20 - "Jerry Maguire" (1996)

     I can remember the first time I saw this movie. It was one of the strangest days I've ever had. I had just walked in and told the boss at my job at the time that I was quitting to protest a friend who had been unfairly fired. It was pretty stressful. I went over to that friends house and since neither of us had anything to do, we decided to get a bunch of movies. One of them happened to be Jerry Maguire. I had no desire to see it really. I had skipped it when it was in theaters, it looked like just a sappy romance to me. I don't know if it had something to do with my mood that day with what had happened but it just really hit the spot and was the pick-me-up I needed. Tom Cruise gets a bit of a bad rap but when he is on his game he actually is a very good actor. I believe he gives one of his best performances here as Jerry Maguire, a sports agent who has a bout with his conscience one night. He decides to change the way he approaches his work and becomes and advocate for the players he represents and isn't simply about the bottom line dollar. His approach is applauded by co-workers...but not his management and he is fired. He loses all of his clients except for one, Rod Tidwell (Cuba Gooding Jr.), an NFL Wide Receiver for the Arizona Cardinals. Tidwell is an average player but feels he is underpaid and wants to be shown the money he thinks he deserves. Jerry starts his new company with his secretary, Dorothy Boyd (Renee Zellweger), who agrees with Jerry's approach and takes a leap-of-faith to join him. She is a single mom of a little boy named Ray (Jonathan Lipnicki) who adores Jerry, and it isn't long before Jerry and Dorothy are taking their relationship to another level. Jerry and Rod each has something they struggle with that the other can help out on: Rod is all about the money, and Jerry teaches him to play for the love of the game and the money will come...Jerry doesn't know how to express love and Rod who is happily married and knows how to treat his family tries to help Jerry out in that department. It's this relationship between agent and client where I think the movie really excels. Gooding picked up the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor as the me-first Tidwell. The movie also picked up nominations for Cruise's acting, Editing, Writing and Best Picture. Jerry Maguire is a perfect little film that will make you laugh a lot, but it will also tug at your heart some. It might be the ultimate date movie that both parties can enjoy.