Popcorn Flick Pick: "Working Girl" (1988) ~ Emma Stone in Zombieland

If I had to pick one word to pick to describe this movie, it would be "delightful". From its high spirited opening as we circle around the Statue of Liberty and into the life of a Staten Island secretary, to its finale which makes its moment of true triumph palpably felt - Working Girl is one glowing package of feel good entertainment.

This modern day fairy tale mixes big business with big style in a BIG way. Tess McGil

l (Melanie Griffith) is a feisty, ambitious Staten Island secretary who wants to break out in the business world and show she truly has what it takes. She feels she gets a boost when she becomes secretary to a high powered executive in Mergers and Acquisitions, but for Tess things take a turn for the worse when she discovers that her boss has taken credit for ideas in a way to build her career as she uses tricks, lies, and greed to get what she wants. What could possibly happen from here? Well, lets just say more than your usual 80s trashy comedy and its all thanks to two huge contributions: the script and the direction - both of which turn this little confection into something memorably special.

Kevin Wade's screenplay is fresh, hilarious, and brimming with sparkling wit from first scene to last. His use of comedic stylings both subtle and broad both hit impressive bulls eyes, and even after the ball really gets rolling he never loses the charm and always stays on track. He also has a way of making all of the characters something beyond cardboard cutouts and providing them with different layers

and viewpoints of how the audience perceives them. But of course, making these characters and the story jump to life is in the hands of director Mike Nichols, who, once again, knocks it out the park with flying colors. In the hands of a lesser director this project might have sunk its way into dated oblivion, but with Nichols at the helm magic is sprinkled on the proceedings with amazing results. This is the man who struck a one-two punch with such masterpieces as Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? and The Graduate (both cinematic gems are two of Twister's favorites) and his genius continued on with Working Girl. His direction - focused, elegant, and modest - shows true dedication, and the way he builds the story and characters is a marvel of craftsmanship of the highest form. He provides the narrative with a light, luminous touch which keeps it from shriveling up into something cold or condescending, and he sets the proceedings at a nice, easy pace, and his instinct for comedic precision is spot on. But, Nichols' greatest

achievement is that, even though this film was released twenty-two years ago in 1988, it still "works" by today's standards. In other words, the film has aged beautifully and doesn't feel dated like so many movies from this era do. What I find interesting about Mike Nichols' films is how each, in their own way, are loosely defined in a certain time period but possess a hint of that period while remaining timeless. (For example, this film has whiff of the '80s with the outfits/hair but the concepts and ideas are still relevant. Also with Virginia Woolf? and The Graduate, the taboos were considered groundbreaking and the music is a clear product of the swingin' sixties - yet the ideas and concepts express more understanding now then ever.) Even if they were made in the '60s or '80s, they still feel fresh.

Also another great, and almost essential, aspect of the film is Carly Simon's gospel-like tune Let The River Run. Its what I think of as the ultimate feel-good song and a real motivator - no joke. Its about a land of opportunity (Jerusalem) being compared to the modern New York City and how there is always hope. This is basically Tess' theme song as it connects directly with her rise in the business world. It richly deserved its Best Original Song Oscar.

Something I had seriously missed before was how tasty the acting was in this delicious mix of a film. The performance that I loved when I first saw the film and still do, is Joan Cusack's performance as Cyn. Out of very little she crafts a character who truly elevates the film and is utterly essential for its greatness. Sigourney Weaver's performance has seriously grown on my after repeated viewings and I can appreciate it alot more now than I ever did before. I believe I was observing it in a much more serious tone -- looking for depth and all of those actorly goodies -- and in turn, missed on some real fun. The title of leading lady in this film goes to Melanie Griffith (even though for some reason she was billed third just based off the fact that Ford and Weaver were bigger "names") and at first, I hated her performance. Everything felt off pitched and she didn't tune her performance to the rest of the film well at all. But, I guess its always good to go back and check out actressing again because, like Weaver, I was able to find alot that I did like. She's charming, sexy, luminous, funny and smart all at the same time. Griffith really does convey Tess' intelligence, determination, and desire to move up in the business world of the '80s. Yet, I'm not entirely sure that Griffith's characterization is flawless -- there are moments where she could have pushed and given a little bit more strength when her character needed it most. But she never lets her charm take the reins on her performance; instead, she mixes the charm in with actual acting, which is never a bad thing, right?

Here are some of my favorite scenes/screencaps for the movie: