Kramer vs Kramer

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Com 101 Film Reaction Paper #1 Kramer Versus Kramer By: BJ While attending my communications class we viewed the film Kramer Versus Kramer. I am providing a brief summary, and how I feel the director tries to communicate behaviors, empathy, and stereotypes during the time period in which this movie was made. Made in the late 70’s (1979), this film takes on societal perspectives and stereotypes of divorce and shifting gender roles, as an abandoned husband learns how to be a “hands-on” father. Ted played by Dustin Hoffman is in his late twenties and is a workaholic husband to Joanna (Meryl Streep) and father to Billy (Justin Henry). Right from the opening scene the film demands we take sides of an all too common issue of a family going through divorce and a battle for who ends up with custody of the child. Joanna feels she must leave in order to fulfill her desire to become “whole” leaving Ted to learn how to juggle work and become a nurturing parent. The film swept the 52nd Academy Awards with “Best Picture”, “Best Actor” and “Best Supporting Actress” in my opinion, due to Hoffman’s anger and pain of going through a divorce at the time. Behaviors at the time included sexual promiscuity, uncontrolled self-importance, and financial greed, in the name of some “groovy” higher purpose. Although sexual promiscuity doesn’t become an issue in the movie until we are a part of the court proceedings, self-importance and financial greed make their entrance, stage right, immediately. We soon learn that yuppie Ted has for years put everything (including his family) aside to climb the corporate ladder of success. He attributes his long work hours and climbing the ladder of success to “being the breadwinner” and providing for his family. Joanna, feeling “shut out” and “un-whole” struggles with her expected ability as a mother and feels she must leave in search of
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