. Sorry, I'm not here to teach remedial reporting.
    • Jane Craig: Just what do you want from me anyway, permission to be a fake? Stop whining.
    • Aaron Altman: I'll meet you at the place near the thing where we went that time.
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Broadcast News : Watch Free on TV

Broadcast News Trivia

  • What Movie is this Plot Line from? "This movie is about a TV news producer and her love life."   Answer »
  • In "Broadcast News", how does Albert Brooks' character openly describe William Hurt's character?  Answer »
  • In the Night at The Museum, what group of 3 were on the rooftop of the museum in the news broadcast?  Answer »
  • Broadcast News (1987)- Jack Nicholson was niether credited nor paid for his role, at his own request. He didn't want to distract from the leads.   Answer »
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