Working Girl (1988)

User Rating:

6.5/10   

Director:

Mike Nichols

Writer (WGA):

Kevin Wade (written by)

Release Date:

21 December 1988 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Romance | Drama

Tagline:

For anyone who's ever won. For anyone who's ever lost. And for everyone who's still in there trying.

Plot:

When a secretary's idea is stolen by her boss, she seizes an opportunity to steal it back by pretending she has her boss's job.

Plot Keywords:

Helicopter | Upward Mobility | Cinderella Story | Share Bed | Confidence

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 6 wins & 13 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Sat. Oct. 25

3:30 PM

AETV

Cast

Harrison Ford	...	Jack Trainer
Sigourney Weaver	...	Katharine Parker
Melanie Griffith	...	Tess McGill
Alec Baldwin	...	Mick Dugan
Joan Cusack	...	Cyn
Philip Bosco	...	Oren Trask
Nora Dunn	...	Ginny
Oliver Platt	...	Lutz
James Lally	...	Turkel
Kevin Spacey	...	Bob Speck
Robert Easton	...	Armbrister
Olympia Dukakis	...	Personnel Director
Amy Aquino	...	Alice Baxter
Jeffrey Nordling	...	Tim Rourke
Elizabeth Whitcraft	...	Doreen DiMucci

Runtime:

113 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Portugal:M/12 | Canada:14+ (Ontario) | Iceland:L | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Chile:14 | Finland:S | France:U | Peru:14 | Singapore:NC-16 | Sweden:Btl | UK:15 | USA:R | West Germany:12

Filming Locations:

7 World Trade Center, World Trade Center, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Trivia:

"Let the River Run", Carly Simon's award winning theme song, was originally titled "Wall Street Hymn".

Goofs:

Continuity: Katherine tells Tess the combination to her house alarm is 75432000 but when we see Tess turning the alarm off before entering the house she only presses six buttons.

Quotes:

[Looking through Katherine Parker's wardrobe]
Cynthia: Six thousand dollars? It's not even leather!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Ten (2007)

Soundtrack:

I'M SO EXCITED

Bright, feel-good comedy...

I've been watching this movie every now and again for almost 20 years (ye gads!), and it's always entertaining. Tonight, I noticed how effective and subtle an actress Melanie Griffith can be when she's directed well. She's a real jewel in this film. Sweet, sexy, smart with a "brain for business and a bod for sin". Mike Nichols clearly loved filming her. Her expressions are priceless. Watch for the wonderful scene when Harrison Ford and she are walking to the elevator and he's asking her out. That face of hers as the elevator doors close is just heavenly. That's Mike Nichols craft/artistry.

Sigourney Weaver also does a masterful job as a two-faced shark business woman. What's so wonderful about her character, the writing, is that Katherine doesn't have a conscience. She's crafty and slick and manipulative, but she's not out to hurt anyone, just put herself first. It's too bad if anyone get's in her way. She's not nasty, but there is no question that she is the most important person in the universe. It's interesting, too, how her duplicity is reflected in her wardrobe. Most of the professional women in the movie are dressed in ultra-conservative boxy business attire, but Katherine/Sigourney dresses sophisticatedly and elegantly. She knows how to play both sides, the professional yet still sexy professional. She's so powerful in herself that she doesn't feel like she has to dress like a man just because she's in a male- dominated career (mergers/acquisitions). yes, she's a monster/ogre, but as she states, "This is BUSINESS".

Harrison Ford is his usual witty, slightly befuddled nice guy. He's the James Stewart of the baby boomer generation.

Joan Cusack is a phenomenon with her iridescent eye-shadow and Bozo hairdo. I think has the funniest line in the movie-a warning to Tess: "You know, sometimes I sing and dance around the apartment in my underwear. Doesn't make me Madonna....never will". that's rich.

Look for Ricki Lake at the wedding.

I put this movie in the same category as Moonstruck, Educating Rita, Shirley Valentine. Transformation movies. I suppose you could call them modern day Cinderella Stories, but it's more about the women saving themselves as opposed to waiting for Prince Charming.

It's a pleasure to see this movie. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.