Kramer vs. Kramer
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Short description
Ted Kramer is a committed advertising executive whose work has long come before his family. His wife, Joanna, reaches her limit and walks out, leaving Ted to raise their young son, Billy, on his own. He has to learn the routines of running a household and looking after a child while keeping up at the office, and over time father and son build a close bond. That bond is put under strain when Joanna returns and goes to court seeking custody of Billy.
The film is a drama directed by Robert Benton, who also wrote the screenplay, with Stanley R. Jaffe producing. It was the first of the nine features Benton directed, ahead of Still of the Night, Places in the Heart and others. Dustin Hoffman plays Ted, Meryl Streep plays Joanna, and Justin Henry plays Billy, with Jane Alexander, Howard Duff and George Coe in supporting roles.
Made for about 8 million dollars, it took roughly 106 million worldwide, a strong return for a character-driven drama. On IMDb it holds 7.8 from around 165,000 votes, and on TMDB 7.6 from a much smaller base of about 2,500. Those audience scores align with a critics' rating of 8.3 from 101 reviews.
What's left behind the scenes
- The famous ice cream scene, where Billy pleads with his father to skip lunch and go straight to dessert, was entirely improvised by Dustin Hoffman and Justin Henry. Director Robert Benton liked the scene so much that he immediately decided to keep it in the film.
- Jane Fonda declined the role of Joanna Kramer.
- Dustin Hoffman suggested Joan Lunden play the role of Ted's one-night stand after seeing her on a live broadcast of "Eyewitness News" (WABC). Upon learning the role involved nude scenes, Lunden refused the part.
- James Caan turned down the role of Ted Kramer that was offered to him.
- Shortly before filming began, Dustin Hoffman himself went through a divorce. This is why he brought many personal aspects and dialogues into the film. Director Robert Benton even offered Hoffman to become a co-writer, but Dustin declined.
- Meryl Streep wrote the speech delivered by her character in court herself, against the advice of the film's director/screenwriter Robert Benton. She explained this by saying she was completely dissatisfied with the originally written version of the speech.
- Dustin Hoffman worked very closely with Justin Henry on every scene. They discussed them at length until Henry began to feel more relaxed and at ease.
- Robert Benton advised cinematographer Nestor Almendros to base the film's visuals and color palette on the paintings of Piero della Francesca. David Hockney's work also inspired Almendros to create a realistic look, for which he used light sources in rooms and any available light in exteriors.
- The first version of the film was 43 minutes longer than the final version and contained additional scenes with Jane Alexander, JoBeth Williams, and the landlord character, which was later removed.
- During the opening credits, Antonio Vivaldi's "Concerto for Mandolin" plays.
- Initially, Meryl Streep auditioned for the role of Ted's one-night stand, a role that eventually went to JoBeth Williams. When Kate Jackson declined the role of Joanna (due to a contract with the series "Charlie's Angels"), Streep was offered the part.
- The scene between Hoffman and Streep in the restaurant was filmed on location in one of New York's restaurants. A photograph from the film's shooting is still hanging on the wall of this restaurant, next to the table where the scene was filmed.
- Every time Billy (Justin Henry's character) cries, it's not acting, but genuine tears. Before filming each such scene, the director asked Justin to remember some sad event.
- The amusing scenes with JoBeth Williams nude were optically darkened to avoid an R rating. Nevertheless, the “undarkened” version is often broadcast on television channels.
- The film "Kramer vs. Kramer" reflected the cultural shift that occurred in public opinion in the 1970s (the period of the second wave of feminism in the United States), when the ideas of "fatherhood" and "motherhood" were reversed.
- The film is based on Avery Corman's novel "Kramer vs. Kramer" (1977).
- The famous ice cream scene, where Billy pleads with his father to skip lunch and go straight to dessert, was entirely improvised.
- Meryl Streep wrote the speech delivered by her character in court herself, as she was completely dissatisfied with the original version.
- Robert Benton advised cinematographer Nestor Almendros to base the film's color palette on the paintings of Piero della Francesca.
- The woman Hoffman unexpectedly kisses at the party is Ingeborg Sørensen, a former Miss Norway who also appeared in Playboy.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
