Robert Redford's debut as a director really is that good. From Judith Guest's novel about an outwardly prosperous American family struggling with the loss of the beloved older son Redford, and screenwriter Alvin Sargent have crafted a beautiful "actor's film". This is not in the sense of a "Glengarry Glenross" where there is a pervasive theatrical sensibility and all is driven by the dialog. Many of the finest touches here are unspoken. It's the best-case scenario for a film directed by an actor (and one of under-rated talent at that). The performances are flawless all around. If top honors are to be awarded they might best go to Moore. Playing against well established type she crafts a superbly observed and all too believable character; a woman who has let her visceral habit of self-protection get so out of control it has utterly crushed her humanity. Hutton (who won an Oscar) and Sutherland are also superb as the the husband and surviving son, the other two legs of the highly unstable familial tripod. Look also for fine supporting work from the likes of James Sikking, Elizabeth McGovern, and M. Emmet Walsh. I confess to being a complete stranger to the milieu of the American preppy class (how "ordinary" are these people? I don't know anyone with a live-in maid.) but the representation of them and their world seemed, to me at least, meticulously realized - right down to maybe the most extensive collection of sweaters ever assembled on screen. Redford's done some good work since but with "Ordinary People" he started off at the top and found there was only one place to go. No matter. He's left us with a truly brave piece of film-making, never making easy choices, and staying true to each and every memorable character to the end.
Review of Ordinary People
