By Marc S. Sanders
Writer/Director Cameron Crowe loves all of the characters he creates. He loves them so much that I bet he’s got volumes of background histories on each one ranging from a nanny – sorry Au Pair – to a cute seven-year-old kid to a brash, hot shot professional sports agent like Jerry Maguire. Everyone, absolutely EVERYONE, in Crowe’s films has to have a substantial amount of dialogue to bring them attention. Often it works. Yet, it’s also his Achille’s heel.
Roger Ebert called Jerry Maguire a very busy picture and I could not agree more. Do not mistake me. I’m quite fond of the film, but yeah, Cameron Crowe unloads a lot in its over two-hour running time. The title character, played by Tom Cruise in one of his best roles, is the superstar agent who has everything going for him. He’s engaged to a beautiful talent scout named Avery (Kelly Preston), he has a knack for negotiating the best contracts for the greatest up and coming athletes, and he’s loved – strike that…adored by everyone. Well…not everyone. A hockey player’s kid tells him to eff off after his dad suffers his fourth concussion and can barely recognize his family or remember his own name. It’s only then that he has a revelation in the middle of the night to document a multi-page memo inspiring his colleagues to sidestep the need to make more money. Less clients, and more personal attention to the ones you represent. Call for everyone in his firm to get behind him in this mentality. Jerry Maguire will be their martyr.
Well, that gets him fired, and ultimately he’s deemed a loser which is something that poor Jerry cannot learn to live with comfortably. His one last hope at redemption lies in a promising wide receiver named Rod Tidwell (Cuba Gooding Jr – in a still very memorable role, likely the greatest of his career). Rod remains committed to sticking with Jerry, but that is not going to make it easy. He’s often uncooperative. His pregnant wife, Marcy (Regina King) will not stand for any BS. Rod is more concerned with obtaining the million-dollar contract, and it takes every last breath of Jerry’s to convince his client that it starts with getting back to just loving the game.
There is also another chance for Jerry to try his hand at love. Wait, is it love, or is it that Jerry cannot handle being alone? The test will lie in his relationship with his assistant Dorothy (Renee Zellweger in her breakthrough role), a twenty-six-year-old widow with the cutest kid (Jonathan Lipnicki, impossible not to fall in love with) for a son and a divorced sister named Laurel (Bonnie Hunt) who only has the support of her crying, pessimistic divorced wives support group.
Are you catching on yet to what Roger Ebert was trying to say? There’s a lot of ingredients to make this stew. Fortunately, all of it is good material with a great cast, but they are all distractions for one another as well. At times there seems to be three movies going on at once. Jerry the agent needs to get back on the horse. Rod needs to humble himself and listen to his agent. Dorothy needs to decide if this handsome guy who is the spitting image of Tom Cruise is best for her while she’s trying to be a single mother with a seven-year-old.
The kid’s Au Pair has ten pages of dialogue. Marcy has fifteen. Avery has maybe five, but that’s quite a lot too. It feels like Laurel and her divorced wives group have fifty pages. Then there is the jerky antagonist who fired Jerry played Jay Mohr. There’s just a lot of stuff here.
Jerry Maguire is a well-made film with a natural, feel-good comedic approach. Cameron Crowe has feelings for all of his characters. I think he doesn’t even want the Jay Mohr character to get hurt. Crowe just wants to cradle everyone and kiss them goodnight and give them all a big part in the school play. It’s a blessing the cast has terrific chemistry. Anyone sharing a scene with Tom Cruise is doing brilliant work, especially Renee Zellweger and Cuba Gooding Jr.
Crowe’s dialogue might feel schmaltzy during the love story aspect, but it’s captivating. Cuba Gooding Jr performs like he wrote the character, not Crowe. He must have invented more to his Oscar winning portrayal of a cocky wanna be football star than the writer could have ever imagined. “Show me the money!!!!” is still hailed as an all time great scene, chartered by the actor.
As a director, Cameron Crowe is doing some of his best work. I recently watched the movie with my Cinemaniac pals and noted to them how much lighting is pointed at the handsome faces of the cast. It could be Cruise making a negotiation with a promising football star and his no nonsense dad (Jerry O’Connell, Beau Bridges) around a coffee table, or it could be a seductive scene between the romantic leads on a porch. You never saw so many faces with flawless complexions and the photography of the film looks great from beginning to end.
As overstuffed as Jerry Maguire is, the film ultimately belongs to Tom Cruise, and he delivers Cameron Crowe’s character arc beautifully. It is such a dynamic portrayal with a lot for Jerry to redeem, learn from and surmise. The conceit I expect from Cruise is evident. Sure! However, it is still a well-constructed portrayal.
This movie makes me yearn for Tom Cruise to seek out those roles that would come from nowhere and with surprise. The roles that on the surface never seem like he should be occupying. Think about this for a second. This guy has played the seductive Vampire Lestat which was initially poo poo’d by Anne Rice. He was crippled Vietnam War veteran/protestor Ron Kovic, soon after he played fighter pilot Maverick. He played the cruelly extreme chauvinistic motivational speaker Frank TJ Mackey amid another crowded cast of exceptional talents and characters. He’s also portrayed Jerry Maguire. The range of this actor’s talent can only be stretched further and further. I’d rather know what wonderous role Tom Cruise has in store next, rather than what ridiculous stunt he wants to accomplish for another Mission: Impossible set up.
Jerry Maguire is a gluttonous picture, but fortunately every entrée is served with heart, genuine emotion, and relatable caricatures. It’s one of Cameron Crowe’s best films.
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