"Ordinary People" (1980)

"Ordinary People" Movie Poster

I never realized, until now, how attracted I have become to dramatic films, I really enjoy them. I'm especially developing a taste for older movies, because they show a different way movies were made. This is in comparison to today's movies, which are more concentrated on action, sex or gore, rather than the story that encompasses the characters. Can you think of a movie that was made before the 1990s that shows this sentiment of the story over the action? Please feel free to comment!

I think the sentiment I mentioned above applies perfectly to 1980's smash hit "Ordinary People." Looking at the DVD case in the Longwood library a few days ago, I realized this movie won 4 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Supporting Actor, and Best Screenplay Adaption. In my mind, if it won all these prestigious Oscars, it had to be a good movie.

The theatrical trailer is available to view on the library's DVD. I watched this first, just to get a sense of what the movie would be about. With the opening chords of Handel's "Messiah," a voice-over reads, "In this typical town, in this comfortable home, three ordinary people are about to live an extraordinary story."

The following is a smattering of the sound bites from the trailer:

"What kind of psychiatrist are you? You don't believe in dreams," a young man says, scoffing at the psychiatrist. "I do believe in dreams," the shrink responds, "only sometimes I want to know what's happening when you're awake."

Psychiatrist: "How long are you going to punish yourself? When are you going to quit?"

Young Man: "I just did one wrong thing..."

Psychiatrist: "And what was that one wrong thing you did?"

These little sound bites/clips pulled me in even more, as most trailers do. It made my hungry to find out what was wrong with the young man, why he was seeing a psychiatrist, why was he punishing himself.

The cast of characters is star-studded, and this movie gave some actors and actresses their start in the movie business.

The story follows a upper-class family residing in Lake Forest, Illinois. Though the movie is dated in the looks of the cars and clothes, the story and lessons learned are far more important.

A young and striking Donald Sutherland plays the easy-going and loving father Calvin Jarrett, Mary Tyler Moore plays his charming yet self-centered wife, Beth. They had two sons, Buck (Scott Doebler) and Conrad (Timothy Hutton), but we learn early on that Buck has died. Through a series of flashbacks from Conrad's point of view, it appears that Buck drowned in a lake of some sort during a fierce storm.

Along the way, the Jarrett family begins to disintegrate as details about Buck's death and the family come out. The clear protagonist is Conrad, a high-school student, as we see his life with his parents, adjusting with his friends, the swim team, and girls. As the movie progresses, psychiatrist Berger (Judd Hirsch) and girls Karen (Dinah Manoff) and Jeannine (Elizabeth McGovern).

Two other things, besides the fabulous acting and cast of characters, really sold this movie with me, keeping me riveted to my computer screen even after the 2-hour movie ended. One was the music selection. From the very beginning, Handel's iconic "Messiah" sets the tone of the movie. Second, the choice of scenery and setting truly shows the status of the Jarretts and their lives. The movie is set in the time between early fall and Christmas, and the scenery of suburban Illinois is gorgeous, keeping my attention the entire time.

The emotions in this movie are so raw and poignant, especially Timothy Hutton's character, Conrad. Besides Hutton's closeted emotions eventually making their way out, all the characters really show their emotions, especially as the movie progresses.

This fabulous drama is based on the 1976 novel by Judith Guest, which was her first published novel. The Academy Award-winning screenplay adaption was created by Alvin Sargent.

Besides Sargent winning Best Screenplay Adaption and the movie winning Best Picture, Best Director went to Robert Redford and Best Supporting Actor was Timothy Hutton, who certainly deserved it, at least in my book.

I hope you enjoyed this! Go pick up this awesome movie at the Greenwood Library. As always, I welcome any comments, questions, criticism, and of course, movie suggestions!

Thanks for reading!

-Laura Beth :)