Laurel Ayres (Whoopi Goldberg) and Frank Peterson (Tim Daly) are a top notch investment team. Laurel does all the work and her protégé Frank does the schmoozing. When the underhanded Frank gets her expected VP promotion, Laurel quits in frustration. She starts her own investment firm but everybody gives her the same brush off. Sally Dugan (Dianne Wiest) also quits and joins Laurel in her start-up. When businessman Donald Fallon (Eli Wallach) gives Laurel the same brush off, she manufactures a male partner named Robert S. Cutty. Unlike a black woman, a white man is immediately accepted into the old boys' club even though no one has ever seen him.
Whoopi Goldberg is too bitter and angry to be likeable. As a comedy, there are no laughs. It's not like Laurel is a nice person herself. Sally points out how dismissive she is to other women. It's interesting that Bebe Neuwirth's Camille Scott uses sex to get ahead as a foil. The whole boys club mentality is interesting but none of it is funny. As far as hitting the glass ceiling, there is a real reason why Laurel doesn't get promoted above the male chauvinist reasons. She has to be a good salesman as part of her job and she lacks the emotional IQ. Her character needs to be superior in every way to Frank and she's not. It's a dog eat dog world on Wall Street. When Laurel dress up Tootsie style, I fear for the worst but at least she looks reasonable as an old white guy. She looks like a bloated Martin Short. The premise is interesting but I don't like Laurel. Without that, it's hard to find any appealing comedy in this.
Whoopi Goldberg is too bitter and angry to be likeable. As a comedy, there are no laughs. It's not like Laurel is a nice person herself. Sally points out how dismissive she is to other women. It's interesting that Bebe Neuwirth's Camille Scott uses sex to get ahead as a foil. The whole boys club mentality is interesting but none of it is funny. As far as hitting the glass ceiling, there is a real reason why Laurel doesn't get promoted above the male chauvinist reasons. She has to be a good salesman as part of her job and she lacks the emotional IQ. Her character needs to be superior in every way to Frank and she's not. It's a dog eat dog world on Wall Street. When Laurel dress up Tootsie style, I fear for the worst but at least she looks reasonable as an old white guy. She looks like a bloated Martin Short. The premise is interesting but I don't like Laurel. Without that, it's hard to find any appealing comedy in this.