Jerry Maguire (1996)

Directed by Cameron Crowe. Starring Tom Cruise, Renée Zellweger, Cuba Gooding Jr., Bonnie Hunt, Jonathan Lipnicki, Regina King, Jay Mohr, Kelly Preston, Beau Bridges, Jerry O’Connell, Aries Spears, Todd Louiso, Jared Jussim. [R]

Slick, successful sports agent Jerry Maguire (Cruise) has a crisis of conscience, and after expressing his change of heart in a memo (ahem, mission statement), he gets fired, leaving him with the loyalty of just one client, an outspoken but underappreciated wide receiver (Gooding) for the Arizona Cardinals, and a single-mom assistant (Zellweger) who is secretly in love with him. Winning, if overloaded, romantic seriocomedy with ample helpings of humor and heart, packaged as a crowdpleaser to satisfy men and women of all post-adolescent age groups. Granted, that “packaging” leaves everything a little too tidy as conflicts and issues get resolved by the end, but I like the way the “happily ever after” has notes of uncertainty, and the way the frayed edges and minor missteps loosen the belt around the waist of 1996’s traditional Hollywood hit to compete against the crossover of more offbeat indie filmmaking into the realm of prestige (Fargo, Secrets & Lies, and Shine were among its competitors for the Best Picture Oscar). Cruise is just right in what feels like a tailor-made role, Zellweger has perhaps never been as appealing onscreen as she is here in a breakthrough performance, flashy and funny Gooding Jr. won the Academy Award, and this is one of the times where Bonnie Hunt (as Zellweger’s skeptical sister) is a pleasure to watch onscreen—considering the parts she’s taken over the course of her career, she’s hardly a sure thing (anyone remember Kissing a Fool?). Writer/director Cameron Crowe’s smart screenplay has its share of self-conscious and clumsy moments, but you’d be hard-pressed to find a script since to match this one for the sheer number of quotes that entered the lexicon. Beau Bridges appeared unbilled; a slew of recognizable faces appear in bit parts and cameos, be they actors (Eric Stoltz, Donal Logue, et al), musicians (Jerry Cantrell, Glenn Grey, et al), or sports figures (Al Michaels, Troy Aikman, et al).

82/100