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Ordinary People

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7.5/10 • 636

1980-09-192h 4m

Drama

Everything is in its proper place... except the past.

Beth, Calvin, and their son Conrad are living in the aftermath of the death of the other son. Conrad is overcome by grief and misplaced guilt to the extent of a suicide attempt. He is in therapy. Beth had always preferred his brother and is having difficulty being supportive to Conrad. Calvin is trapped between the two trying to hold the family together.

Directors
Robert Redford
Editors
Jeff Kanew

Top Billed Cast

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  1. Donald Sutherland

    Donald Sutherland

    Calvin Jarrett

  2. Mary Tyler Moore

    Mary Tyler Moore

    Beth Jarrett

  3. Judd Hirsch

    Judd Hirsch

    Dr. Berger

  4. Timothy Hutton

    Timothy Hutton

    Conrad Jarrett

  5. M. Emmet Walsh

    M. Emmet Walsh

    Swim Coach

  6. Elizabeth McGovern

    Elizabeth McGovern

    Jeannine Pratt

  7. Dinah Manoff

    Dinah Manoff

    Karen

  8. Fredric Lehne

    Fredric Lehne

    Lazenby

  9. James B. Sikking

    James B. Sikking

    Ray Hanley

Reviews1

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Wuchak Avatar

Wuchak

Dec 30, 2020

7/10

Potent drama with Hutton, Sutherland, Moore and Hirsch A family in an affluent neighborhood north of Chicago tries to recover after a tragedy. Timothy Hutton plays the troubled son who gets help from a therapist (Judd Hirsch) while Donald Sutherland & Mary Tyler Moore play the seemingly okay parents. “Ordinary People” (1980) was Robert Redford’s debut movie in the director’s chair and it was a huge success. The story is two-pronged: It’s a coming-of-age drama about the anxious son at home, school, therapy and his relationships with the fairer sex, as well as a marital drama about the parents. This was Hutton’s first theatrical movie, but you wouldn’t know that by his powerhouse performance, which is on the level of Brando. It’s interesting how simple, realistic drama can be more compelling than some overblown “blockbuster” with an explosion every five minutes. Winsome Elizabeth McGovern is a highlight as one of the girls the son dates. On the negative side, the storm sequences are pretty artificial, reminiscent of a TV flick, and the story almost drowns in its unrelenting drama in the last act (I said “almost”). The film runs 2 hours, 4 minutes, and was mostly shot in suburbs north of Chicago, e.g. Lake Forest and Highland Park. GRADE: B

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Status
Released
Original Language
English
Budget
$6,000,000.00
Revenue
$54,766,923.00
Keywords
chicago, illinoisdepressionpost-traumatic stress disorder (ptsd)based on novel or booksuicide attemptmiddle classdysfunctional familygriefbereavementpsychiatristguiltgrievingsurvivor's guiltloss of sonhopefulsinceretragicmother son conflict