ADAM McKAY

Bil’s rating (out of 5):  BB

USA, 2004.  DreamWorks, Apatow Productions, Herzog-Cowen Entertainment.  Screenplay by Will Ferrell, Adam McKay.  Cinematography by Thomas E. Ackerman.  Produced by Judd Apatow.  Music by Alex Wurman.  Production Design by Clayton Hartley.  Costume Design by Debra McGuire.  Film Editing by Brent White.  

The makeover that the information world received when women broke through barriers and became news anchors for the first time is turned into a bad, overly long Saturday Night Live skit in this sometimes funny but mostly tacky comedy. Will Ferrell is San Diego’s most trusted anchorman, who along with his team of good old boys takes care of providing the news every evening and then parties like a Boogie Nights porn star the rest of the time. When he spots a seriously hot blonde (Christina Applegate) at a soiree and decides to make her his next conquest, he is severely affronted when she turns out to be his competition instead. The station, in an effort to improve diversity, has hired her as a journalist, while she has intentions of making it behind the anchor desk and be the first woman to do so.

It’s a great idea for a comedy, but the idiotic script is badly plotted and the film is more concerned with Brady Bunch-esque seventies spoofing than in being a witty satire. You’ll enjoy a few laughs, particularly the brilliant Steve Carell as the mentally deficient weather man.