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Review

Jerry Maguire

Director

Cameron Crowe

Year

1996

Rating

Reviewed by

José Ruiloba a.k.a. Morris

Review date

Sunday, June 03, 2001

Jerry Maguire is a movie I’ve seen all over again and again and again. The reason is simple: it is one of my favorite movies ever. It’s got all the perfect ingredients and Cameron Crowe simply did it again.

Jerry Maguire (Tom Cruise) is a sports manager working for a big company. One day, he feels miserable about his life and in a moment of inspiration writes a memo about how a good and honest businessman should behave. Next thing you know, he’s fired. It is then a race between him and his direct competitor (Jay Mohr) to get as many clients for themselves as possible. Jerry ends up with just one: a football player (Cuba Gooding Jr.) starving for fame and money. Along with him and a beautiful single mother (Reneé Zellweger), he becomes independent, although things ain’t gonna be that easy.

Jerry Maguire is a mixture of everything. There’s romance, there’s drama, there’s comedy and every single aspect is just as special as the other one. There’s so much sincerity and truth in this characters that we believe in them. We feel what they’re feeling. We get into their world. There’s warmness going on here. There’s caring.

The movie has kind of two roots, as it shows how Jerry must deal with his personal life and with his work. None are that easy. There’s a really heartbreaking plot here where Jerry and Dorothy (Zellweger) get involved in a romantic relationship that is much more original and real than what we usually see. It is a relationship where important decisions must be made and where people should realize what are their priorities in life. Love is something much more profound, something that requires responsibilities. It isn’t something to jump to just like that. There’s much more Jerry has to discover.

Meanwhile, his relationship with Rod Tidwell (Gooding) is quite interesting and touching as well. These are guys trying to succeed in the very difficult world of sports. They have goals, and it takes a long path to achieve them. Together they’ll go through a lot and learn from each other. They must survive.

Tom Cruise gives one of the best performances of his career as the unforgettable Jerry Maguire. The way the character is written also helps, since it is a very complex man which isn’t perfect but just wants what the rest of us do: happiness. Reneé Zellweeger skyrocketed to stardom after this role. She is simply amazing, adorable, perfect. She should have been Oscar nominated. If it weren’t because every other performance is also flawless, she would have stolen the film. Cuba Gooding Jr. is charismatic as hell and brings all the pizzazz necessary to make his character such a memorable one. Jonathan Lipnicky as Reneé’s son is another find. His scenes are true gems. Bonnie Hunt also provides nice support.

But who’s to blame for such an achievement? None other than Cameron Crowe. He’s the man. He’s got the perfect touch. He’s brilliant!

I could go on forever telling you about each and every scene of the movie. They are all magic, but I do have some favorite ones. Of course, the “Give me the money” one in which Jerry tries to convince Rod to stay with him is classic. The scene near the end when Rod gets out of the dressing room is quite special. But the winner here is when Jerry goes to Dorothy’s house asking for forgiveness. Really poignant moments in an extraordinary movie.

“Shut up. Just shut up. You had me at ‘hello.’”

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Other reviews of Jerry Maguire (1996): Groucho