Written by: James L. Brooks
Starring: Debra Winger, Shirley MacLaine, Jack Nicholson, Danny DeVito, Jeff Daniels, John Lithgow
Rating: [4/5]
Relationships between mothers and daughters have their layers and complexities that no one from the outside can fully comprehend. However, they do make for fascinating stories in the way they break down a dynamic between a mother wanting nothing but the best for her daughter even if she needs to deliver it in a blunt manner as seen in Terms of Endearment. A feature that crafts such wonderful characters getting us bought into their emotional circumstance in such an effective manner.
Emma (Debra Winger) has a contentious relationship with her mother Aurora (Shirley MacLaine) where she just seeks an escape where she marries someone her mother disapproves of in Flap (Jeff Daniels). As she moves out to be with him and support his career as a professor, Emma keeps in touch with her mother through phone conversations as Aurora begins to open herself up to another sexual relationship with her neighbor.
There’s something absolutely divine in the way James L. Brooks manages to write characters in a manner where you feel you’ve lived with them and bridge over an undeniable connection. One where we feel their pain and share in their joy. He accomplishes this exceptionally well in Broadcast News as well as this feature, especially in the manner in which he juggles multiple characters and gives them meaningful arcs for us to follow. Looking at Terms of Endearment he dives right into this mother-daughter duo as they transition from a strictly paternal relationship to one where they view each other as women.
Moving out to marry Flap moves Emma very quickly into the role of a standalone woman, which comes as a difficult proposition for Aurora for motherly reasons but also because she frankly does not believe her marriage will work out. Emma did jump into it quite hastily and not purely because of love but rather to get away from the control of her mother. These phone conversations make it quite clear when Emma and Aurora discuss updates about their lives especially when the former continues to pop out babies. Aurora approaches these conversations as a mother but also as a fellow woman who’s been in her own relationships. On the other hand, Aurora finally opens herself up to the possibility of a new relationship and the manner in which they talk about her sexuality definitely exhibits the conversation a mother and daughter would have only once they have reached this specific stage of their lives. They keep us engaged throughout this entire feature, which only gets more impactful as the feature comes barrelling down toward the finale.
The men in their lives certainly play a major part of how the plot progresses, especially when they serve as the inivididuals physically with them while the women love several states from each other. Aurora, while older, finds herself in an exciting new chapter where she has the excitement of a new man in her life in Garrett. For Emma, she struggles with the relationship she has with her husband and father of her children where the passionate love they had initially begins to dissipate and fizzle out between them. The staleness of their loves serves as a contrast to Aurora’s bright future, which usually works in the opposite direction when looking at younger and older couples. Presenting this different take allows for quite the uniqueness in their situation.
With so much focus of this feature lying in the story of these two women, it only makes sense to talk about the duo of sensational performances at the center of this film. Both Shirley MacLaine and Debra Winger are sensational in this feature and it’s a shame only one of them could win the Academy Award for Best Actress because they went against each other in the same category. They marry the wonderful screenplay provided to them by James L. Brooks and bring these characters to life in such a fulfilling and wondrous manner. So much love emanates from these performances which gets directly felt in the way it surfaces in the feature making each interaction between the pair that much more powerful.
Definitely reveling in some melodrama in moments but done so with bountiful care, Terms of Endearment displays the very best of James L. Brooks as a filmmaker, which lies in his exceptional writing. Each of these characters feel so real and living in their troubles and transgressions makes this film feel even more complete. It definitely will wring out tears in even the biggest skeptics because of the events that transpire but none of it feels cheap or unearned because of the connection we build with these characters and what these moments mean to them and, in turn, us as the audience. A deserving Best Picture winner outright and one that continues to age well with its continued staying power.
Films with Josh 
