May 14, 2024
'Jerry Maguire' live from YouTube
Live from YouTube, The Ringer's Bill Simmons, Chris Ryan, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan learn that it's not show friends, it's show business after rewatching Cameron Crowe's 1996 classic 'Jerry Maguire,' starring Tom Cruise, Cuba Gooding Jr., and Renee Zellweger.
Cast
Tom Cruise as Jerry Maguire
Cuba Gooding Jr. as Rod Tidwell
Renee Zellweger as Dorothy Boyd
Regina King as Marcee Tidwell
Jay Mohr as Bob Sugar
Bonnie Hunt as Laurel Boyd
Kelly Preston as Avery Bishop
Jonathan Lipnicki as Ray Boyd
Jerry O'Connell as Frank Cushman
Directed by: Cameron Crowe
Written by: Cameron Crowe
Notes
- Budget of $50 million, grossed $273 million worldwide. 9th highest-grossing movie of 1996. Tom Cruise's 5th straight $100 million movie – a then-record.
- Nominated for 5 Oscars. Cuba Gooding Jr. won Best Supporting Actor. Cruise lost Best Actor to Geoffrey Rush for Shine (considered a travesty by the hosts). Screenplay lost to 'Fargo'.
- Best-selling VHS tape of all time not released by Disney – over 3 million copies sold in the first week.
- Cameron Crowe was inspired by Billy Wilder's The Apartment. Jim Brooks gave Crowe a photo of agent Gary Wichard with Brian Bosworth as the seed idea. Bob Sugar was modeled on Drew Rosenhaus.
- The memo was based on Jeffrey Katzenberg's 1991 28-page Disney memo. Crowe wrote 20 versions of the script.
- Originally written for Tom Hanks and Winona Ryder. Hanks passed to do That Thing You Do. Woody Harrelson was also offered the role.
- Cruise recorded the voiceover while in London filming 'Eyes Wide Shut'. His only script note: Jerry should be present on the sideline during Rod's end-zone moment.
- Cuba Gooding Jr. voluntarily took his clothes off during his audition; nobody could shake him. Jamie Foxx also auditioned for Rod Tidwell.
- The hit that knocked Tidwell out took 29 takes and 3 different stuntmen. Regina King was actually pregnant during filming.
- Jonathan Lipnicki showed up on set saying 'the human head weighs 8 pounds' and Crowe threw it in the script.
- Rod Tidwell's stats (110 catches, 1,515 yards) would have made him the best receiver in the NFL in 1996 – unrealistic for a supposedly undervalued player.
- Cruise's run at the time: 'Days of Thunder', 'A Few Good Men', The Firm, Interview with the Vampire, 'Mission: Impossible', then 'Jerry Maguire' – then disappeared for 3 years for 'Eyes Wide Shut'.
Categories
Roger Ebert's review
Quote from Rog's review:
“I began to feel that Crowe had bitten off more than he really needed to chew... there's so many subplots that Jerry Maguire seems too full. Less might have been more.”
The hosts strongly disagree with Ebert's critique.
Most re-watchable scene
- Bill: Jerry gets fired / the lunch with Bob Sugar leading into the fight for clients and the 'Show Me the Money' phone call.
- Van: The 'Show Me the Money' scene – 'funny as hell, never gets old.'
- Sean: Help Me Help You (the shower scene with Rod and Jerry).
- Chris: Bob and Jerry fighting for clients in the office.
What aged the best?
- The movie's first 6 minutes – starting Jerry already in his breakdown rather than setting up 15 minutes of him as a super agent.
- Zellweger's performance – face acting, the reaction when Jerry says he broke up with Avery.
- Tom Cruise as 'a maniacally consumed man with intimacy trouble.' The Divorced Women's Group.
- The NFL being ruthless about player longevity – ahead of the curve. Small wide receivers eventually thriving.
What aged the worst?
- The movie's attitude toward concussions – Rod knocked unconscious, no neck brace, just clapping in his face.
- Getting involved romantically with someone who works for you. Avery's domestic violence toward Jerry (played for comedy).
- Cuba Gooding Jr.'s last 10-15 years of career.
- The 'you complete me' sign language in the elevator is apparently incorrect.
Most cinematic shot
- Chris: Cruise on the airport people mover, scooting down.
- Sean: The sweating glass of water when Jerry's getting fired; the kiss on the patio, backlit.
- Bill: The wide shot of the office when Jerry and Dorothy leave and everyone's frozen.
- Van: Tom Cruise running through the dark tunnel to get to Rod.
Best needle drop
- Van: 'Secret Garden' by Bruce Springsteen.
- Bill and Chris: 'Free Falling' by Tom Petty.
- 15+ great songs in the movie per Sean. Rod Tidwell singing Marvin Gaye also mentioned.
Weak link of the movie
Rod Tidwell's contract situation / stats don't make sense – 110 catches and 1,515 yards would make him the best receiver in the NFL. No way he'd be that underpaid or anonymous.
The hottest take award
- Bill: Cut every Dicky Fox scene. It doesn't work and the movie is the same without it. Chris agrees.
- Van: Avery, Jerry, and Dorothy had a threesome (Challengers-style scenario) that eventually led to the Maguire divorce.
Casting what-ifs
- Originally written for Tom Hanks (who passed for That Thing You Do) and Winona Ryder (who looked like Cruise's sister).
- Woody Harrelson was offered the role, said 'nobody's going to give a shit about an agent.'
- Gwyneth Paltrow did a reading with Cruise ('like watching Annie Hall'). Janeane Garofalo went for Dorothy. Mira Sorvino was offered Dorothy but her agents wanted too much.
- Final two for Dorothy: Renee Zellweger and Connie Britton. Janet Jackson accepted the Marcy Tidwell role but it fell through; Regina King got it.
Best "that guy"
- Bill and Van: Donald Logue.
- Chris: Todd Louiso (also in 'High Fidelity').
- Dion Waiters Award: Jay Mohr (Bob Sugar) – only in about 3 scenes but looms over the entire movie.
Apex Mountain
- Tom Cruise: Yes – 1996 with 'Mission: Impossible' and 'Jerry Maguire'. His 5th consecutive $100M movie.
- Cuba Gooding Jr.: Yes, for sure.
- Cameron Crowe: Debate between this and Almost Famous, but this was his biggest hit.
- Renee Zellweger: This or Bridget Jones's Diary.
- Jerry O'Connell, Jonathan Lipnicki, Jay Mohr, Roy Firestone, Bonnie Hunt: All yes.
Cruise or Hanks?
Cruise wins
Unanimous: Cruise. Not close. Hanks was the first choice but passed. The role doesn't suit Hanks – he's not slimy enough.
Picking nits
- The timeline of the MNF game to Jerry arriving at Dorothy's house – best case 1:30 AM and the divorced women's group is still going.
- Dorothy quitting her job when she has a young kid and needs health benefits.
- Jerry being allowed to stay in the office all day to make phone calls after being fired.
- Rod's stats making him too good to be anonymous. No signed contract from Cushman going into the draft.
Over-acting award
- Kelly Preston – 'out of control in this movie' but effectively so. Her 'stop fucking me / don't ever stop fucking me' scene.
- Cruise singing 'Free Falling' in the car; the bachelor party entrance.
- Underacting: Renee Zellweger – the only person not at 11 in the movie.
Best (or worst!) life lessons from the movie
'It's not show friends, it's show business.' – Bob Sugar was right about the business.
Best double feature for this movie
- Chris: 'Moneyball'.
- Sean: The Apartment (1960, Billy Wilder – the film that inspired 'Jerry Maguire').
- Van: 'Collateral' (evil Tom Cruise + black friend dynamic).
Who won the movie?
Consensus: Tom Cruise. Carrying a movie titled after his character with no action sequences – just talking, running, and emoting – is a pure testament to his movie-star wattage.