Terms of Endearment (1983)

Directed by James L. Brooks. Starring Debra Winger, Shirley MacLaine, Jack Nicholson, Jeff Daniels, John Lithgow, Lisa Hart Carroll, Danny DeVito, Troy Bishop, Huckleberry Fox, Betty King, Kate Charleson. [PG]

First-time feature director Brooks adapted Larry McMurtry’s novel, which tells the story of a dysfunctional mother-daughter relationship between domineering MacLaine and unassertive Winger over the course of a decade or so, packed full of ups and downs. While Winger deals with a flaky, unfaithful husband (Daniels), MacLaine commences a romance with her smarmy but charismatic neighbor (Nicholson), but all roads lead to the reconciliation of the leading ladies, which comes at a cost. Despite (or perhaps because of) Brooks’ long history working on television shows, he shows little knack for organizing the personalities or achieving cohesion across the timeline-jumping episodes. There are some amusing moments along the way, but the calculated manipulation in the first half collapses into a grimace-worthy brand of button-pushing and tear-jerking towards the end, and too many moments throughout are irrationally designed for strident emotional responses (the rude cashier, the stalling nurse, an insolent child, etc.). Ultimately, a splendid lead performance from Winger and Michael Gore’s musical score are all there is to truly appreciate. MacLaine scored an Oscar, but she’s too often an over-the-top distortion, even a caricature; Nicholson won a trophy, too, and though he has some fun moments, his character hardly serves a purpose in relation to the central family dynamic, and he basically plays little more than a variation on his own public image/personality. Three more Academy Awards were handed out for writing, direction, and producing, all of which went to Brooks. Followed by a sequel: The Evening Star.

47/100