Critic's Grade: D

If there's anything I hate, it's a movie that tries to be something it so obviously is not. The problem with Cameron Crowe's writing/directing efforts in his film "Jerry Maguire" is that he wants to masquerade a routine romance/pity party/ego trip as a touching, uplifting comedy/drama with actual entertainment values. There is not a single character I cared for throughout the entirely too long, draggy experience, not one moment of believable emotion or humor, and not one redeemable feature to latch onto.

For instance, if one were to go about making a film that deals with how a person comes to the realization that money isn't everything, and love is everything, would it not be possible to keep oneself from surround that main protagonist in what appears to be an endless parade of wealth? Forgive me if I'm wrong, but I'd much rather see this person become a convincingly miserable wretch in going through this change, rather than watching him hop various planes to any given number of locations, all the while talking on a cellular phone and wearing fanciful clothes. Give us something to believe in, for God's sake.

The film stars Tom Cruise as Jerry Maguire, a hot-shot, go-get-'em sports agent who has trouble connecting with other people on levels above friendship or full-blooded, rock-the-house-down sex with his fiancee, Avery (Kelly Preston). The beginning establishes him as the above-average joe, popular amongst everyone who has a name in the industry, and completely immersed in his job. Oh, but wait, Jerry has a softer side, too, just like Sears; one night, in a moment of realization and awakening, he writes a report for his company that emphasizes more focus on lesser amounts of clients, the moralizing that will become his financial downfall when he is fired.

The main problem already is that we don't much care for Jerry as a human being, which is what the movie would have you believe is sufficient as it prepares to make the segue in his character apparent. But think about it: should there not be some sort of connection between this man and the audience? We're the ones who will be spending more than two hours of our life with him, so why not make him a little more interesting, or convincingly emotional?

The second half of the movie centers on his journey to self discovery through two key people: his sole remaining client, Rod Tidwell (Cuba Gooding, Jr.), a football player consumed by greed and angst over his low-key status among the other players in the league, and his sole employee, Dorothy Boyd (Ren?e Zellweger), a single mother in whom Jerry takes a romantic interest. Or is it pity at first? Could he possibly be warming to her out of actual love, or because she has a son and no medical insurance?

Whatever the reason may be, there's not a convincing moment of intimacy or connection between Jerry and Dorothy. Their relationship is labored with all sorts of love story cliches and routine potholes that have become so overrun and banal, it's almost cringe-inducing to see them stretched out to such lengths here. They go through the usual first-date movements, questioning the rate at which things are happening, come to a crossroads where they acknowledge the flaws of their relationship, and eventually move on, when you know all along how the story is going to end.

And then there's the Tidwell character, who spends most of his time whining and complaining about the lack of attention he gets from the media or from potential sponsors. Again, we get this inkling that like the relationship of Jerry and Dorothy, Jerry and Ron are going to spend so much time together arguing and bickering that they will help one another realize the errors of their ways. This might actually hold some resonance, and there are moments in the end where these realizations do come into play. If only we weren't so put off by Jerry's continuously greedy ways, or Ron's constant complaining that he has a wife and child to feed, and bills to pay, and an ego- no, wait, an image to uphold, etc.

In the end, it's all about the money, and "Jerry Maguire," with all of its half-hearted attempts to dispel this belief, doesn't do anything but support it. The redemption angle that comes as a result of losing a job and being cast into an unknown world is milked for everything it's worth here, but in all the wrong ways, and quite sloppily, I might add. The most vital aspect of this movie is that we believe in Jerry, from his sudden change of financial status to his slowly-budding change of heart, and sadly, it accomplishes neither.

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