Gente corriente

I was 16 years old in 1984 when I first saw this movie. I was also clinically depressed and suicidal. I had been on antidepressants for about a year (in the pre-prozac days) and I happened to see this movie on Showtime or HBO - almost by accident. Timothy Hutton perfectly captures what it's like to be depressed as a teenager. And Judd Hirsch and Hutton perfectly capture the patient/therapist relationship. There are also a few perfect little scenes that capture the problems of a family that can't communicate. Especially memorable is the scene where Calvin tells Beth about the shoes he wore to Buck's funeral. This film captures all of the important moments like this that truly demonstrate the problems the family is having. After seeing it, I read the book and I knew that if Conrad could go on, so could I. I watch this movie once every few years. It really means a lot to me.

A searing dysfunctional family drama that holds up very well today.

Living on Chicago's north shore as I do, I can say with authority that this movie completely nails a certain kind of affluent north shore community that exists in Chicago suburbs like Lake Forest, Winnetka, Highland Park, etc., places where people erect hedges and fences not so much to keep people out as to keep family problems and secrets in. Director Robert Redford and writer Alvin Sargent clearly understand their subject matter. And in fact, this film so closely mirrors many of the personal circumstances of my wife and her family (my wife even established a productive relationship with a Jewish therapist who works out of Skokie, no less), that we joke that the film is really about her. Maybe it's my closeness to the subject matter that gives me my appreciation of the movie, but even without that I still think that I'd consider this film to be a superb drama, flawlessly acted.

Speaking of the acting, Mary Tyler Moore, Judd Hirsch and Timothy Hutton were all recognized with Academy Award nominations (Hutton won) for their work in this film, all deservedly. Moore especially is memorable in her portrayal of a brittle power mom who must constantly hide behind a veneer of icy aloofness for fear that one tiny crack in her facade will send her crumbling to pieces. But two other actors deserve praise as well: Donald Sutherland, as a suffering father who's ill-equipped to deal with his family's problems yet whose heart is in the right place; and Elizabeth McGovern, who brings a sense of normalcy and healthiness into the film like a fresh breeze off Lake Michigan.

There's a lot of talk about whether this film is better than "Raging Bull," which came out the same year and lost the Best Picture Oscar to "Ordinary People," which only goes to show how lame award competitions are when it comes to movies -- how can you possibly compare the two? See them both.

Grade: A

"Ordinary People" deserved its Oscar. There was such fierce competition in 1980 that winning the award was a real honor. The movie should have shared honors with "Coal Miner's Daughter".

Having said that, the reality of the movie is so heartbreaking and so real that you feel every emotion and understand the characters feelings, whether you liked them or not. Mary Tyler Moore's performance of Beth Jarrett is so powerful that you forget Moore's comedic repertoire and immerse yourself into her persona as a cold, distant wife that can not show emotion for her son. It is disturbing that Beth can not show Conrad love and it breaks your heart when you see the awkwardness as he tries so hard to get any love or recognition from her. Her breakdown scene at the golf course and the realization at the end of the movie that she is incapable of affectionate love are powerful performances.

Donald Sutherland's understated and beautiful performance is brilliant. His making up for Beth's shortcomings as an affectionate human being are so touching. He does all he can to keep the rest of his family together. Why he was not nominated for an Oscar is beyond comprehension.

Timothy Hutton absolutely shines as the troubled Conrad. All you want to do is hug him, love him, after his rejections from his own mother. The torture and pain he is in is portrayed so stunningly. His guilt over the death of his brother and subsequent depression are heartbreaking.

Growing up in suburban America, the film rings many a truth to the insights of what people perceive as a "normal family". The cocktail parties, the school activities, the socialization of Beth and her friends over the recognition of her son do happen in suburban America. Robert Redford recognized every real detail of the facades that people put up and the reality of what happens at home. They are poignantly and chillingly realized.

Definitely one of the most deserved Best Picture Oscars given. Please don't miss this one.

A family in an affluent neighborhood north of Chicago tries to recover after a tragedy. Timothy Hutton plays the troubled son who gets help from a therapist (Judd Hirsch) while Donald Sutherland & Mary Tyler Moore play the seemingly okay parents.

"Ordinary People" (1980) was Robert Redford's debut movie in the director's chair and it was a huge success. The story is two-pronged: It's a coming-of-age drama about the anxious son at home, school, therapy and his relationships with the fairer sex, as well as a marital drama about the parents.

This was Hutton's first theatrical movie, but you wouldn't know that by his powerhouse performance, which is on the level of Brando. It's interesting how simple, realistic drama can be more compelling than some overblown "blockbuster" with an explosion every five minutes.

Winsome Elizabeth McGovern is a highlight as one of the girls the son dates.

On the negative side, the storm sequences are pretty artificial, reminiscent of a TV flick, and the story almost drowns in its unrelenting drama in the last act (I said "almost").

The film runs 2 hours, 4 minutes, and was mostly shot in suburbs north of Chicago, e.g. Lake Forest and Highland Park.

GRADE: B

This film, without a doubt, is the best dramatic film I have ever seen. It is truly an extraordinary film of humanity. To start out, the film begins in complete silence and gently flows into Pachalbel's "Canon in D". It has become my favorite movie and I can say with 100% certainty that it deserved every Oscar it received. I cannot truly articulate with words what this movie did to me when I first saw it. I had an epiphany-like experience. I was born in 1980 and didn't see this film until shortly after I turned 19. The events portrayed by Timothy Hutton, Mary Tyler Moore, Donald Sutherland, Judd Hirsch, Elizabeth McGovern, Dinah Manoff, and Fredric Lehne are just as powerful and relevant in society today as they were 20 years ago. Timothy Hutton's performance of Conrad Jarrett, an 18 yr-old suffering from depression after the tragic death of his older brother is extraordinary. Being the age Hutton was when he made the film, when I first saw it twenty years later, I related to the emotions on every note. Teenagers are rarely portrayed in film as realistically as in real life. In my opinion, Conrad Jarrett in "Ordinary People" is the best portrayal on film of a teenage boy going through the good times and the bad, but mostly the bad. Timothy Hutton is a truly amazing actor. Mary Tyler Moore also deserved all of the praise and nomination for a role that is literally the opposite of anything she had ever played before. The way she portrayed the cold, cruel, yet emotionally-hidden Beth Jarrett is outstanding. Donald Sutherland and Judd Hirsch also gave performances that made them truly believable as Calvin Jarrett and Dr. Berger. Sutherland should have received an Oscar nomination. Elizabeth McGovern and Dinah Manoff's small character roles as Jeannine Pratt and Karen are just as vivid as in the novel. Jeannine provides the excellent uplift in the story; while Karen provides the semblance of reality that things are not as they seem. Every line and every scene in this film is as detrimental to the overall underlying theme as it is in the novel by Judith Guest. The words "I love you" and "love" have an immense importance in this film. Kudos to Robert Redford, who shows that he is not only an excellent actor, but also a truly excellent director. The color scheme, music scheme, setting in Lake Forest, Illinois and that "perfect" home all provide the exact backdrop to the circumstances going on between these characters and within Conrad himself. This film relies solely on the realistic interaction between "ordinary" people living through "extraordinary" circumstances. This film had an amazing impact on me and I'm sure it will do the same for anyone else who sees it. If you do not leave this film having gained that underlying insight that this film gives, then you did not truly understand the purpose of the film. You don't have to suffer from depression or go through the loss of a loved one to understand the message delivered by this film. It's definitely more than just a "tissue" movie. Truly one of the best films ever made.

A 10 out of 10.