Terms of Endearment (1983) review

*contains spoilers

This was one of the movies that had a strong impression on me as a kid. My sister would watch this often but I never understood it the way I now do as a grown adult. As a kid I felt slightly uncomfortable watching this because it was too real and I was too young. This just goes to show how movies change depending on what age you are at. If I hear a few seconds of the theme song it immediately takes me back to my childhood.

Like I have written before, a good film requires: a good story, pacing, production values and good memorable moments. A great film has those components and the added element of standing the test of time. "Terms of Endearment" has all of these qualities and has stood the test of time, unlike many other 1980s best picture winners, because the screenplay is pretty much perfect.

The dialog is so human and raw in this movie. So much is said in the words spoken, which is what a good movie is supposed to do. Don't tell the audience - show them. For instance, the scene where Garrett, played by Jack Nicholson, is drunkenly trying, somewhat pathetically, to get a young girl to inside his house (and bed) and she explains how she was expecting to see a heroic astronaut and not some paunched guy trying to get in her pants. Garrett has fallen on the driveway and his forehead is bleeding. After he is turned down he tries inviting the other young girl in the car to come into his home.

Every scene with Jack Nicholson and Shirley MacLaine, who plays Aurora, is perfect and their chemistry is beautiful to watch. I like how Aurora wants romance with Garrett but he is too much of a philanderer and is not capable of being a committed lover or even much of a gentleman for long periods of time. 

The dynamic between Aurora and her daughter Emma, played by Debra Winger, is interesting to watch as well. She cannot be the loving mother that Emma wants and this creates friction between the two. The fact that the characters are all flawed and cannot measure up to the expectations of the people they love is what really drives the story and makes the film watchable. It makes the movie funny and sad at the same time, which is difficult for a movie to pull off.

I like how the story is like a series of memorable snapshots that tie together seamlessly, like a quilt. At the end we feel the pain that Aurora feels when her daughter dies because everything that has led up to that moment feels so real and honest.