JERRY MAGUIRE
A film review by Chad Polenz
Copyright 1997 Chad Polenz
***1/2 (out of 4 = very good) 1996, R, 138 minutes [2 hours, 18 minutes] [romantic comedy] starring: Tom Cruise (Jerry Maguire), Renee Zellweger (Dorothy Boyd), Cuba Gooding Jr. (Rod Tidwell), Bonnie Hunt (Laurel Boyd), produced by James L. Brooks, Cameron Crowe, Richard Sakai, written and directed by Cameron Crowe.
Single mothers, "Scrooge"-like characters, cocky athletes, and love: what do all these things have in common? They're all very difficult to work with in the movies. "Jerry Maguire" is a funny and charming movie that not only uses all of these tricky devices interchangeably, but uses them well. So well in fact, it makes for a very serious story that, ironically, remains lighthearted throughout. Tom Cruise stars as Jerry Maguire, a successful sports agent who resembles a modern day Ebeneezer Scrooge. He handles nearly 100 clients at SMI - a large sports management firm, but it is obvious his vision has been blurred by dollar signs. When one of his clients is injured, he tries to console his son through the same hyperbole he uses to promote the child's father. After an extremely rude response from the kid, Jerry is knocked off his ego cloud and realizes what he has been missing: people. And so Jerry has a fantastic revelation and writes a mission statement about how the business has been corrupted by greed. What's so refreshing about this film is the fact that Cruise is able to carry this character as well as he does. Of course characters this likable can't be surrounded by sharks, and thus Jerry is fired because he dares have a conscience. But this isn't a straight character drama, it's really a love story, and this is blatantly foreshadowed, but in one of the sweetest and charming ways I've ever seen. Renee Zellweger steals the show as the cute but lonely Dorothy Boyd, a secretary at SMI who develops a secret crush on Jerry. She is a single mother, but at no time does the film portray her as a victim because she is hard working and dedicated. As Jerry gives a humorous goodbye speech to the entire company, she risks everything and goes with him, not so much out of attraction (because she knows he is engaged), but because she has been hypnotized by his charm (as we also have been hypnotized by Crowe's story). Jerry breaks up with his fiancee at the NFL draft, and everything starts to head south. The only ray of sunshine is the fact that now he and Dorothy can get together, but the film takes a longer route than necessary to make this happen. There is a lot of awkward situations, but eventually the two realize they're perfect for each other. Although this is one of the most original movies I've seen, it makes a few unnecessary errors during the last act. Jerry and Dorothy have great chemistry and seem so right together, but they rush into marriage mostly to prevent from breaking up. At the same time, Jerry's only client, Rod Tidwell's (Gooding) contract becomes very important to the plot of the film, and Jerry's success is riding on Tidwell. I can't believe Crowe uses the sports cliffhanger and the poetic makeup speech in such close proximity (or at all for that matter), but at least we get a happy ending. Special mention must be made of Jonathon Lipnicki as 6-year-old Ray Boyd; he is quite possibly the cutest and funniest kid I've ever seem. "Jerry Maguire" could have been a perfect movie had it not become so serious towards the end, but nevertheless it still remains in a high class for its originality and charm.
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