Full disclosure: I own this movie and watch it frequently. In my opinion Morning Glory is a winner.

However, what does our Enneagram story system have to say? Not surprisingly, the movie stacks up.

1

Start the movie and we immediately see its world. Becky, our heroine, is a producer of morning wake-up television. She’s in a backwater position, but her team loves her. She’s peppy! She’s adorable! And, as the first scene shows, she’s so dedicated to work that she can’t get through a first date.

2

Very quickly we move into the trouble. Becky is fired because management wants a money man with an Ivy League degree instead of our hard-working, low-rent gal. Not her fault, but there it is. Then Becky’s mother gently dumps on her for staying loyal to the morning news business. You will never get hired by the “Today” show, you’re slightly embarrassing . . . you know: A mother who genuinely wants to support her daughter but puts her foot in her mouth and halfway down her throat in the process.

Blinking through the insult, Becky sends out her resume (resumes, actually, as she updates multiple times a day) and gets crickets in response. This is all a rapid-fire montage. Don’t worry: the 2 moves.

3

And then, Becky is offered a job interview. Her response on the phone is, “I’ll take it!” She means that she’ll take the job even before it’s offered. Our girl is desperate, and whatever they offer will be better than anything she currently has on her plate.

4

Of course, she lands the job (otherwise the movie would be over), although it’s a rough interview that has a few humbling moments for our girl. If you like underdog stories this is the movie for you!

This doubt that’s been placed in our minds about Becky is completely reversed on her first day. The scene in which she shows her producer-chops to the crew at her new job is always satisfying. She does what’s right by “Daybreak” (the name of the show) without worrying that she’s been too bold.

Now we’re rolling. The film contrives to get these two people in scenes together, which is pure icing:

 

Diane Keaton plays a morning-show war horse of a host. Harrison Ford is a crusty, bitter newsman reduced to the horror of  being seen on daytime television. The actors have great chemistry and their characters are complex. I wish this morning show with these hosts actually existed.

All of these people adjusting to each other within the framework of the “Daybreak” show is the bulk of the 4.

A love interest is also introduced. Just so you know: Becky drops her skirt, revealing booty in panties for a brief scene. Although we never see her in bed with her boyfriend, their sexual congress is understood.

SWITCH

The key moments in this movie all involve changes in the job. At the Switch, Becky is told that “Daybreak” has ratings too low to continue. She finagles a time period in which she must raise the ratings, but the show is on the chopping block.

5

Hilarity ensues. In order to raise the ratings, Becky pushes the envelope. The weatherman is put on a roller coaster with a camera strapped to the seat in front of him. Keaton’s character invites animal handlers and their beasties onto the show. The antics are not especially new but everything is so funny you won’t care.

For the show to succeed, though, Ford’s character must change. How does a straight newsman fit into a morning show line-up without compromising his principles? Especially when he doesn’t think he needs to change? The status quo is sufficient, though, because “Daybreak” does well enough in the ratings to live for another year. Becky seems happy until . . .

6

. . .another job offer comes along. The “Today” show wants to hire her away. Everything she’s dreamed since she was eight years old is now in Becky’s lap.

7

The final straw, the decision moment that leads Becky to accept the interview, is provided by Ford. He ain’t going to change. Certainly his stubbornness brings down the show, but his rudeness is personally painful to Becky. He is a surrogate father-figure who rejects her.

8

And so, Becky goes to the interview. The climax is a wonderful, heart-tugging twist to bring her back to “Daybreak”. The symmetry here (where Becky holds all the cards) with the 2 (in which Becky had no power in her job search) is lovely. The boyfriend plays a key support role. All in all, this 8 clicks very smoothly.

9

The show goes on. Everafter is happy.

The End