Huge box-office hit for star Michael J. Fox is really just an extension of his role on TV's "Family Ties"...and maybe that's all his fans wanted (after all, Fox's dramatic performance from earlier in the year with "Light of Day" was outright ignored). Under the ridiculously yuppie-fied character name of Brantley Foster, Fox plays a Midwestern kid with a degree in finance who relocates to the Big Apple but finds himself stuck in the mailroom of his uncle's corporation; with some light deception, our hero climbs the ranks of success, eventually attracting the eye of his uncle's wanton wife--the daughter of the corporation's founder. This may be the worst movie Herbert Ross ever directed. With a shallow screenplay worked on by three writers, "Secret" raises a few laughs early on before becoming a dated 'corporate satire' which doesn't even look good. Helen Slater's potential love-interest suits Fox well, but her character's indignation is pure formula, as is the "Graduate"-like subplot underscored by Yello's obnoxious "Oh Yeah!" *1/2 from ****
Review of The Secret of My Success
