Ordinary People (1980)
Genre: Drama
Duration: 124 minuten
Country:
United States
Directed by: Robert Redford
Stars: Donald Sutherland, Mary Tyler Moore and Judd Hirsch
IMDb score:
7,7 (61.572)
Releasedate: 19 September 1980
Ordinary People plot
"Everything is in its proper place... except the past."
Beth, Calvin and their son Conrad live in the wake of the death of the other son of the family. Conrad is filled with grief and misplaced guilt, so much so that he tries to kill himself. Beth has always had his brother as a favorite, and struggles to support Conrad. Calvin is caught between the two, trying to keep the family together.
Actors and actresses
Calvin Jarrett
Conrad Jarrett
Beth Jarrett
Dr. Tyrone C. Berger
Coach Salan
Jeannine Pratt
Karen
Lazenby
Ray Hanley
Sloan
Reviews & comments
Leland Palmer
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- 23787 messages
- 4902 votes
Phenomenal. So nice when you put on a movie that at the end of the day is so much better than you expected. I expected quite a nice film, well .. I didn't know what to expect from these 'Ordinary People', but this turns out to be a very moving masterpiece. swallow.
Besides that swallowing, a lot of goosebumps. Rarely do I see a film that hits the bullseye so many times throughout its entire running time in terms of screenplay, dialogues and acting. Constantly intrusive. Every word hits the mark and every emotion is palpable. Timothy Hutton plays otherworldly well. What a real and convincing performance.
The subcutaneous tension is unimaginable. A broken family where so many feelings play, but nothing is expressed. Mothers deserved no sympathy, because I felt so sorry for Conrad. And with Father Sutherland, who was sitting between the two fires. Difficult, very difficult. As a viewer you are constantly eating yourself. One moment you get the shivers, another moment you can cry. A tear, a smile, 'Ordinary People' offers it all. But above all a lifelike portrait of a family in decline.
Everything always seems to go well. Until a tragedy happens - in this case the loss of a son and brother. Mary Tyler Moore is therefore central to this family. She doesn't allow anything and is for me the person who should have been there as a mother. She could have prevented everything. However? Denials, not wanting to have trouble and moving on in a sterile life where everything has to go exactly how she wants it.
It is difficult. Expressing feelings and wanting and being able to feel them at all. This print highlights this very strongly. Robert Redford has put in a class performance here. A film that grabs you by the throat and doesn't let go. From Pachelbel to loves in relationships and families. What a movie. Beautiful.
Translated from Dutch · View original
scorsese
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- 13232 messages
- 11124 votes
Beautiful film about a disrupted family where a son died in an accident. A moving family drama about grieving and in which everyone tries to give the tragic event a place in their own way. What is not talked about can be felt in just about every scene. The entire cast is outstanding and a strong directorial debut from Robert Redford (arguably his best film).
Translated from Dutch · View original
Filmkriebel
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- 10012 messages
- 4678 votes
For some movies there is always an age to see them. I'm glad that I only see this film when I'm in my late 40s, because in order to grasp some issues it is necessary to be a little further in life and to have gained experiences. Ordinary People was the big Oscar winner in 1981, and Hutton deserved his double and thick because his depressed character grabs you by the throat. The film carries its title well, because it is about ordinary citizens who have ended up in a situation that turns their lives upside down. They lost their son in an accident. The surviving son, Conrad, is saddled with guilt that drives him to despair and suicide, to the extent that he seeks psychological help.
This feeling is heightened when he doesn't get the emotional support from his icy mother. This mother-son relationship was by far the most interesting aspect of the film: is it OK to love one of your children more than another? That is sometimes something you still often hear from friends or family. It is sometimes laughed at, but there can be consequences. A while ago one of my best friends told me that he loved his youngest more than his oldest. I doubt that's kosher.
Ordinary People is also a fine example of a film that excels for its recognizable characters who are not steely or heroic in life, and who cannot cope with any difficult situation. As if weakness shouldn't exist in a movie. I also found the dialogues to work very well here. However, this isn't a film that goes to great lengths to offer a visual extra that makes it feel more like a "stage on a grander scale" than a film. Anyway, 3.5* seems definitely deserved to me.
Translated from Dutch · View original
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