The picture starts to fall in love with its subject -- head- over-heels in love, until the acid drains from the wit and there's nothing left but sentimental ooze.
The Paper (1994)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:30
Fresh:26
Rotten:4
Average Rating:6.7/10
Runtime: 1 hr 52 mins
Genre: Dramas
Synopsis: Ron Howard directed this lightning-paced, high-energy drama following one day in the life of Henry Hackett (Michael Keaton), a frantic metro editor for a fictitious New York tabloid. While... Ron Howard directed this lightning-paced, high-energy drama following one day in the life of Henry Hackett (Michael Keaton), a frantic metro editor for a fictitious New York tabloid. While investigating the apparently race-related killing of two white businessmen found murdered in their car, Hackett discovers a conspiracy by the police involving the falsely arrested black youths. With the help of his very pregnant wife, Martha (Marisa Tomei), he scoops the competition by uncovering a connection to the mob. But his editor, the acerbic penny-counting Alicia (Glenn Close), questions the validity of his findings and refuses to print the story. Curmudgeonly managing editor Bernie White (Robert Duvall) tries to stop his two editors from fighting while losing a battle for his own health. THE PAPER features a terrific supporting cast, including Jason Robards as the paper's publisher, Randy Quaid as a paranoid columnist, Jason Alexander as a corrupt politician, and Spalding Gray as a New York Times-type editor. However, the movie belongs to Keaton himself, as an ambitious, harried reporter in search of the big story. Two brothers--screenwriter David Koepp and Time magazine editor Stephen Koepp, collaborated on the screenplay. To lend realism to the film, Howard rounded up a large group of media figures to make cameos, including Kurt Loder, Pete Hamill, Bob Costas, Richard Price, William Kunstler, Jane Hanson, E. Graydon Carter, and others. [More]
Starring: Michael Keaton, Glenn Close, Marisa Tomei, Randy Quaid
Starring: Michael Keaton, Glenn Close, Marisa Tomei, Randy Quaid, Robert Duvall, Jason Robards, Jason Alexander, Catherine O'Hara, Lynne Thigpen
Director: Ron Howard
Director: Ron Howard
Reviews for The Paper
It's all slick, fizzy fun. But the film's fighting spirit gets snatched.
The characterizations, the eccentricities, the feverish sense of pursuing a deadline story and an awful lot of other particulars that show just how defiantly dedicated and frenetically frenzied the members of the fourth estate can be, are dead on.
A film that should be recommended as skillfully done example of almost forgotten dramatic subgenre.
A crowd pleaser, and, regardless of any viewer's experience (or lack thereof) with the behind-the-scenes wrangling that goes on in newspaper offices, the story is affable and entertaining.
Entertaining, extremely informative, rapidly-paced film that literally puts you on the front lines with the cast and crew who fabricate the news stories which we read in our newspapers every day.
Thanks to a caffeinated cast and hyperactive script, director Ron Howard delivers The Paper with a bang.
Watching The Paper got me in touch all over again with how good it feels to work at the top of your form, on a story you believe in, on deadline.
It's a bit too busy and precocious for its own good, but still has enough of a charming throwback quality that I was willing to forgive many of its flaws.
I think the movie ultimately is not a comedy -- although it is extremely funny. This is a first rate drama.
Latest News for The Paper
March 07, 2006:
Spielberg Puts Koepp to Work on "Indy 4"
During his Oscar coverage, Fox's Roger Friedman got to share a few words with director Steven Spielberg, and the bullet points seem to be these: 1) the filmmaker wants to take... More...
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