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Derivative fluff from 1987, made tolerable by its bawdy exuberance and an appealing performance by Michael J. Fox, who was still enjoying TV stardom and the career momentum he earned by travelingBack to the Future. Here he plays a Kansas farm boy who dreams of scoring big in New York City, but reality turns out to be brutal to his ambition. When his uncle (Richard Jordan) gives him a mail-room job in the high-rise headquarters of a major corporation, Fox occupies an empty office and poses as a young executive, winning the attention of a lovely young colleague (Helen Slater) and having an affair with his boss's wife (Margaret Whitton). Sporadically amusing as a yuppie comedy and rather off-putting as a wannabe sex farce, the movie's still recommendable for its lively cast and a breezy style that almost succeeds in updating the conventions of vintage screwball comedy. Whitton is a standout performer here, so you may wonder why her comedic talent has been underrated, apart from a good role in the first twoMajor Leaguemovies. This may be little more than a big-screen sitcom, but it's not without its charms.--Jeff Shannon
Beware of "Auntie Vera" Brantley Foster (Michael J. Fox) new to the city is a young lad out of management school and looking for a job. Luck would have it that his Uncle Howard Prescott (Richard Jordan) runs a big corporation. He gets a chance to work his way up from the mail room.
In the process he encounters his uncle's wife "Auntie Vera"(Margaret Whitton.) She takes an instant shine to him. One of my favorite scenes is where he barely escapes Auntie Vera's clutches.
Soon he realizes that the only way to get to the top is start on a higher rung; finding an empty office and knowing the way the building system works, he takes on the persona of Carlton Whitfield male "Suit". He has a business type interaction with Christy (Helen Slater) a female "Suit". She has a quasi relationship with someone higher up.
Then the action starts. There is a "working" weekend in which everyone has a second agenda. To this weekend both Brantley and Carlton are invited.
What are Brantley and Vera cooking up? Is Carlton getting too close to Christy? Does someone else have plans for Christy? Will Carlton meet Brantley?
And who is the "bimbo?"
Michael J. Fox's performance makes up for some big holes I have concluded that I have probably used "The Secret of My Succe$s" as an example in class more than just about any other film ever made. Part of the reason is that most students have seen this film, so I am likely to get nods of recognition more than if I mention "Battleship Potemkin" or "Citizen Kane." This 1987 comedy tells the story of Brantley Foster (Michael J. Fox), who heads from his family's farm in Kansas to the Big Apple to put his business degree to use, but all he can get is a job in the mail room of a firm owned by a distant uncle (Richard Jordan).
Brantley comes up with a short cut but there comes a moment when he has to step up to the plate and impress a group of potential investors with a brilliant idea. We see Brantley explain but his idea to an enthralled group of rich businessmen, but...WE HEAR NOTHING. The script by Jim Cash&Jack Epps, Jr. and AJ Carothers ("&" does not mean the same thing as "and" in Hollywood) could not come up with anything good enough to carry the scene so they just turned up the music and figured if we had enjoyed the movie to that point and if we liked Michael J. Fox then we would just buy this and proceed to the happy ending. We do like Fox and we proceed to the happy ending.
However, contrast this scene with its counterpart in another familiar film, "The Karate Kid." That would be the great scene where Mr. Miyagi explains to Daniel-san that "sand the floor" means a whole lot than he ever imagined. That is the sort of scene that makes an entire movie (and gets an actor an Oscar nomination), and "The Secret of My Success" has a big hole where that scene should be and it really bugs me that the writers could not come up with something that proved our hero deserved to be the hero.
There are more holes in this film, which allow Brantley to create the persona of Carlton Whitfield, a young executive in a previous empty office (being in the mailroom has its advantages in such a scheme) and provide a fairy godmother in the person of his Aunt Vera (Margaret Whitton). Meanwhile, Brantley (or Whitfield, depending on your perspective), is interested in Christy Wills (Helen Slater), who is introduced in the most erotic display of drinking from a water fountain in the history of American cinema.
This is Michael J. Fox's movie and his engaging performance forgives most of the film's faults in this mindless comedy (mindless in that you will like the film if you mind the holes in it less). Actually, I was amazed to really see how many stupid things happen in "The Secret of My Succe$s," but I still like Fox's performance. If nothing else, this film is a reminder that Fox was a gifted physical comedien. The world of business does not come out looking well, but then it is hard to find too many movies in the past twenty years that make you think kindly towards big business.WRONG I don't know whose mistake it is, but the title track isn't by "The Night Riders", it's by NIGHT RANGER.
