Directed by: Robert Redford
Released: 1980
Country: United States
Stars: Donald Sutherland, Mary Tyler Moore, Timothy Hutton, Judd Hirsch, Elizabeth McGovern, M. Emmet Walsh, Dinah Manoff
Genres: Drama
Rating: 4.5 out of 5
Review
Ordinary People, Robert Redford's directorial debut, deals with a family who is having troubles in restarting and renewing a good relationship, after the death of one of it's members. It's a calmly intense film that moved me, and impressed me... it made me look at the screen and have an emotional journey along with the characters. A thoughtful, melancholy, yet a feel-good film, once I watched it, I liked it, a lot.
After the death of a son, Bucky, upper middle class parents Calvin (Donald Sutherland) and Beth (Mary Tyler Moore) and their other son Conrad (Timothy Hutton) are having a hard time. Beth is getting distant from both Calvin and Conrad. Conrad somewhat blames himself for the death of Bucky. Conrad attempted suicide, and spent some months at a psychiatric hospital. Now he feels that people are drifting away from him, his world has become something melancholy and sad, and his mother is becoming more distant. His father, Calvin, is always a kind and compassionate person, and advises Conrad to see psychiatrist Dr Berger. He agrees, and has both problematic and refreshing times with the doctor. Meanwhile, his swimming lessons are also giving him a hard time. What will he do now? The world seems now melancholy to all three members of the family...
Basically, the film tells us a sad story about the three members of this family, about how the death of the family's older son have affected them all. The story doesn't have a problem in it, and if it has, there is no solution in it. But yes, it makes some advances towards a solution, and the ending does hint that everything may not get fine, but still, there may be improvements on the relations between the family members, that their can still be hope.
The screenplay, adapted from a novel by Judith Guest, is calm yet emotionally overwhelming. The scene where Dr Berger assures Conrad that he is his friend, almost made tears coming to my eyes. The cinematography is beautiful. The opening is also nice; the film starts showing us natural beauty of woods, trees, leaves, water. This natural beauty is seen throughout the film, adding a sublime beauty to the overall looks.
The performances are very powerful. First of all, there is the handsome Donald Sutherland as the father, a calm, quiet man who is quite worried about the distance that the members of his family are developing. Timothy Hutton, who won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for this role, becoming the youngest actor ever to win in this category, gives a superb performance, bringing the emotional aspects of the character to life. Mary Tyler Moore, as the distant mother, is, in a word, perfect. Then there is Judd Hirsch, as Dr Berger, giving another very memorable performance.
It will not become one of my favorite films, but I liked this film, a lot, and would highly recommend it. It's an emotionally intense and calm, overwhelming... great film.
4.5 out of 5
Released: 1980
Country: United States
Stars: Donald Sutherland, Mary Tyler Moore, Timothy Hutton, Judd Hirsch, Elizabeth McGovern, M. Emmet Walsh, Dinah Manoff
Genres: Drama
Rating: 4.5 out of 5
Review
Ordinary People, Robert Redford's directorial debut, deals with a family who is having troubles in restarting and renewing a good relationship, after the death of one of it's members. It's a calmly intense film that moved me, and impressed me... it made me look at the screen and have an emotional journey along with the characters. A thoughtful, melancholy, yet a feel-good film, once I watched it, I liked it, a lot.
After the death of a son, Bucky, upper middle class parents Calvin (Donald Sutherland) and Beth (Mary Tyler Moore) and their other son Conrad (Timothy Hutton) are having a hard time. Beth is getting distant from both Calvin and Conrad. Conrad somewhat blames himself for the death of Bucky. Conrad attempted suicide, and spent some months at a psychiatric hospital. Now he feels that people are drifting away from him, his world has become something melancholy and sad, and his mother is becoming more distant. His father, Calvin, is always a kind and compassionate person, and advises Conrad to see psychiatrist Dr Berger. He agrees, and has both problematic and refreshing times with the doctor. Meanwhile, his swimming lessons are also giving him a hard time. What will he do now? The world seems now melancholy to all three members of the family...Basically, the film tells us a sad story about the three members of this family, about how the death of the family's older son have affected them all. The story doesn't have a problem in it, and if it has, there is no solution in it. But yes, it makes some advances towards a solution, and the ending does hint that everything may not get fine, but still, there may be improvements on the relations between the family members, that their can still be hope.
The screenplay, adapted from a novel by Judith Guest, is calm yet emotionally overwhelming. The scene where Dr Berger assures Conrad that he is his friend, almost made tears coming to my eyes. The cinematography is beautiful. The opening is also nice; the film starts showing us natural beauty of woods, trees, leaves, water. This natural beauty is seen throughout the film, adding a sublime beauty to the overall looks.
The performances are very powerful. First of all, there is the handsome Donald Sutherland as the father, a calm, quiet man who is quite worried about the distance that the members of his family are developing. Timothy Hutton, who won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for this role, becoming the youngest actor ever to win in this category, gives a superb performance, bringing the emotional aspects of the character to life. Mary Tyler Moore, as the distant mother, is, in a word, perfect. Then there is Judd Hirsch, as Dr Berger, giving another very memorable performance.
It will not become one of my favorite films, but I liked this film, a lot, and would highly recommend it. It's an emotionally intense and calm, overwhelming... great film.
4.5 out of 5
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