I was inspired to watch this again after listening to the podcast on the movie by TCM. The main feature of that was Julie Salomon's recordings of interviews at the time. But actually production of the film wasn't too tough - Bruce Willis was a bit egotistical, Melanie Griffith was insecure, the budget went over but... it was reasonably professional. Pages are dedicated to some guy getting a shot of a concorde, as if it mattered.
The film isn't very good. But then I wasn't wild about the novel. Not an easy novel to adapt - it's all about multiple characters and atmosphere. Maybe Robert Altman could've done it. Sidney Lumet.
It had to be about someone we enjoyed seeing suffer. It's not fun to watch Tom Hanks suffer. He seems too nice.
It's mean about the black people. Shows the kid who is in a coma has his CV artificially pumped up as an honours student, shows the black preacher as a cartoonish figure, makes a cheao joke about his mother wanting $10 million to buy clothes.
It has no feel for New York. The sense of divide. It's too stylish.
The film is about nice Tom Hanks not really doing anything bad except root Melanie Griffith and even that's not too bad in the world of this movie because Kim Cattrall plays the wife as a caricature. And in this story every one is mean - Melanie lies on the stand, his wife leaves him, Bruce Willis writes nasty articles, protestors yell at him, his firm fires him, his co op kicks him out of the building. But then Bruce Willis has a change of heart and comes to the rescue. And white dad Donald Moffatt says he loves him. And judge Morgan Freeman asks everyone to be decent when Hanks triumphs (well, escapes prosecution) by lying that he made a tape with dad's approval. Go the patriarchy!
Bruce Willis feels off as a drunken journalist. Michael Caine or some old boozy Brit would've been better. Melanie Griffith is actually the best cast.
The miscasting was bad but they distorted the novel into a stock Hollywood hero's journey but still tried to be faithful which means the film just comes off as really racist. That's why people got upset about it.
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