Up Close & Personal

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Matthew D Michelle Pfeiffer is adorable and sympathetic as a reporter hopeful to be taken seriously. Director Jon Avnet’s romance drama Up Close & Personal (1996) is very cute and compelling. Avnet’s direction cares for his characters, so we’re always following their feelings. Writers Joan Didion and John Gregory Dunne show us how stories are picked at this news station, how their careers develop, besides how a relationship develops. You see how awful, selfish, opinionated, jealous, and cutthroat the news station types can be in their day to day lives. Celine Dion’s theme song “Because You Loved Me” really captures the romance and tenderness herein. Casting director David Rubin cast a neat ensemble for these hectic newsrooms. Michelle Pfeiffer is wonderful and touching as the young reporter Tally Atwater, who changes her personality, hair, and even her name to try to appeal to people as a real face on the news. Pfeiffer feels so natural, sorrowful, and passionate in her acting that I felt real empathy for her. Everyone is so awful to her and she keeps being brave. She has to stutter, be nervous, get insulted with a brave face, find herself, defend her opinions, and be affectionate with her lover. She has romantic chemistry with Robert Redford. Robert Redford is interesting as the very uptight and tough news station boss Warren Justice, who softens up as he mentors Tally, while falling in love with her. Redford feels harsher and more blunt than his usual charming characters. He’s not very likable, but a realistic depiction of a cutthroat news organizer. Stockard Channing is so mean as the jealous reporter Marcia McGrath. It’s fun once Pfeiffer replaces Channing. Joe Mantegna is good as Bucky Terranova, who hires new news people. Kate Nelligan is great as Redford’s snarky ex-wife Joanna Kennelly, who runs another news agency. Glenn Plummer is so nice as Pfeiffer’s cameraman Ned Jackson, who helps her out when she’s starting out. James Rebhorn is compelling as Pfeiffer’s boss John Merino, who gives her a chance to be her own reporter on her own program. Raymond Cruz is fierce as criminal Fernando Buttanda. Dedee Pfeiffer gets a nice role as Pfeiffer’s abused sister Luanne Atwater. Miguel Sandoval is tough as Redford’s disgruntled boss Dan Duarte. Noble Willingham is amusing in his cameo as network boss Buford Sells. Editor Debra Neil-Fisher’s slick cuts and cinematographer Karl Walter Lindenlaub’s captivating close-ups keep us focused on the characters. The moody lighting is romantic like composer Thomas Newman’s gentle film score. Albert Wolsky’s costumes for Michelle Pfeiffer are very pretty like Fern Buchner, Ronnie Specter, Gary Liddiard, and Alex Proctor’s makeup work. Hairstylists Alan D'Angerio, Peter Owen, Bunny Parker, and Jasen Joseph Sica do long blonde hair and a sweet brunette look for Michelle Pfeiffer for her heroine’s different appearances. Overall, Up Close & Personal is an enthralling look into newsrooms, but mostly a nice romance between Michelle Pfeiffer and Robert Redford. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 11/07/25 Full Review Ed . Perfectly acceptable TV movie. Problem is that this isn't a TV movie, but a sanitized project that made its muse, Jessica Savitch, seem dull. Imagine a dramatic biographically based film leave out illicit drug use, narcissism, abusive relationships, toxic insecurity and alleged bisexuality in exchange for banality. How is it possible that Joan Didion wrote this tallywacker? Rated 2/5 Stars •  Rated 2 out of 5 stars 08/29/25 Full Review RICHARD S One of Redford's last fairly believable romantic leads, his fans will enjoy this. Pfeiffer never looked more beautiful, but her role as an aspiring TV journalist unbelievable for it's lack of even a hint of humility as the story begins, since she has absolutely no credentials. Except for her ravishing beauty, it's hard to see why Redford thinks she has any potential at all. But a nice love story kind of patterned on A Star is Born. Channing's role is quite small and contributes little to the story. But, overall, a nice romantic yarn for a Saturday evening for the Redford-Pfeiffer fans out there. Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 10/03/24 Full Review Steve D The cast is good. The film is not. Rated 2/5 Stars •  Rated 2 out of 5 stars 02/15/23 Full Review Brynn H An exceptional movie, the likes of which we just don't see anymore. The chemistry between Pfeiffer and Redford is unmatched. It's a must-see for those who love a good romance or have interest in journalism. A great movie makes you think and feel and this movie does both so well. The moment when Tally is watching the television screen as her life is forever changed is one that moves me more than almost any other movie I've see . I'll rewatch this movie for years to come, remembering these two incredible actors and a time when films were very special. Rated 5/5 Stars •  Rated 5 out of 5 stars 09/21/22 Full Review lanfranco c A very conventional movie. Nothing new about the press. Rated 1.5/5 Stars •  Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 03/30/23 Full Review Read all reviews

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