R | | Comedy, Drama, Romance | 13 December 1996 (USA)
It’s the 30th anniversary of “Jerry Maguire,” which became an instant, beloved sports-romance American classic. If there was an award for movies with the most culture-changing lines that immediately became famous across America, “Jerry Maguire” would have won.
Consider, if you will: 1) “Show me the money!!” 2) “You complete me.” 3) “You had me at hello.” 4) “The human head weighs eight pounds.” 5) “Kwan!” 6) “Help me, help you!” 7) “Shoplifting … .” I can’t write the rest of that sentence here, but chances are you’ve seen “Jerry Maguire” and know what I’m talking about.
Early Career Cruise
Tom Cruise’s stock character as a young actor was an arrogant, self-centered, slick, somewhat predatory boyish man, whose story arc was the transition into mature manhood. The characters start off—in the vernacular of the current mytho-poetic men’s movement—with their Inner Warrior and Magician quadrants strong. Over the course of the movies, the characters evolve their King and Lover. “Rain Man,” “A Few Good Men,” “Top Gun,” and “Jerry Maguire” all follow this archetypal storyline.
In “Jerry Maguire,” Cruise plays the titular high-octane sports agent. Working at a big agency, he handles a portfolio filled with famous baseball, basketball, and footballers. In Jerry’s world, it’s all about the money. He secures highly lucrative contracts and commercial deals for his clients, keeps them in the fame game, and in turn, rakes in the cash for his firm. Last but not least, he makes major money for Mr. Maguire. In an industry full of sharks, Jerry is a 20-foot giant hammerhead.
When on the phone, Jerry says things like: “I will not rest until I have you holding a Coke, wearing your own shoe, playing a Sega game—featuring you—while singing your own song in a new commercial—starring you—broadcast during the Superbowl, in a game that you are winning, and I will not sleep until that happens. I’ll give you 15 minutes to call me back.”
But for all this wheeling and dealing and schmoozing and charming and lying—Jerry’s losing his soul. Who is Jerry Maguire, deep down? Is he his father’s son? Subconsciously he knows he’s not, anymore. He’s sold out. He’s become an empty shell. And the video played at his bachelor party featuring a long list of ex-girlfriend interviews, where they uniformly repeat the litany of “Jerry can’t be alone,” speaks for itself. Jerry’s uses women to fill gaps in his schedule so that he doesn’t have to ponder the fact that he doesn’t know who he is. It’s one of the more prevalent subconscious motivations of lotharios.
Jerry’s Vision
One night, though, Jerry wakes up, sees himself in the mirror, and for the first time can’t run away from who he’s become. He takes stock of his current lying, parasite status, and in a frenzy of self-loathing and soul-cleansing, writes out a mission-and-morality statement wherein he details the things that matter. He reimagines the money-centric state of his profession, and resets the true north of his moral compass toward integrity, authenticity, conscience, ethics—and putting clients first.
And while still buzzing with the endorphin rush from this overwhelming infusion of truth, he heads into the office, makes copious copies of his brand new mission statement, and personally puts one in every colleague’s mailbox—boss included. Then he heads home to get some sleep.
Then there’s the sobering wakeup, the pit-of-the-stomach-churning reality check, the cold sweat. Jerry rushes to the office to try and take it all back. The mailboxes have all been emptied. He tries to get back on the elevator—too late. He cringes, and enters the workspace to a crescendo-ing, slow clap from grinning, predatory fellow agents, recalling the O’Jays lyric, “They smile in your face, all the time, they want to take your place, the back stabbers.”
Jerry eventually and unceremoniously gets the boot, of course. During his incredibly embarrassing office exodus, he ladles a goldfish from the fish tank into a plastic bag: “The fish—they’re coming with me.” He also gives an idealistic pep talk and extends an invitation to anyone inclined to join him in his new vision-venture. Only one, Dorothy Boyd (Renée Zellweger), has the courage to leave with him.
Will Jerry be true to his inner moral compass? Will he sell out again? Will he use Dorothy the same way he used all his women? Or will her wee son Ray win Jerry’s heart in a trivia match by informing him from the car backseat, apropos of nothing, that the human head weighs eight pounds?
Performances
Tom Cruise was nominated for Best Actor at the 1997 Academy Awards, but he lost to Geoffrey Rush in “Shine.” That’s mighty stiff competition. Cuba Gooding Jr., however, won for Best Supporting Actor and absolutely deserved the acclaim. His character, fictitious end-zone-break-dancing Cardinals football wide receiver Rod Tidwell, was one for the history books—he of “Show me the money!” “Kwan,” and “Ya knoooww??”
Renée Zellweger’s fame blossomed in “Jerry Maguire.” An up-and-coming “it girl,” she was perfectly cast to play sweet, nurturing, vulnerable, endearing, single mom Dorothy Boyd, who’s also got enough backbone to support her man through hard times. She was the wife all men pine for.
Honorable mentions include Jay Mohr as a heartless, predatory shark with the perfect smarmy name: Bob Sugar. Bonnie Hunt plays Laurel Boyd, Dorothy’s protective older sister who runs a women’s group. Regina King is Marcee Tidwell, who has her fair share of memorable lines herself. Last but not least is little Jonathan Lipnicki, who steals the show as Dorothy’s hilarious son, Ray.
Here’s the monologue spoken by a young man who has finally grown into his inner king:
Jerry (to the women’s group in the living room): “Hello. I’m looking for my wife. Alright. If this is where it has to happen, then this is where it has to happen. I’m not letting you get rid of me. How about that? This used to be my specialty. I was good in a living room. Send me in there, I’ll do it alone. And now I just … I don’t know. … But our little company had a good night tonight. A really big night. But it wasn’t complete. It wasn’t nearly close to being in the same vicinity as complete because I couldn’t share it with you. … I missed my wife. We live in a cynical world, and we work in a business of tough competitors. I love you. You complete me. And I just—”
Dorothy: “Shut up. Just shut up. You had me at hello.”
If you haven’t seen “Jerry Maguire,” you are in for a treat.
‘Jerry Maguire’
Director: Cameron Crowe
Starring: Tom Cruise, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Renee Zellweger, Jerry O’Connell, Regina King
MPAA Rating: R
Running Time: 2 hours, 19 minutes
Release Date: Dec. 13, 1996
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
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