Between the Lines

Between the Lines is a 1977 ensemble romantic-comedy-drama from Midwest Films. It was directed by Joan Micklin Silver and produced by her husband Raphael D. Silver. The film was nominated for three awards at the 27th Berlin International Film Festival, winning two of them. Micklin Silver won the 1977 Los Angeles Film Critics Association New Generation Award as writer and director of Between the Lines. Plot The story revolves around a group of people who work at The Back Bay Mainline, an alternative newspaper in Boston, as it is bought out by a major corporation. This involves Harry Lucas (Heard), a disillusioned lead reporter with an on-and-off again girlfriend in Abbie (Crouse), flaky music critic Max (Goldblum), writer/author Michael (Collins) who plans to move to New York, an eager cub reporter in David (Kirby), and Frank, a beleaguered editor in chief (Korkes). A series of loose threads occur throughout the film, such as Laura struggling with her relationship to self-involved Michael, who is using the sale of a forthcoming book to move to New York and take her there. A party celebration only results in Laura going to Harry's house and sleeping before Michael eventually arrives to pick a fight. Laura decides to go along with Michael to New York. David, a youthful reporter who rides a bike to work, tries to hitch a big and potentially dangerous story. Max, Harry, and Abbie try to chase him down from meeting up with a source (they arrive right as he gets a bloody nose). The purchase of the paper by a corporation (specifically a communications empire) had been rumored through the film, but only near the end does it come through that a group headlined by Roy Walsh (Smith) plans to buy and run the paper. One meeting spurs Walsh to ask Frank to fire Harry, citing him as a "moving force in the wrong direction." Lynn the secretary is the first to quit. Harry responds to his firing by walking to Walsh's office and shooting him with a suction cup dart toy pistol. Cast John Heard as Harry Lucas, disillusioned lead reporter Lindsay Crouse as Abbie, talented photographer, Harry's girlfriend Jeff Goldblum as Max Arloft, music critic Jill Eikenberry as Lynn, secretary, Ahmed's girlfriend Bruno Kirby as David Entwhistle, eager cub reporter Gwen Welles as Laura, Michael's girlfriend Stephen Collins as Michael, arrogant former reporter, wanna-be book author Lewis J. Stadlen as Stanley, priggish advertising manager Jon Korkes as Frank, editor Michael J.