Switching Channels

Directed by Ted Kotcheff, Switching Channels follows successful on-air reporter Christy Colleran (Kathleen Turner) as she decides to leave her job after meeting and falling for a successful businessman (Christopher Reeve’s Blaine Bingham) – with complications ensuing as Christy’s ex-husband and soon-to-be former boss (Burt Reynolds’ John Sullivan) convinces her to cover the impending execution of a sympathetic killer (Henry Gibson’s Ike Roscoe). It’s ultimately clear that Switching Channels is at its best in its breezy and fast-paced opening stretch, as Kotcheff, armed with Jonathan Reynolds’ script, delivers an affable romcom that’s brimming with snappy dialogue and charismatic performances – with, in terms of the latter, Kotcheff eliciting endlessly engaging work from his three well-cast stars. (Reynolds, in particular, offers up a remarkably and captivatingly loose turn here that remains a highlight.) There’s little doubt, then, that the picture’s growing emphasis on the aforementioned execution paves the way for a somewhat watchable yet mostly underwhelming second half, and it’s impossible not to scratch one’s head at the oddball decision to completely abandon the more romantic-forward elements within the narrative (ie Reeve’s character, beyond a certain point, becomes entirely superfluous) – which does, in the final analysis, cement Switching Channels‘ place as an aggressively hit-and-miss endeavor that’s rarely as compelling as its stars’ above-average efforts.

**1/2 out of ****