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44-451: Working Girl is a 1988 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by Mike Nichols , written by Kevin Wade , and starring Harrison Ford , Sigourney Weaver , and Melanie Griffith . Its plot follows an ambitious secretary from Staten Island who takes over her new boss's role while the boss is laid up with a broken leg. The secretary, who has been going to business night school, pitches

88-474: A weighted average score of 73 out of 100 at Metacritic based on reviews from 17 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale. Chicago Sun-Times film critic Roger Ebert gave the film four out of four stars and wrote, "The plot of Working Girl is put together like clockwork. It carries you along while you're watching it, but reconstruct it later and you'll see

132-499: A Geisha , Slumdog Millionaire , Up in the Air , The Artist , Gloria Bell , and Malcolm & Marie . Director Richard Linklater helmed the prominent Before trilogy, consisting of Before Sunrise , Before Sunset , and Before Midnight . Kasautii Zindagii Kay is a popular Indian romantic drama television series of the 2000s. Same-sex romantic dramas that tackle LGBT issues include Brokeback Mountain , Blue

176-535: A Thief , Vertigo , The Crying Game , The Bodyguard , Unfaithful , Wicker Park , The Phantom of the Opera , The Tourist , and The Adjustment Bureau . The screenwriters taxonomy creates additional categories beyond "subgenre" when discussing films, making the argument that all narrative Hollywood films can be delineated into comedies or dramas (identified as a "film type"). The taxonomy also identifies fifty "macro genres", which can be paired with

220-520: A cab from a combination of Valium and alcohol. Tess leaves early the next morning, believing them to have slept together, to attend her meeting with Trainer and is surprised to see he is the man from the previous night. They both feign non-recognition. Although Tess lacks confidence during the meeting with Trainer and his associates and leaves thinking it was a failure, Jack soon arrives at her office, telling her they did not sleep together and that he wants to move forward with her idea. Together, they prepare

264-469: A cocaine addiction of his own around the same time. The film's main theme " Let the River Run " was written, arranged, and performed by American singer-songwriter Carly Simon , and won her an Academy Award , a Golden Globe Award , and a Grammy Award for Best Original Song, making Simon the first artist to win this trio of awards for a song written, as well as performed, entirely by a single artist. As

308-547: A filmmaker's "voice" because the artistic choice to have the characters sing does not affect the story or the characters – it simply alters how the story and characters are conveyed. Therefore, a romance film like Grease would be categorized as a dramatic (type), romance (super genre), high school / coming of age (macro genres), musical (voice) – rather than simply as a "musical romance". Kevin Wade Too Many Requests If you report this error to

352-664: A higher chance of box-office success. Principal photography of Working Girl began on February 16, 1988, in New York City. Many scenes were shot in the New Brighton section of Staten Island in New York City. One half-day of shooting to complete the skiing accident scene took place in New Jersey . Four different buildings portrayed the offices of Petty Marsh—1 State Street Plaza; the Midday Club, which served as

396-494: A job as an administrative assistant to Katharine Parker, a young associate in Mergers and Acquisitions. At first, Katharine seems supportive of Tess, encouraging her to share ideas, but eventually tells Tess her proposed purchase of a radio network by Trask Industries would not work out. When Katharine breaks her leg skiing, she asks Tess to house-sit. While there, Tess discovers meeting notes that reveal Katharine plans to pass off

440-463: A meeting with Jack Trainer, a mergers and acquisitions associate from another company. The night before, she attends a dinner on Katharine’s behalf, hosted by Trainer’s firm in an attempt to say hello prior to their meeting. Trainer is attracted to and approaches Tess at the bar but does not reveal his name, even after she inquires whether he knows a Jack Trainer. Tess eventually leaves and he follows, taking her back to his apartment after she passes out in

484-702: A profitable idea, only to have the boss attempt to take credit. The film's opening sequence follows Manhattan -bound commuters on the Staten Island Ferry accompanied by Carly Simon 's song " Let the River Run ", for which she received the Academy Award for Best Original Song and the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song , and the Grammy Award for Best Song Written Specifically for a Motion Picture or Television , making her

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528-607: A reunion and final kiss. In romantic television series, the development of such romantic relationships may play out over many episodes or different characters may become intertwined in different romantic arcs. Screenwriter and scholar Eric R. Williams identifies Romance Films as one of eleven super-genres in his screenwriters' taxonomy , claiming that all feature length narrative films can be classified by these super-genres. The other ten super-genres are action , crime , fantasy , horror , science fiction , comedy , sports , thriller , war and western . ' Chick flick '

572-829: A single, "Let the River Run" reached No. 49 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and No. 11 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart in early 1989. The film's additional soundtrack was scored by Simon and Rob Mounsey . The soundtrack album was released by Arista Records on August 29, 1989, and peaked at No. 45 on the Billboard 200 . The film was released in the United States on December 21, 1988, in 1,051 theaters and grossed $ 4.7 million on its opening weekend. It went on to make $ 63.8 million in North America and $ 39.2 million in

616-691: Is a romantic story with a historical period setting, normally with a turbulent backdrop of war, revolution, or tragedy. This includes films such as Gone with the Wind , Doctor Zhivago , Reds , Titanic , A Very Long Engagement , Atonement , Portrait of a Lady on Fire , and Cold War . Paranormal romance is a popular genre of film which features romantic relationships between humans and supernatural creatures. Popular tropes include vampirism , time travel , ghosts and psychic or telekinetic abilities – i.e. things that cannot be explained by science. The genre originated in literature and moved on to

660-820: Is a term associated with romance films mostly targeted to a female audience. Although many romance films may be targeted at women, it is not a defining characteristic of a romance film and a ' chick flick ' does not necessarily have a romance as a central theme, revolve around the romantic involvement of characters or even include a romantic relationship. As such, the terms cannot be used interchangeably. Films of this genre include Gilda , The Red Shoes , Sense and Sensibility , Gentlemen Prefer Blondes , Dirty Dancing , The Notebook , Dear John , A Walk to Remember , Thelma & Louise , Fifty Shades of Grey , Sleepless in Seattle , You've Got Mail and Romeo + Juliet . Also known as epic romance, this

704-485: Is a working-class woman from Staten Island who dreams of climbing the corporate ladder to an executive position. Despite holding a business degree earned through evening classes, her boss and male co-workers at the stockbroker firm in lower Manhattan where she works as a secretary treat her like a bimbo , even though they benefit from her intelligence and business instincts. After reaching her limit with her boss's humiliations, Tess dramatically quits. Tess then lands

748-457: Is able to surmount most obstacles. Humour in such films tends to be of a verbal, low-key variety or situational, as opposed to slapstick. Films within this genre include City Lights , A Night at the Opera , It Happened One Night , His Girl Friday , My Wife's Goblin , The Philadelphia Story , Intolerable Cruelty , Roman Holiday , Good Morning, My Dear Wife , The Big Sick , Enough Said , Lost In Translation , To All

792-624: Is offered an entry-level job with Trask Industries after Trask confronts Katharine, who is unable to explain where she got the merger idea and promises to have her fired for her actions. Jack and Tess embrace and start a relationship. On her first day at Trask, Tess meets a colleague named Alice, who Tess initially assumes will be her new boss but who she then realizes is actually her (Tess's) secretary. Tess insists they work together as colleagues, showing she will be very different from Katharine. Finally, Tess calls her friend Cyn from her own office to tell her that she has made it. Screenwriter Kevin Wade

836-464: Is often employed to indicate the emotional mood, creating an atmosphere of greater insulation for the couple. The conclusion of a romantic drama typically does not indicate whether a final romantic union between the two main characters will occur. Some examples of romantic drama films and shows before 2000 are Man's Way with Women , Casablanca , María Candelaria , Pride & Prejudice , Appointment with Happiness , Wakeful Eyes , Among

880-514: Is the Warmest Colour , Carol , Moonlight , and Call Me by Your Name . Romantic fantasies describe fantasy stories using many of the elements and conventions of the romance genre. Some examples include The Lady Eve , Top Hat , The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (Les Parapluies de Cherbourg) , Singin' in the Rain , Groundhog Day , Enchanted , Cinderella , Beauty and

924-696: The Rodgers and Hammerstein productions. Some examples include South Pacific , West Side Story and its 2021 remake , Grease , High School Musical , Across the Universe , Moulin Rouge! , the Mamma Mia! franchise, Sunshine on Leith , and La La Land . Romantic thriller is a genre of film which has a storyline combining elements of the romance film and the thriller genre . Some examples of romantic thriller films are Desire , To Catch

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968-419: The romance super genre. Using this approach, films like Gone with the Wind (noted above) would be classified as a dramatic (type) historical/family (macro genres) romance (genre) rather than simply a historical romance; while The Notebook would be identified at dramatic (type) disease (macro genre) romance (genre) rather than simply a romantic drama. Similarly, musicals are categorized as one option for

1012-582: The Beast , Knowing , Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind , Midnight in Paris , Her , and The Shape of Water . Romantic musical (alternatively musical romance ) is a genre of film which features romantic relationships and whose story is partially explained through song and/or dance numbers. This genre originated on Broadway and moved to the silver screen thanks in part to the popularity of

1056-460: The Boys I've Loved Before , Four Weddings and a Funeral , Dave , Say Anything... , Moonstruck , In Summer We Must Love , As Good as It Gets , Something's Gotta Give , When Harry Met Sally... , Annie Hall , Manhattan , The Apartment and Pablo and Carolina . Romantic dramas usually revolve around an obstacle that prevents deep and true love between two people. Music

1100-606: The Ruins , The River of Love , Dearer than my Life , Love Story , Paris and Love , Featureless Men , Coming Home , Daughters of the Dust , Like Water for Chocolate , Sommersby , The Bridges of Madison County , The English Patient , Shakespeare in Love , An Officer and a Gentleman , Saptapadi and Cinema Paradiso . 21st century examples include Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna , Sideways , Memoirs of

1144-536: The Trask Industries idea as her own. She later returns home to find her live-in boyfriend having sex with another woman. He attempts to reconcile and proposes marriage, but she responds ambivalently, and they end things. With her boss away, Tess decides to use Katharine's connections and clothes to move ahead with her merger plans. With the help of her friend Cyn, Tess cuts her hair and borrows Katherine's stylish clothing to look more professional. Tess schedules

1188-514: The Trask merger, saying she was intending to take it to Jack and give Tess credit eventually, but was restricted due to Jack's strict ethical code preventing him from looking at other's work without verifying the source after being accused of stealing himself. Jack eventually arrives to end things with Katharine. Tess accidentally leaves her appointment book in Katharine's apartment before leaving for

1232-556: The chance to be a grownup mesmerizer". The film is recognized by American Film Institute in these lists: Working Girl was also made into a short-lived NBC television series in 1990, starring Sandra Bullock as Tess McGill. It lasted 12 episodes. A Broadway musical version is in the works as of 2017, with a score to be written by Cyndi Lauper from Fox Stage Productions and Aged in Wood Productions. For Aged in Wood,

1276-469: The company's club room; the lobby of 7 World Trade Center (one of the buildings destroyed in the September 11 attacks ); and the reading floor of the L. F. Rothschild Building. One Chase Manhattan Plaza was featured at the end of the film as the Trask Industries building. Filming completed on April 27, 1988, with the final sequence being shot on the Staten Island Ferry . Throughout the shoot, Griffith

1320-502: The craftsmanship". In her review for the Washington Post , Rita Kempley described Melanie Griffith as "luminous as Marilyn Monroe , as adorable as one of Disney 's singing mice. She clearly has the stuff of a megastar, and the movie glows from her". Janet Maslin , in her review for The New York Times , wrote, "Mike Nichols, who directed Working Girl , also displays an uncharacteristically blunt touch, and in its later stages

1364-471: The essential themes of love at first sight , young and mature love, unrequited love, obsession, sentimental love, spiritual love , forbidden love, platonic love, sexual and passionate love, sacrificial love, explosive and destructive love, and tragic love . Romantic films serve as great escapes and fantasies for viewers, especially if the two leads finally overcome their difficulties, declare their love, and experience their "happily ever after", often implied by

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1408-622: The film after reading the screenplay while shooting his film Biloxi Blues in Arkansas . Following Nichols' attachment, Griffith had a formal audition for the role. Molly Ringwald auditioned but was deemed "too young." Nichols was so determined for Griffith to have the part that he threatened to drop out of the production if the studio, 20th Century Fox , would not hire her. Following the casting of Sigourney Weaver and Harrison Ford—both major stars at that point—the studio agreed to cast Griffith, as they felt Weaver and Ford's involvement gave them

1452-412: The financials for the merger proposal, and they give in to their attraction, ending up in bed. However, Tess is tempted to confess the truth about the idea's origins, but she demurs after discovering Jack is also involved with Katharine, whom he planned to break up with before her injury. Katharine returns home on the day of the merger meeting, and while Tess is helping her get settled, Katharine brings up

1496-831: The first artist to win this trio of awards for a song composed and written, as well as performed, entirely by a single artist. The film was met with critical acclaim, and was a major box office success, grossing a worldwide total of $ 103 million. Working Girl was nominated for six Academy Awards , including Best Picture , Best Director , and Best Actress for Griffith, while both Weaver and Joan Cusack were nominated for Best Supporting Actress . The film won four Golden Globes (from six nominations), including Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy , Best Actress – Musical or Comedy for Griffith, and Best Supporting Actress for Weaver. It also received three BAFTA nominations: Best Actress for Griffith, Best Supporting Actress for Weaver, and Best Original Score for Simon. Tess McGill

1540-451: The producers were Robyn Goodman and Josh Fiedler. Instead of a production company on Working Girl , the musical adaptation was switched to a license production by Aged in Wood Productions since Disney took over ownership of Fox Stage in 2019. A reboot of Working Girl has reported to be in development at Hulu , with Ilana Peña adapting the script. Selena Gomez is in talks to produce. Romance film Romantic films often explore

1584-511: The rest of the world for a worldwide total of $ 103 million. Working Girl was released on VHS and Laserdisc in 1989 by CBS/Fox Video ; "Family Portrait", one of the shorts from The Tracey Ullman Show featuring The Simpsons , was included before the movie on the VHS release. The film was released on DVD on April 17, 2001, by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment . Special features included two theatrical trailers and three TV spots. The film

1628-399: The same meeting, leading to Katharine discovering Tess's deception. At the meeting, Tess asks Jack whether he has such an ethical code, and he denies this or that he was ever accused of stealing. Katharine confronts Tess during the meeting, outing her as her secretary and accusing her of stealing the idea. Tess feels she cannot defend herself and leaves, apologizing profusely. Days later, Tess

1672-589: The screen in the early 2000s, following the success of the Twilight Saga adaptations from Stephenie Meyer 's books. By 2007–08, film studios were producing various paranormal romance films, many adapted from novels. Examples of paranormal romance films include The Exterminating Angel , The Twilight Saga , Warm Bodies , Vampire Academy , I Am Dragon , and The Shape of Water . Romantic comedies are films with light-hearted, humorous plotlines, centered on romantic ideals such as that true love

1716-456: The shoot was temporarily shut down for 24 hours. Griffith elaborated on the experience: Mike got so mad at me, he wouldn't talk to me. Mike Haley, the first [assistant director], just came up and said, "We're shutting down. Go home", and I knew I was in so much trouble. … The next morning he (Nichols) took me to breakfast and said, "Here's what's going to happen. You're going to pay for last night out of your pocket. We're not going to report you to

1760-418: The story remains lively but seldom has the perceptiveness or acuity of Mr. Nichols's best work". In his review for Time , Richard Corliss wrote, "Kevin Wade shows this in his smart screenplay, which is full of the atmospheric pressures that allow stars to collide. Director Mike Nichols knows this in his bones. He encourages Weaver to play (brilliantly) an airy shrew. He gives Ford a boyish buoyancy and Griffith

1804-441: The studio, but you have to pay for what it cost", and it was $ 80,000. They wanted to get my attention and they really did. It was a very humbling, embarrassing experience, but I learned a lot from it. Three weeks after filming was completed, Griffith entered a rehabilitation facility to receive treatment for her addiction. Ironically, according to the biography Mike Nichols: A Life , written by Mark Harris , Nichols had been battling

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1848-504: Was in the midst of struggling with a years-long alcohol and cocaine addiction, which at times interfered with the shoot. "There were a lot of things that happened on Working Girl that I did that were not right," Griffith recalled in 2019. "It was the late '80s. There was a lot going on party-wise in New York. There was a lot of cocaine. There was a lot of temptation." After Nichols realized that Griffith had arrived on set high on cocaine,

1892-407: Was inspired to write the screenplay after visiting New York City in 1984 and witnessing throngs of career women walking through the streets in tennis shoes while carrying their high-heels. Melanie Griffith read the screenplay for Working Girl over a year before the production began, and expressed interest in playing the role of Tess McGill. Approximately a year later, Mike Nichols agreed to direct

1936-583: Was released on Blu-ray on January 6, 2015. The special features from the DVD release were carried over for the Blu-ray release. Working Girl received critical acclaim upon release. It has an 83% "Fresh" rating as of 2024 on Rotten Tomatoes based on 48 reviews, and an average score of 7/10. The site's consensus is; "A buoyant corporate Cinderella story, Working Girl has the right cast, right story, and right director to make it all come together." The film also has

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