Tom Cruise and Renee Zellweger in “Jerry Maguire” (TriStar Pictures, 1996)
I know that Tom Cruise is cray, but back in the mid-90s, he was at the top of his game in the excellent dramedy Jerry Maguire. Tom plays the title role of a superstar sports agent who decides to listen to his conscience again. He leaves his high paying and high flying lifestyle and starts a new integrity-based sports agency. Only one athlete, professional football player Rod Tidwell (played by Cuba Gooding Jr.), along with one employee, Dorothy Boyd (played by Renee Zellweger), join him from his former firm. Basically starting from scratch, Jerry has to find his professional and personal way through his new life by virtue of his character rather than by narcissistic opportunism. Writer/director Cameron Crowe hit a home run with this movie. Its perfect soundtrack, writing, story, and acting make this movie a real pleasure to watch. It definitely earns its R rating for sexual content, nudity and language, but it is worth the journey, trust me. Also stars Bonnie Hunt, Kelly Preston, Jay Mohr, and Jonathan Lipnicki (who probably plays the cutest kid ever put in a movie). “You had me at hello.”
Stanford Clark 