| Murder Live! | |
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DVD cover
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| Directed by | Roger Spottiswoode |
| Written by | Chris Bertolet |
| Produced by |
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| Starring |
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| Cinematography | Jeffrey Jur |
| Edited by | Dominique Fortin |
| Music by | Gary Chang |
Production | |
Release date |
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Running time | 96 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Murder Live! is a 1997 American television film written by Chris Bertolet and directed by Roger Spottiswoode. Marg Helgenberger stars as Pia Postman, a television presenter who hosts a self-titled tabloid talk show. David Morse stars are Frank McGrath, a man who holds Postman hostage after his daughter suffered embarrassment due to a prior guest appearance on the show.
Pia Postman (Helgenberger) hosts a self-titled tabloid talk show, a program grieving father Frank McGrath (Morse) takes offense to after his daughter commits suicide as a direct result of being humiliated on the show. He then disguises himself as a member of the audience during a live episode of the show, and takes Postman hostage wearing a bomb jacket, threatening to kill himself, Postman, and the audience if the police intervene.[1]
The film was inspired by the murder of Scott Amedure, a guest who was killed three days after he appeared on an episodeofThe Jenny Jones Show.[2]
Ray RichmondofVariety believed the film was "a roundly entertaining, smartly constructed piece of filmmaking", although he also claimed it was "over-the-top for its own good".[3] Tom ShalesofThe Washington Post criticized the film as "preachy and ponderous".[4] Howard Rosenberg of the Los Angeles Times claimed the film was just as exploitative as the tabloid talk shows it intended to criticize.[5] John J. O'ConnorofThe New York Times believed the film had a strong message against the tabloid talk show genre, and he praised Marg Helgenberger's leading performance.[6]
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Films directed by Roger Spottiswoode
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