Tendres passions

I've heard many good things about James L. Brooks's 'Terms of Endearment' and finally I decided to give it ago. Honestly speaking I was expecting a typical melodramatic tearjerker that's sole aim is to emotionally manipulate the viewer. I was wrong. 'Terms of Endearment' is a slice of life that centres around a mother, her daughter and their respective lives. The film looks very authentic. The sets, makeup, costumes and art direction look genuine.

This is very much a character driven film. The dialogues are full of humour and wit but what's also striking is how deeply layered the words are. While the visuals are quite simplistic it's the characters that shine especially through the actors' natural performances. Their excellent non-verbal gestures, spot on line delivery and restrained performances are superb.

A sassy Shirley Maclaine and bubbly Debra Winger are spellbinding. Both actresses beautifully carry the film and they are brilliantly supported by fine actors like Danny DeVito, Jack Nicholson, John Lithgow and Jeff Daniels.

What particularly appealed to me about 'Terms of Endearment' is the depiction of the mother-daughter relationship and the dynamic of it. It definitely has its ups and downs and it does not involve the use of clichéd lines like 'I love you' etc but at the same time the unconditional love between them is wonderfully conveyed.

It's often a strange experience to revisit a film that made a big splash decades earlier. I remember enjoying it enormously and enjoyed it enormously again last night but the reasons for the enjoyment have changed. The film as a film has remained solidly planted in 1983, specially the score but what will lead this film into the forever ever are the writing of course and the performances. Shirley MacLaine's truthfulness warts an all is a work of art. She is present one hundred per cent of the time and let's remember, Shirley MacLaine didn't start as an actress, she was a dancer who became a star thanks to a twist of fate and she has remained there as an example of honesty and courage ever since. Her Aurora in Terms Of Endearment is a monumental treat. Debra Winger's performance is a revolution of sorts. Every detail confirms and/or challenges our feelings for her but she's never less that one hundred per cent truthful. It's impossible not to love her even if she doesn't make it easy for you. Jack Nicholson is a terrific interference and every one of his moments have a pleasure of their own. So, a 35 year old movie with a teenager's heart.

Life is a gap between what we expect to happen and what really occurs. Aurora doesn't accept the gap and she closes herself in her "daughter & home" micro-world. Life turns up to be more cruel to her than the average, but she proves to be ready and faces all obstacles that come with outstanding integrity and brave. So, accept the gap but bé ready. Memmorable Shirley MacLaine in a universal classic movie.

TERMS OF ENDEARMENT is an undeniably gripping and emotional film experience that will have you rolling on the floor during one scene and weeping uncontrollably during the next. This film follows the complicated relationship between an icy, Texan widow named Aurora Greenway (Shirley MacLaine)and her slightly-off-the-wall daughter, Emma (Debra Winger), who at the beginning of the film is marrying a man named Flap Horton (Jeff Daniels), whom her mother clearly hates, seemingly just to get away from her. The film follows Emma's marriage through three children, infidelity, and unexpected tragedy but it never lets go of the unspoken bond between Aurora and Emma...a bond so strong that it transcends telephone lines, geography, and even dialogue at times...there are moments in the story where you see Aurora and Emma communicate without saying a word to each other. Writer-director James L. Brooks won a pair of Oscars for writing and directing this funny and heartbreaking story that stretches over a long period of time but never fails to hold interest and trust me, the last 20-30 minutes of this film will have you weeping. Shirley MacLaine finally won her long-overdue Best Actress Oscar for her controlled performance as Aurora and Jack Nicholson won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his performance as a retired astronaut who moves in next door to Aurora after Emma moves out and begins a hilarious and touching relationship with Aurora. Debra Winger is explosive and unpredictable as Emma and Jeff Daniels is fully invested in the unsympathetic role of Flap. A truly unique motion picture experience that will leave you limp.

After looking forward to seeing this film for many years, I finally have watched it, and was left a little disappointed. Don't get me wrong, it's a good movie, but I expected so very much more. I found the plot to be rather thin for a movie this long, and after some thought, I'd have to say that the script was average at best. With a weaker cast, I suspect that I wouldn't have even liked it. Fortunately, this film is blessed with a spectacular cast, and this film deservedly received Oscar recognition in the acting categories. It just didn't deserve the best picture Oscar that it also won.