Kramer vs. Kramer

Rating

Director

Robert Benton

Screenplay

Robert Benton (Novel by Avery Corman)

Length

105 min.

Starring

Dustin Hoffman, Meryl Streep, Jane Alexander, Justin Henry, Howard Duff, George Coe, Jobeth Williams

MPAA Rating

PG

Review

Can a father be no better a parent than a mother? Kramer vs. Kramer explores that very notion as it examines the bitter divorce of two artists.

Ted Kramer (Dustin Hoffman) is an incredibly successful advertising designer. The same evening that he’s selected to head up the ad campaign for an important client, his wife Joanna (Meryl Streep) tearfully packs up, kisses their son Billy (Justin Henry) good night and announces to Ted that she is leaving him.

She says that she can’t handle the relationship any more and as the film progresses, we learn a great deal about her self-doubt and anger. Ted has long been the bread winner of the family and with his long hours at work, Joanna feels she is being taken advantage of and can no longer handle living in such a situation. It’s not an abusive relationship. Matter of fact, Ted has nothing but love for her and their son. The problem is hers.

Ted is left to raise Billy alone. One early scene displays Ted’s inability to make a breakfast favorite: French toast. Using a coffee cup, eggs with shells and a hot frying pan, Ted manages to muck up one of his first official duties. The film then follows as Ted slowly learns to do everything his wife did before all while he slowly drifts away from his job and causes himself more problems for the future.

Robert Benton’s screenplay is incredibly touching. Including a scene where Ted runs his injured son to the hospital, Kramer vs. Kramer is a moving story about how the love for a child can support and, at times, blind a person.

Though Benton’s direction isn’t more than perfunctory, his cast shines in roles seemingly tailor fit for their personalities. Streep’s certainly been better, but her performance here is still quite good. Hoffman deserves the most significant praise for his acting. We’re used to seeing Hoffman in slightly off-the-wall roles but here he plays a more typical man with very human qualities. When the divorce court announces that his wife, as was standard in the day, would be more important in the child’s life than he would, his performance excels.

Modern child characters are often treated as mini-geniuses. With wise quips and truisms that seem precious but are often beyond the comprehension of most kids, we’re often presented with irritating youths instead of genuine characters. Kramer vs. Kramer avoids that pitfall. Billy has moments of precociousness but rarely becomes more than your typical child. Henry takes that concept and runs with it turning in a thoroughly believable performance.

Some might consider Kramer too much fluff. It may be one part courtroom drama and three parts familial relationship drama but it has a resonating quality that doesn’t come from many more recent similar endeavors. Kramer vs. Kramer could be as true today as it was more than twenty years ago. Mothers are still often given more preference than fathers. We can thank films like Kramer for helping to evolve the notion that fathers can be single parents too.

Review Written

December 12, 2006