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Separation of a family can devastate a child and also
have a similar impact on the parents even as they are involved
in the process. It under minds the foundation of a family
creating a creaky structure that stands or falls based on
the relationship between those left behind. In the case
of “Kramer vs. Kramer” when Joanna (Meryl Streep) leaves
Ted (Dustin Hoffman) and her Billy because she has become
nothing more than the role in her marriage, Ted and Billy
find themselves suddenly dependent on each other for their
survival in the little lifeboat that remains after Ted’s
marriage sinks. ***
Director/writer Robert Benton crafts a film that is
surprisingly still relevant (times may change but people
and their complicated relationships don’t)and although it
tends to use Joanna as the villain of the piece (Ted’s position
in advertising makes his wife and son complete strangers
with nothing in common with them any longer. Ironically,
this lack of work/life balance continues to dog Americans
as companies profess that they believe in it but hypocritically
put their employees through hell if they try and achieve
it). “Kramer vs. Kramer” wouldn’t be more than a domestic
melodrama if not for the carefully drawn characters that
Hoffman, Streep and the other fine actors in the film give
their characters. Benton allowed the cast to improvise and
change the dialog he had written based on what felt “right”
for their characters in a given scene giving the film a
much more authentic and less melodramatic tone. ---
Image & Sound:
You wouldn’t think of “Kramer vs. Kramer” as a film
that you would want to watch on Blu-ray but Benton and his
director of photography did a fine job of using composition,
shadow and colors to portray the emotional core of a scene.
That core is nicely portrayed here in a sharp looking and
detailed transfer that captures the fine grained look of
the film. ***
Audio shouldn’t be a strong point here but, surprisingly,
it’s quite good. Dialog is up front in the mix which isn’t
a surprise. The audio won’t give your 7.1 or 5.1 system
a work out but this isn’t designed for that either. ---
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