Best Picture Winner: 1979

Kramer vs. Kramer (1979)

Ted Kramer (Dustin Hoffman) is an ad man whose star is rising. But he arrives home one night to find his wife Joanna (Meryl Streep) has packed a suitcase, ready to leave him and their six year old son, Billy (Justin Henry). Over a year later, as Ted struggles with the demands of his career and single parenthood, Joanna shows up and tells him she wants Billy back. The Kramers prepare to fight for custody.

Kramer vs. Kramer is a heartfelt look at divorce and its impact on all involved. Neither parent is painted as the villain. Joanna was truly unhappy and Ted comes to accept his share of the blame for the unsuccessful marriage. The true victim here is Billy, as he watches confused and anxious as his father struggles with his new role only to potentially lose it. Ted has come to love being a parent, even if it threatens his job. No better scene illustrates this than when Ted, asked by his attorney to list the pros and cons of keeping Billy, cannot come up with anything to list on the pro side. Director Robert Benton then cuts to Ted lovingly embracing his son who is in bed asleep.

Except perhaps for a playground accident that sends Ted Kramer dashing to the emergency room, the tearful moments in Kramer vs. Kramer feel genuine, not manipulative. But there is much humor to offset the sad tone that threatens to make the film too depressing. For example, Ted and Billy have their breakfast routine worked out so that, without a word to each other, they awake, use the bathroom, and approach the kitchen table. Ted serves the doughnuts, and the two dine while Ted reads his newspaper and Billy reads his comic book. And what parent won’t laugh with recognition when Ted, after having told his son to finish his dinner, watches Billy openly defy him and help himself to some ice cream. Kramer vs. Kramer feels utterly realistic in its depiction of the parent-child relationship.

Because we do not get to know Joanna very well, our sympathies are more with Ted. But it is easy for us to understand that Joanna wants what Ted has in terms of the relationship with Billy. The film shows the Kramers as parents who want to care for their child, not as two people using a custody fight to hurt the other. Someone will have to lose the battle, of course, and that the film still manages to pull off a satisfactory ending is a testament to the talent involved.

Kramer vs. Kramer takes a topical theme for its time (divorce rates started growing dramatically during the 1970s) and presents it realistically. The story touches us because, perhaps even more so now than then, we can relate to everyone involved. The film never looks away from the challenges or the pain involved. But it also manages to find the moments of joy. These moments are what make the struggles worthwhile.