Ordinary People seems to have rated high and fared well with audiences. The story focuses around a wealthy family whose older son was killed in a boating accident and their younger son who feels unloved by his mother, not connected to his father, and blames himself for his brother's death. The younger son attempts suicide and ends up spending a little time with the men in white jackets.
Mary Tyler Moore plays the mother who really does not love her younger son and is completely embarrassed by the fact he spent time under lock and key. Her character is the "poster child" for those WASP mothers who believe a solid layer of denial and a happy face mask all the personal problems she has.
From what I remember about this film, the younger son makes a friend in a girl from school. He takes her bowling, then to McDonald's, and then tries to reveal his attempted suicide to her. Yep, a Best Picture winner featured a bowling alley.
In the end, the mother admits to loving only the older son and she ends up leaving her husband and younger son behind. The father and son then rejoice and realize they do have something in common, the frigid bitch they called wife/mom. Mary Tyler Moore came a long way from playing Laura Petrie.
To me, this was just another family-based drama and little else. Here's the thing - every family has issues. It is not a big secret. There are even a few frigid bitches in my extended family. They know who they are. I am not a huge fan of movies centering around family life. In the instances I do like a family-centered film, it is their dysfunctions that make them appealing.
Timothy Hutton won Best Supporting Actor for his role. To date, he is the youngest man to win that award; he was 20 years old when he won.
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