Hard-edged news reporter Warren Justice (Robert Redford) says to his protegee reporter (Michelle Pfeiffer), "Every day we have, is one more than we deserve." True--so don't waste time on this pseudo-feminist Cinderella story. Jon Avnet's Up Close & Personal may follow the rise of a woman to media stardom, but Pfeiffer's character is still a man-made creation. Justice picks out her clothes, changes her name, tells her what to say, and saves her when she falls apart. Disgusting subtext aside, the film has a sappy script, underdeveloped characters, and poor performances. Redford and Pfeiffer have no sexual chemistry whatsoever; in fact, the only thing worse than their love scenes is watching Pfeiffer screech the words to "The Impossible Dream" in a football field. Not recommended. (L. Russo)
Up Close & Personal
(Touchstone, 124 min., PG-13, avail. Sept. 10) Vol. 11, Issue 5
Up Close & Personal
Star Ratings
As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
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