This is going to sound really (really) stupid, but I'm not sure whether or not my parents are divorced. In fact, I'm not even sure whether or not they ever got married in the first place. I probably should know this, right? Anyway, being that this is a movie blog and not the journal of an unfortunately confused eleven-year old girl, let's just say that they are and they did, okay? Okay. Obviously, for me, the impact of those actions isn't something that really registers emotionally (unless moderate indifference is an emotion). But if my wife divorced me? Well, that might move the needle. And by the needle, clearly I mean my life. And by move? Yeah, that's code for f--king devastate.
For Ted Kramer (Dustin Hoffman, winning Best Actor), that's not the case at all. In fact, as the dad in 1979's Kramer vs. Kramer, Ted handles the shock of divorce like a feather-haired champ. Sure, there's the occasional meal-time catastrophe, the hot-and-cold relationship with his son Billy, and the total career implosion, but otherwise things totally work out. Where I would have been shedding a lone tear while serving Pop Tarts for dinner - again, Ted steps up and becomes The Dad he never was.
Now, the 'reluctant Dad getting his shit together' story isn't complete without the moment where he inevitably loses everything he's (finally) worked so hard for, and Kramer vs. Kramer isn't any different. About 18 months into Ted's metamorphosis into single dad-of-the-year, Mrs. Kramer (Meryl Streep, also getting a statuette) reappears and demands custody of Billy. Ted, rightfully so, is livid and lawyers up in an effort to keep the little goofball. Obviously, it's going to be an uphill battle to defeat Mom, but Ted is a fighter and the kid/annoying shit means everything to him....now.
Now, the 'reluctant Dad getting his shit together' story isn't complete without the moment where he inevitably loses everything he's (finally) worked so hard for, and Kramer vs. Kramer isn't any different. About 18 months into Ted's metamorphosis into single dad-of-the-year, Mrs. Kramer (Meryl Streep, also getting a statuette) reappears and demands custody of Billy. Ted, rightfully so, is livid and lawyers up in an effort to keep the little goofball. Obviously, it's going to be an uphill battle to defeat Mom, but Ted is a fighter and the kid/annoying shit means everything to him....now.
