1979:: Kramer vs. Kramer

       Kramer vs Kramer was another one of the movies that I really wanted to see. Funny, it was only one year before Ordinary People. Unfortunately, it was not as great as I thought it was going to be. 
   This movie starts the night that Joanna (Meryl Streep) walks out on Ted (Dustin Hoffman), her husband of 7 years or so. She also leaves behind her son, Billy. Ted is a workaholic and in a major deal at work and must now take care of Billy all by himself. At first they believe Joanna will come back, but as time goes on they realize she is not coming back. So Ted and Billy get into a routine and establish a life without Joanna. Fifteen months later Joanna reappears, wanting to get Billy back. From there, Ted and Joanna must go to court to fight for custody of their son. 

   The things I liked about Kramer vs Kramer are as follows: It had great acting in it by both Meryl Streep and Dustin Hoffman. What I think I loved most this movie was the loving relationship between Ted and Billy and Ted's journey to really loving being with Billy. The become such great friends. I also loved that Ted never once speaks bad to Billy about his mother. 

   Unfortunately, it wasn't what I was expecting. There was not a lot of drama, which you all know I like, and it was full of a lot of dialogue. Dustin Hoffman is a wonderful actor ( he actually won Best Actor for this role), but he spoke and mumbled way too much. I'm kinda on the fence about this movie. It was a quality movie, just a little too long.
My grade for Kramer vs Kramer is B.

1980:: Ordinary People

     In the list of Best Picture movies for me still to watch, there some that I'm drawn to and want to see and some I do not. Ordinary People was a movie I really wanted to watch. It was in my top 5 list. And, with saying that, I wasn't too disappointed. It was full of drama and emotions, but it was so wonderfully acted and so real, that you could relate.

     The story follows the Jewett family, an upper middle class family outside of Chicago as they are struggling to deal with the recent tragic death of their oldest, prized son, Buck. Calvin, the father, played by Donald Sutherland is good- natured, worries too much, and just wants to see everyone happy again. The mother, Beth, played by Mary Tyler Moore, grieves in a different way by trying to get back to life and be the dutiful housewife. She loved Buck and can't seem to love her other son, Conrad. played by Timothy Hutton. Conrad takes Buck's death the hardest by feeling survivor's guilt and unwanted.He eventually tries to commit suicide. Conrad starts going to a psychiatrist (played by Judd Hirsch) who throughout the movie helps him learn why he feels the way he does and helps him to forgive his mother and father for the way they are grieving.

     Ordinary People started out boring and confusing. They kept making references to things that had happened before with Buck's death and Conrad's attempted suicide, that I didn't understand. But after Conrad's first or second visit with the psychiatrist, things started to pick up.Another bad thing was the music score. Early 1980s movies are notorious for their bad use of music and this is no exception. Now with the good things.The journey that Conrad goes through to recover is wonderfully written and acted. Pretty much the acting in this entire movie was amazing! Mary Tyler Moore and Judd Hirsch were both nominated for their roles and Timothy Hutton won Best Supporting Actor for his role. And, it was well deserved! I walked away knowing his battle with depression even though he did not say many things about it. In one scene he has to yell and cry and breakdown in front of the psychiatrist and it was executed perfectly! I have not seen that great of acting in a long time. 

    Other things to mention: If you do not know who Donald Sutherland is, just watch the 2005 Pride and Prejudice; he plays Mr. Bennett. Also, the swim coach in Ordinary People looked very familiar to me so I looked him up and found he played the neighbor Walter on Christmas with the Kranks.

     I started out thinking this was just going to be another boring old movie, but it ended up being a movie I couldn't stop thinking about when it was done. I would love to own it. My grade for Ordinary People is A-.

        

1950:: All About Eve

         If you are looking for that stereotypical, over- dramatic, old fashioned movie, well I have found it. All
About Eve is full of backstabbing, face slapping, and lots and lots of drama. This movie from 1950 starred Bette Davis in what is arguably her best role of her career. It also features Anne Baxter, a well known and very pretty actress for her time and , surprisingly, a young Marilyn Monroe. 

       Margo Channing (Davis) is the biggest celebrity of the theater world and one adoring fan, Eve (Baxter) gets the chance to chat with Margo in her dressing room one night. Margo automatically feels compassion on Eve because of the hard times she has been through and they become quick friends. Eve moves in with Margo and works for her. Well, in time things start getting a little weird as Eve seems to worship the ground Margo walks on and imitates her in everything. Slowly she creeps her way into other parts of Margo's life and it soon becomes apparent that Eve is not the little sweetheart everyone thought her to be. She fabricates lies, tries to steal everyone's man, and very slyly throws people under the bus. Be careful who you trust!
     All About Eve would have been much better if there wasn't SO MUCH DIALOGUE! And, the problem wasn't just the amount of dialogue, but the accents in which they spoke like they were trying to be sophisticated or whatnot. I had to have subtitles on the whole time. But even then, there was a lot of dialogue. The concept was great and the acting was great but I am torn on my opinion of it. I wanted it to be over because I was so bored of them talking, but I loved the story line. It was one of those movies that everything is revealed in the end. Did not like it that much, but I give it props for having Bette Davis and Marilyn Monroe in it. 

My final grade is B-.