Jerry Maguire

Many moving parts rhythmically sync together in Cameron Crowe's 'Jerry Maguire' - one of the best films of the 1990s. Hard to believe it's been 25 years, and just saw Maguire for maybe 20th time, so long overdue are my comments.

The influence and imprint on this film by brilliant filmmaker/TV series creator/producer James Brooks is apparent in how Cameron directed this film - it was an interesting mentoring brain-share between Cameron and Jim during pre-production that set the direction for Jerry Maguire.

The preparation for filming included: a side trip to Billy Wilder's house by Cameron and Tom Cruise in an attempt to recruit the elder legend for a key Day-Player bit part in the film (didn't work); the introduction of then little-known Renee Zellweger by casting director legend Gail Levin (the acting rapport between Renee and Tom during her audition was instant and never wavered); Cuba Gooding's infectious enthusiasm that won him his role over more famous names, and an Oscar in the Spring for Supporting Actor; and Tom Hanks' early consideration for the Lead that as it turns out was fortunate to have too many scheduling conflicts (much of the dialogue in JM was written for Hanks). Interesting background stories are common to Cameron Crowe film production.

But the engine that propels this film are the timeless ideals of pursuit of meaning and happiness in one's life, the power of overcoming adversity - "going for it" and stretching for the brass ring, finding true love and commitment to it, and developing key friendships that have a lifetime impact in one's life.

One is initially inserted into this story during Jerry's rapid ascent towards the pinnacle of career success as a sports agent, followed by an overnight ethics crisis "free falling" to the edge of a career-abyss. This perfect storm of dramatic conflict ties each of the main characters together, and we are immersed and hooked for the rest of the film.

The memorable/quotable dialogue in 'Jerry Maguire' is iconic ("show me the money", "you complete me", "you had me at hello", etc.), delivered by actors that rose to the occasion, each putting forth inspired performances.

Cameron has a way of extracting an actors' genuine emotional connection to their character that few directors achieve. This ability can be found in every Cameron Crowe film from 'Say Anything' (1989) forward.

Cameron's music-sync of iconic songs in the film are inspired and perfect (as one would expect), surpassed in his films only by those tracks used in his semi-autobiographical 'Almost Famous' (Cameron's greatest film to date, and on my IMDb Top 10 Greatest Comedy Films list).

'Jerry Maguire' is timeless and memorable, and a reminder for me why I fell in love with movies (and music) at a very young age - a lifetime gift that gets re-stoked by films like this one.

An easy decision to rate Jerry Maguire a 10 as one of film's Top 100 💯 Greatest Movies.

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"Jerry Maguire" has to rate as one of the most quotable movies of the last decade and a half. It's given us the lines "Show me the money", "Help me, Help you", "You had me at hello" and "You complete me". And it's that last line, that really describe this movie. It's really about the growth of an individual. We see Jerry Maguire the character, grow from just an agent to becoming much more, it's not an easy trip but for the most part it's an entertaining one.

Jerry Maguire is a top sport agent. He has a decent amount of big names as client and he's engage to a beautiful woman. Then one day while visiting one of his client in the hospital, the client's young son confronted him after he gives the client a shallow encouragement. The confrontation stick in his mind and would even get him to write a "mission statement" for the company. The "mission statement" basically lays out a plan that the agents give their clients more personal attention. Unfortunately his boss doesn't like it.

The movie gives us a look at the world of the sports agents. Who are they that gets a cut of an athlete's earning and do they really deserve it? In the beginning they're just there to negotiate the numbers and get the athletes as much exposure. In the end, Jerry has become more than a guy who makes deal for an athlete. It also gives us a look at some clients they're more demanding than the agents are prepared to handle. But if handled right they will prove to be worth the trouble.

Jerry Maguire is played by Tom Cruise, and he gives one of his best performance. I think it's every bit the equal of Cuba Gooding Jr's. Oscar winning performance. Both men were on top of their game playing off each other. It's sad that his erratic behavior of late has caused harmed to his career because Tom Cruise is a very good actor. So too is Mr. Gooding and Renee Zellwegger, who plays an office worker in Tom Cruise's office and who joined him as he tries to put forth his "mission statement" into practice.

All in all, I think it's a good movie with a very observant script, complimented by great acting.

This movie is a comedy, drama, romance, sports movie, and a money movie (e.g. Wall Street, where the main character is trying to make a lot of money). The problem such a movie faces is maintaining a consistent tone. Remember Prizzi's Honor? JM solves that problem by using restraint. It doesn't go over the top, although its characters sometimes do. It has funny moments, but it's not Animal House or American Pie. It's a drama, but it keeps the stakes low. This isn't Armageddon: they aren't trying to save the world. There are no life or death decisions. The romantic stakes aren't that high either: Renee Zellweger loves Tom Cruise, but she's been in love before and if this doesn't work out, she will be again. The only really high stakes are the money. By keeping the stakes low, JM let's us watch it with a bit of detachment.

This is more of a drama than a comedy. A good test is whether the characters change. Here, Tom Cruise starts off completely cynical, abruptly changes to ridiculously idealistic, then spends the rest of the movie finding the right balance. Renee Zellweger starts by loving Tom Cruise from afar, then gets him, then has to work out her ambiguous feelings.

JM is fun to watch. The characters, though flawed, are sympathetic. We enjoy watching them succeed, fail (sometimes in funny ways), and try to discover what they really care about. It's complicated, thoughtful, and surprisingly subtle.

"Jerry Maguire" did something very strange in 1996: it had both critical and commercial success. This was evident in the fact that the four other Best Picture nominees for the year were all independent productions. "Jerry Maguire" shows the business world of America at its worst, in this case in the sports industry. When Jerry Maguire, a sports agent, (played by Oscar-nominated Tom Cruise) has a breakthrough one night he realizes that quality is more important than quantity. Of course he is fired from his job and loses all of his clients except Rod Tidwell (played by Cuba Gooding, Jr. in his Oscar-winning performance). Dorothy Boyd (Renee Zellweger) has left the business with Maguire, agreeing with his views. However, Maguire struggles with his separation from the sports corporation (losing his fiance and the first pick in the NFL Draft). However, he survives and learns that living well and loving well are the keys to happiness. All in all, "Jerry Maguire" is classic Hollywood stuff made in the present-day. Cameron Crowe's script and direction are subtle, but extremely effective. Tom Cruise delivered his best performance to date. Renee Zellweger proved to be the find of the year and Cuba Gooding, Jr.'s quotes and scenes he stole were enough to win him the Oscar in a very competitive year in the Best Supporting Actor category. "Jerry Maguire" is not a perfect film. In fact it is flawed in many ways and is not very accurate in some areas. However, its ability to mix comedy, romance, and drama make it a very entertaining film. The performances are all excellent. 4.5 out of 5 stars.

I refused to see Jerry Maguire for several years, assuming it was a cheap movie about money, sports and sex. When i finally watched it on TV, i was blown away. This movie is about hope, redemption, love, and finding out the meaning of life. Tom Cruise does a spectacular job playing someone with nothing to loose, and Cuba Gooding's performance brought tears to my eyes. Renee Zellweger fits perfectly by having great chemistry with Jerry, and by having a normal, plain look. This film works because it's so real and easily plausible; its a witty, romantic drama more than a romantic comedy that proves its never too late to start over or take a risk.