MORNING GLORY REVIEW

A movie about erections! You know the ones that happen in the morning? Oh hang on…Harrison Ford hasn’t exactly being the king of comedies, but his performance as Mike Pomeroy shows Han Solo to be really enjoying himself!

I’m not sure how a movie about a flailing morning TV show translates to Irish audiences, even if it has Harrison Ford, Diane Keaton and Rachel McAdams attached to it.  And it doesn’t if the showing I attended last night is anything to go by. Yours truly and one other couple seated a few rows behind me in the entire cinema, and by Jesus did the three of us laugh. Morning Glory is a small film (made for just under $10 mill) with a fairly enlarged heart.

The story follows Becky Fuller (McAdams) who gets a big break via Jerry Barnes (Jeff Goldblum). Fuller is the new associate producer at a disastrous morning show at IBS. Her first meeting see’s her fire the creepy show anchor and in turn has to find herself and the show a replacement…and fast. Enter Mike Pomeroy (Ford), a seasoned broadcaster of 40 years and lets just say he's as grumpy as a bear that couldn’t find a rabbit. Due to a clause in his mammoth contract he has no option but to do the show and more or less spends his time moaning and refusing to do anything on the show, as its a morning show and not a proper “news” show. With plummeting ratings, Becky must turn things around within 6 weeks. Can she get Pomeroy to do the light hearted stuff, can she save the show from cancellation?

Sure, while it sounds cheesy and predictable, Morning Glory is quite the opposite. There’s a bit more here than just hitting the marks as the story has a clever feel about it. McAdams is entirely convincing as a producer and genuinely has great chemistry with her 2 on screen counterparts. She’s the driving force in the movie and his a great and varied performance. Diana Keaton looks like she had alot of fun here, playing the insecure, pap smearing, equally egotistical Colleen Peck. Her strops and bitchy remarks are delivered brilliantly. And speaking of brilliance, Harrison Ford seems far to comfortable being a grumpy old man! I don’t think he broke  a sweat here, but his performance is very funny at times and very natural. He does bring the funny!

Speaking of funny, once it gets going, Morning Glory brings a number of laugh out loud moments and will certainly induce a few smiles as well. This is just a step above what this could have been and that’s a good thing. It could have very easily transcended into a big steaming pile of shite, but it doesn’t.While it might be more suited to the small screen than the big screen, this movie resonated with me and even provided a bit of mental clarity on something personal. Overall I found Morning Glory entertaining, funny and above all, very sweet and touching.

Director: Roger Michell
Starring: Harrison Ford, Rachel McAdams, Diane Keaton
Running Time: 107 minutes
Certificate: 12 (IRE) PG-13 (US) 12A (UK)
Released: Jan 21 (IRE)