Between the Lines (1977 film)

Last updated

Between the Lines
Between the Lines film.jpg
Theatrical release poster by Richard Amsel
Directed by Joan Micklin Silver
Written byFred Barron
David M. Helpern Jr.
Produced byRaphael D. Silver
Starring John Heard
Lindsay Crouse
Jeff Goldblum
Gwen Welles
Bruno Kirby
Stephen Collins
Joe Morton
Marilu Henner
Richard Cox
Michael J. Pollard
Lane Smith
Raymond J. Barry
Guy Boyd
Charles Levin
CinematographyKenneth Van Sickle
Edited by John Carter
Music by Michael Kamen
Steve Van Zandt
Distributed byMidwest Films
Release date
  • April 27, 1977 (1977-04-27)
Running time
101 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Between the Lines is a 1977 American ensemble romantic comedy-drama film [1] from Midwest Films. It was directed by Joan Micklin Silver [2] and produced by her husband Raphael D. Silver. [1] The film was nominated for three awards at the 27th Berlin International Film Festival, winning two of them. [3] [4] For her work as director, Micklin Silver was awarded the New Generation Award at the 1977 Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards. [5]

Contents

Plot

The film revolves around a team employed at The Back Bay Mainline, an alternative newspaper in Boston, [6] as they face the threat of a takeover by a major corporation. The key figures in this story include Harry Lucas, a disenchanted lead reporter with an on-and-off again girlfriend Abbie, Max, a flaky music critic, Michael, a writer/author intending to relocate to New York, David, an eager cub reporter, and Frank, a beleaguered editor-in-chief. [7]

Various subplots unfold throughout the narrative. For instance, Laura grapples with her relationship with self-absorbed Michael, who plans to move to New York using the proceeds from an upcoming book. A party celebration leads to Laura spending the night at Harry's house before Michael arrives for a confrontation. Ultimately, Laura decides to accompany Michael to New York.

David, a youthful reporter who commutes on a bike, seeks a significant and potentially risky story. Max, Harry, and Abbie attempt to intercept him as he meets a source, arriving just in time to witness David getting a bloody nose.

Throughout the film, rumors circulate about the newspaper's acquisition by a corporation, specifically a communications empire. Towards the end, it is revealed that a group led by Roy Walsh intends to purchase and manage the paper. In a meeting, Walsh asks Frank to dismiss Harry, branding him a "moving force in the wrong direction." Lynn, the secretary, is the first to resign.

In response to his termination, Harry walks to Walsh's office and shoots him with a suction cup dart toy pistol.

Cast

Production

Fred Barron, who had written for both The Phoenix and The Real Paper , used his and Harper Barnes' [15] alternative newspaper experiences as the basis for his Between the Lines screenplay. Joan Micklin Silver had herself worked for The Village Voice . [16] Doug Kenney, co-founder of the National Lampoon, has a cameo role.

It was largely filmed on location in Boston for two weeks, [1] with locations including pawn shops, record stores, bars, porn theaters, strip clubs, and derelict apartments. [17] The remainder of filming was done in New York City, though no scenes are set in New York. [1]

The film marked he screen debuts of John Heard, Joe Morton, and Marilu Henner. [17] Robert Costanzo makes a brief appearance as a hired goon, his second film role.

The Real Paper , Boston Phoenix Los Angeles Free Press , SoHo Weekly News , and the Village Voice are thanked in the end credits. [18]

The success of the film led to a unsold 1980 TV sitcom pilot, with Sandy Helberg, Adam Arkin, Gino Conforti, and Kristoffer Tabori, also titled Between the Lines. [19]

Reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes , 94% of 18 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 7.2/10. [20]

The film received positive reviews at the time of its release. [21] Gary Arnold of The Washington Post wrote, "Joan Micklin Silver's second feature, Between the Lines, an episodic romantic comedy about the staff members of the Back Bay Mainline, a prospering "underground" weekly in Boston, is the most likable and encouraging American movie to be release so far this year." [22]

Over time, the film has come to be regarded as an accurate depiction of the alternative newspaper era. [18] [23] [24] [25] Writing of the film's restoration in 2019, Matthew Monagle of Film School Rejects said:

What makes Between the Lines such a timely film even decades later is its depiction of the diminishing space offered journalism in a world of corporate takeovers. Pages of copy are cut to make way for more advertisements; writers are asked to choose between walking out and compromising their integrity. The film makes it clear that the Back Bay Mainline, even in its diminished capacity, still has its finger on the pulse of the Boston community in a way no major newspaper could. When that is gone, something vital goes with it...

Those looking for the newspaper industry’s answer to Broadcast News will find a welcome film in Between the Lines. The film has countless moments of insight into the struggle of the American journalist, from the staff’s shabby living conditions — the film offers perhaps the most realistic look at big city apartments ever committed to film — to how well-meaning writers navigate the competing interests of truth and financial trendlines. With an all-star cast and some great comedic bits — enjoy watching Goldblum engage in a battle with a local performance artist at the Back Bay Mainline headquarters — Between the Lines is a late addition to the already impressive canon of essential 1970s cinema. [26]

Steve Prokopy of Third Coast Review wrote, "There’s not much by way of story in Between the Lines and a great deal of the dialogue feels spontaneous and improvised, which only adds to the film’s authenticity." [27] The Hollywood Reporter expressed that "the most memorable scenes work better as stand-alone episodes than as part of storylines". [11]

Richard Winters of Scopophilia opined "when the film deals with the relationships there seems to be too much of a feminist bias as the men are always shown to be the ones at fault due to their 'insensitive and selfish natures' while the women come off the ones who are 'reasonable and unfairly neglected'. This could be a product of the fact that it was directed by a woman as well as the era where men were somehow supposed to feel guilty simply because they were men." [28]

In The Guardian , Ryan Gilbey described the film as "a fond but not uncritical portrait of the disaffected staff at a formerly radical, fictional alt-weekly Boston newspaper, from the street-corner hawker all the way up to accounts, editorial and the much-despised incoming corporate boss...Silver’s sympathy for radicalism, and her deft cutting between different pockets of action unfolding in the same space, lent the film an Altmanesque feel." [29]

Margaret Moser of The Austin Chronicle said, "There's no way for us to modestly skirt this film's effect: This story of an underground paper in Boston facing corporate buy-out was the inspiration for starting the newspaper you hold in your hand." [25] [30]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joan Crawford</span> American actress (190?–1977)

Joan Crawford was an American actress. She started her career as a dancer in traveling theatrical companies before debuting on Broadway. Crawford was signed to a motion picture contract by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1925. Initially frustrated by the size and quality of her parts, Crawford launched a publicity campaign and built an image as a nationally known flapper by the end of the 1920s. By the 1930s, Crawford's fame rivaled MGM colleagues Norma Shearer and Greta Garbo. Crawford often played hardworking young women who find romance and financial success. These "rags-to-riches" stories were well received by Depression-era audiences and were popular with women. Crawford became one of Hollywood's most prominent movie stars and one of the highest paid women in the United States, but her films began losing money. By the end of the 1930s, she was labeled "box office poison".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Malkovich</span> American actor (born 1953)

John Gavin Malkovich is an American actor. He is the recipient of several accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award, in addition to nominations for two Academy Awards, a BAFTA Award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and three Golden Globe Awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geena Davis</span> American actor and producer (born 1956)

Virginia Elizabeth "Geena" Davis is an American actor, activist, fashion model, and producer. She is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laurie Metcalf</span> American actress (born 1955)

Laura Elizabeth Metcalf is an American actress. Metcalf is known for her complex and versatile roles across the stage and screen. She has received various accolades throughout her career spanning more than four decades, including an Obie Award, two Tony Awards and four Primetime Emmy Awards, in addition to nominations for an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, and three Golden Globe Awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Chiklis</span> American actor (born 1963)

Michael Charles Chiklis is an American actor, film television director, film and television producer and musician. He is best known for his role as Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) Detective Vic Mackey on the FX police drama The Shield (2002–2008), for which he won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series in 2002, and was nominated in 2003.

<i>Renaldo and Clara</i> 1978 film by Bob Dylan

Renaldo and Clara is a 1978 American film directed by Bob Dylan and starring Bob Dylan, Sara Dylan and Joan Baez. Written by Dylan and Sam Shepard, the film incorporates three distinct film genres: concert footage, documentary interviews, and dramatic fictional vignettes reflective of Dylan's song lyrics and life.

<i>Mommie Dearest</i> (film) 1981 film by Frank Perry

Mommie Dearest is a 1981 American biographical psychological drama film directed by Frank Perry and starring Faye Dunaway, Steve Forrest, Mara Hobel, and Diana Scarwid, with supporting performances from Xander Berkeley in his feature film debut along with Rutanya Alda and Jocelyn Brando. Adapted from Christina Crawford's 1978 autobiography of the same name, the film follows her and her brother Christopher's upbringing under their adoptive mother, actress Joan Crawford, depicting her as abusive, controlling, and manipulative, prioritizing her Hollywood career over her family.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joan Jonas</span> American visual artist (born 1936)

Joan Jonas is an American visual artist and a pioneer of video and performance art, and one of the most important artists to emerge in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Jonas' projects and experiments were influential in the creation of video performance art as a medium. Her influences also extended to conceptual art, theatre, performance art and other visual media. She lives and works in New York and Nova Scotia, Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jill Eikenberry</span> American actress (born 1947)

Jill Susan Eikenberry is an American film, stage, and television actress. She is known for her role as lawyer Ann Kelsey on the NBC drama L.A. Law (1986–94), for which she is a five-time Emmy Award and four-time Golden Globe Award nominee, winning the Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Drama Series in 1989. She received an Obie Award in 1986 for the Off-Broadway plays Lemon Sky and Life Under Water, and was nominated for a 2011 Drama Desk Award for the Off-Broadway musical The Kid. Her film appearances include Hide in Plain Sight (1980), Arthur (1981) and The Manhattan Project (1986).

Between the Lines may refer to:

Joan Micklin Silver was an American director of films and plays. Born in Omaha, Silver moved to New York City in 1967 where she began writing and directing films. She is best known for Hester Street (1975), her first feature, and Crossing Delancey (1988).

<i>Chilly Scenes of Winter</i> (film) 1979 film by Joan Micklin Silver

Chilly Scenes of Winter is a 1979 American romantic comedy film written and directed by Joan Micklin Silver, and starring John Heard, Mary Beth Hurt, Peter Riegert, Kenneth McMillan, and Gloria Grahame. Based on the 1976 novel by Ann Beattie, it follows a civil servant worker in Salt Lake City who falls in love with a recently-separated woman who works in his office building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wesley Morris</span> American journalist

Wesley Morris is an American film critic and podcast host. He is currently critic-at-large for The New York Times, as well as co-host, with Jenna Wortham, of the New York Times podcast Still Processing. Previously, Morris wrote for The Boston Globe, then Grantland. He won the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Criticism for his work with The Globe and the 2021 Pulitzer Prize for Criticism for his New York Times coverage of race relations in the United States, making Morris the only writer to have won the Criticism prize more than once.

The Real Paper was a Boston-area alternative weekly newspaper with a circulation in the tens of thousands. It ran from August 2, 1972, to June 18, 1981, often devoting space to counterculture and alternative politics of the early 1970s. The offices were in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beacon Theatre (New York City)</span> Entertainment venue in Manhattan, New York

The Beacon Theatre is an entertainment venue at 2124 Broadway, adjacent to the Hotel Beacon, on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1929, the Beacon Theatre was developed by Samuel "Roxy" Rothafel and built as a movie palace, with 2,894 seats across three levels. It was designed by Walter W. Ahlschlager with decorations inspired by the Renaissance, Ancient Roman, Ancient Greek, and Rococo styles. The theater is designated as a New York City interior landmark and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Orson Welles Cinema</span> Former movie theater in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States

The Orson Welles Cinema was a movie theater at 1001 Massachusetts Avenue in Cambridge, Massachusetts that operated from 1969 to 1986. Showcasing independents, foreign films and revivals, it became a focal point of the Boston-Cambridge film community.

<i>Hester Street</i> (film) 1975 drama film directed by Joan Micklin Silver

Hester Street is a 1975 drama film based on Abraham Cahan's 1896 novella Yekl: A Tale of the New York Ghetto, and was adapted and directed by Joan Micklin Silver. The film stars Steven Keats and Carol Kane, who was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance.

A... My Name Is Alice is a musical revue conceived by Joan Micklin Silver and Julianne Boyd, first produced in 1983. It won the Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Revue. It consists of some 21 songs by composers such as David Zippel, Doug Katsaros, Winnie Holzman, and Lucy Simon, along with sketches by writers like Anne Meara.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeff Goldblum</span> American actor and musician (born 1952)

Jeffrey Lynn Goldblum is an American actor and musician. He has starred in some of the highest-grossing films, such as Jurassic Park (1993) and Independence Day (1996), as well as their sequels.

Theater Talk is an American television talk show about live theater in New York City which aired on Thirteen WNET from 1996 to 2018. It was also syndicated from 2008 to 2018 on public television stations around the country both on TV and online. The guests included actors, writers, composers, directors, critics and others who contributed to the theater in New York, on Broadway and beyond.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Between the Lines (1977)". AFI Catalog . AFI.
  2. ↑ "Between the Lines". MUBI .
  3. ↑ Heuck, Marc Edward (May 8, 2019). "Joan Micklin Silver's Between the Lines". New Beverly Cinema . Los Angeles. Retrieved April 16, 2023. When it premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival in June 1977, Silver won two prizes – the Interfilm Otto Dibelius Film Award, and the Reader Jury of the Berliner Morgenpost Award – and the film was nominated for the Golden Bear, ultimately won by The Ascent from the Soviet Union.
  4. ↑ "Between the Lines". inter-film.org. Retrieved April 16, 2023.
  5. ↑ "Awards for 1977". LAFCA. Archived from the original on March 21, 2023. Retrieved April 16, 2023.
  6. ↑ "Joan Micklin Silver". Jewish Women's Archive . Retrieved February 13, 2011.
  7. ↑ Murthi, Vikram (February 21, 2019). "How a 1970s Jeff Goldblum Film Predicted the Current Journalism Crisis". Vulture . Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  8. 1 2 3 4 "Between the Lines". Siskel Film Center. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  9. ↑ Seuling, Dennis (July 31, 2019). "Between the Lines (Blu-ray Review)". The Digital Bits. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  10. ↑ Phillips, Michael. "'Star Wars' ruled, but 'Between the Lines' a film gem from '77". digitaledition.chicagotribune.com. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  11. 1 2 "'Between the Lines': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. February 22, 2019. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  12. ↑ "Between the Lines". Reeling Reviews. Retrieved April 16, 2023.
  13. ↑ "Joan Micklin Silver". Cinematheque. wisc.edu.
  14. ↑
  15. ↑ "SLIFF 2019 Interview: Harper Barnes – His Career Inspired the 1977 Film BETWEEN THE LINES". We Are Movie Geeks. November 12, 2019. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  16. ↑ Klein, Julia M. (June 3, 1997). "Between Lives". The Harvard Crimson .
  17. 1 2 "Between the Lines". TIFF. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  18. 1 2 Romney, Jonathan (February 22, 2019). "Film of the Week: Between the Lines". Film Comment . Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  19. ↑ "Unsold Abc Tv Series Between Lines Pilot". Getty Images . Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  20. ↑ "Between the Lines". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved February 10, 2024.
  21. ↑ Canby, Vincent (April 28, 1977). "Film: Good Reading 'Between the Lines'". The New York Times. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  22. ↑ Arnold, Gary (May 18, 1977). "'Between the Lines': A Most Appealing Comedy". The Washington Post . Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  23. ↑ Nelson, Rob (November 2007). "Encore: Between the Lines". Film Comment . Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  24. ↑ Bjorkenheim, Cosmo (February 18, 2019). "Between the Lines". Screen Slate. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  25. 1 2 Moser, Margaret (September 27, 1996). "Between the Lines". The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  26. ↑ Monagle, Matthew. "'Between the Lines' Makes Its Case as a Forgotten '70s Classic". Film School Rejects . Retrieved February 20, 2019.
  27. ↑ Prokopy, Steve (April 5, 2019). "Review: 1977's Between the Lines Features an Impressive Cast in Workplace Drama". Third Coast Review. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  28. ↑ Winters, Richard (December 28, 2012). "Between the Lines (1977)". Scopophilia. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  29. ↑ Gilbey, Ryan (January 14, 2021). "Joan Micklin Silver obituary". The Guardian . Retrieved April 15, 2023.
  30. ↑ Barbaro, Nick (August 2, 2019). "We Have a Lot of History Here: The Austin Chronicle and Between the Lines". The Austin Chronicle . Retrieved April 15, 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.