Criterion’s Best Picture Oscar Nominees
February 22, 2012
Film Info
- United States
- 1987
- 132 minutes
- Color
- 1.85:1
- English
- Spine #552
Since the 1970s, the name James L. Brooks has been synonymous with intelligent television comedy—his shows are insightful about work and love and always plugged in to the zeitgeist. He is also a master storyteller of the big screen, and none of his films was more quintessentially Brooks than Broadcast News. This caustic look inside the Washington news media stars Holly Hunter, in her breakout role, as a feisty television producer torn between an ambitious yet dim anchorman (William Hurt) and her closest confidant, a cynical veteran reporter (Albert Brooks). Brooks’s witty, gently prophetic film is a captivating transmission from an era in which ideas on relationships and the media were rapidly changing.
Cast
| Tom Grunick | William Hurt |
| Aaron Altman | Albert Brooks |
| Jane Craig | Holly Hunter |
| Ernie Merriman | Robert Prosky |
| Jennifer Mack | Lois Chiles |
| Blair Litton | Joan Cusack |
| Paul Moore | Peter Hackes |
Credits
| Director | James L. Brooks |
| Written and produced by | James L. Brooks |
| Executive producer | Polly Platt |
| Coproducer | Penney Finkelman Cox |
| Director of photography | Michael Ballhaus |
| Production design | Charles Rosen |
| Editor | Richard Marks |
| Casting | Ellen Chenoweth |
| Music | Bill Conti |
| Associate producers | Kristi Zea and Susan Zirinisky |
| Costume designer | Molly Maginnis |
Disc Features
DIRECTOR-APPROVED SPECIAL EDITION
- New, restored high-definition digital transfer, supervised and approved by director James L. Brooks and editor Richard Marks (with DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack on the Blu-ray edition)
- New audio commentary featuring Brooks and Marks
- James L. Brooks—A Singular Voice,a new documentary on Brooks’s career in television and film, featuring actresses Marilu Henner and Julie Kavner, among other collaborators
- Alternate ending and deleted scenes, with commentary by Brooks
- New video interview with veteran CBS news producer Susan Zirinsky, one of the models for actress Holly Hunter’s character and an associate producer on the film
- Featurette containing on-set footage and interviews with Brooks, Hunter, and actor Albert Brooks
- Original theatrical trailer
- PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by film critic Carrie Rickey
Current Posts
Photo Galleries
Film Essays
Broadcast News: Lines and Deadlines
By January 24, 2011
A character-driven tale of driven characters whose professional triangle trumps their . . . Read more »
Film Essays
Broadcast News: Lines and Deadlines
By January 24, 2011
A character-driven tale of driven characters whose professional triangle trumps their . . . Read more »
Photo Galleries
Press Notes
Press Notes: Broadcast News
January 31, 2011
When’s the last time you saw Broadcast News? The critics have just filed their stories on our . . . Read more »
Film Essays
Broadcast News: Lines and Deadlines
By January 24, 2011
A character-driven tale of driven characters whose professional triangle trumps their . . . Read more »
