Working Girl (1988)

When a secretary's idea is stolen by her boss, she seizes an opportunity to steal it back by pretending she has her boss's job.

Director:

Mike Nichols

Writer:

Kevin Wade

Stars:

Harrison Ford, Sigourney Weaver, Melanie Griffith

Won 1 Oscar. Another 9 wins & 14 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Harrison Ford	...	Jack Trainer
Sigourney Weaver	...	Katharine Parker
Melanie Griffith	...	Tess McGill
Alec Baldwin	...	Mick Dugan
Joan Cusack	...	Cyn
Philip Bosco	...	Oren Trask
Nora Dunn	...	Ginny
Oliver Platt	...	Lutz
James Lally	...	Turkel
Kevin Spacey	...	Bob Speck
Robert Easton	...	Armbrister
Olympia Dukakis	...	Personnel Director
Amy Aquino	...	Tess' Secretary
Jeffrey Nordling	...	Tim Rourke
Elizabeth Whitcraft	...	Doreen DiMucci

Storyline

Tess McGill is a frustrated secretary, struggling to forge ahead in the world of big business in New York. She gets her chance when her boss breaks her leg on a skiing holiday. McGill takes advantage of her absence to push ahead with her career. She teams up with investment broker Jack Trainer to work on a big deal. The situation is complicated after the return of her boss.

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Plot Keywords:

boss | secretary | career | pretending | business | 

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Taglines:

For anyone who's ever won. For anyone who's ever lost. And for everyone who's still in there trying.

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 December 1988 (USA)

Also Known As:

Secretaria ejecutiva

Filming Locations:

Vernon Valley Great Gorge Ski Resort, New Jersey, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$28,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$64,000,000 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

113 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The Petty Marsh (where Melanie and Sigourney worked) lobby scenes were filmed in the lobby of 7 World Trade Center, which was destroyed in the terrorist attacks on the USA of 11 September 2001.

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Goofs

In the closing scene, as Tess is on the phone in her office in the morning, the shadows are falling eastward on the southern facade of the One Chase Manhattan Plaza, which means that it is sunset time.

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Quotes

Tess McGill: You know, maybe I just don't like you.
Jack Trainer: Me? Naaah!

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Connections

Referenced in Little Black Book (2004)

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Soundtracks

"The Man That Got Away"
Music by Harold Arlen
Lyrics by Ira Gershwin

User Reviews

Brilliant, characterful romantic thriller

I'm not a notable Melanie Griffith fan by any means but it must be said that she is brilliantly cast in the role of the small time heroine in the Big Apple. Harrison Ford is surprisingly effective as the hunk-on-a-stick; it is not surprising in the slightest bit that Sigourney Weaver is an effectively insidious megalomaniac bitch. This is also the first in a slew of flicks for Joan Cusack's long line of effective supporting girlfriends.

Mike Nicholls is a sharp director and succeeds in not only capturing the look of the trapping and tawdriness of the free market explosion but also its unutterably tedious underbelly. Kevin Wade's script is the snappy dramatic and satirical motor at the film's heart to which Nicholls defers. A unimpeachable feelgood movie - although I can't help feeling a sorrow from Nicholls on behalf of his characters who, as in Billy Wilder's The Apartment remain trapped even after the happy ending. 7/10