-30- Reviews

Interesting feature directed by and starring Webb as the managing editor of a newspaper working the late shift on a more or less typical Thursday night. Conrad is the crusty city editor, Lorimer, the dowager rewrite-woman who has seen it all and remained above it, and Nelson, the much put-upon copy boy. The film starts as Webb arrives in the city room late after his regular visit to the graves of his first wife and child. He is having trouble with his new wife, who wants to adopt a child, something Webb just can't bring himself to do. As the night goes on, two news items come into prominence: the first concerns a little girl who wanders into the city's storm drains and becomes lost as a storm begins to fill the sewers; the second is the story of an attempt by Air Force pilots, Lorimer's grandson among them, to set a new record flying from Hawaii to Washington, DC. The whole office holds its breath as the search for the girl continues while the waters rise, and as the planes disappear. Eventually the girl is found and the story is the headline, but the plane story is less happy, for the planes are discovered to have crashed with no survivors. Lorimer is visibly distressed and Webb tells her to go home, but she insists on writing up the story of her grandson's death before going. Webb comes to some conclusions about life and death during the evening's events and tells his wife that he no longer opposes adopting a child. Well-done newspaper story has the usual faults of Webb's films--dialogue staccato to the point of silliness and a directorial style serviceable at best, but it works here, especially in the later scenes as the staff gets down to the real work of getting the paper out. Conrad is very good as the city editor and Lorimer gives a convincing performance as a woman whose job is more important than her emotions. An accurate and memorable newspaper film.