"The Kramers" movie script
Director/[US] Robert Benton
Translation/Encore
School/Li Zhenglun
Main character
Senior Staff of Ted Kramer Advertising Company
Joanna Kramertide's wife
Billy Kramer, the son of Kramers (7 years old)
Terma Kramer's neighbors
Boss of Jim Ocknatide
Defense attorney for Shang Naxi defendant Ted
Defense attorney for Grayson Plaintiff Joanna
Close-up: A woman's face... She is Mrs. Ted Kramer, Billy's mother-Joanna. Her deeply tired eyes were filled with restrained tears and unspoken sighs. Profile of a dim face. Wedding rings with dim brilliance——
"Mom is cute, Billy."
In the child's room. The sky-blue walls are painted with floating white clouds. As usual, Billy was about to fall asleep under the caress of his mother.
"My lovely mother..."
"Go to sleep, sleep beautifully."
Billy turned to the wall as if to shake off his mother's hand that was gently holding his shoulder.
"See you tomorrow morning..."
Joanna was stunned for a moment, but Billy fell asleep and couldn't hear anything.
"...Mom, you are cute..."
Joanna walked out of the child's room. With a stern expression on her face, she casually took out the suitcase for travel from the closet.
At the same moment. In an office on Madison Street in New York, the center of the American advertising industry, the shrewd and capable Ted Kramer is chatting and laughing with his boss Okner.
Ted: "When I first became an assistant to the art director, I went to buy a tarp trench coat. I was so nervous that I was sweating, and my hands were shaking..."
Okner held a wine glass in one hand and listened to Ted's conversation, looking very understanding.
The male employees who leave work after work-
On the way home, Okner told Ted that he should be promoted to the head of business for the Mid-Atlantic Coast.
Joanna continued to pack some clothes. She randomly picked some clothes from the cabinet and threw them into the box. Finally, she took the dirty round-neck shirt of the child on her shoulders and put it on, zipped up, and sat down. On the sofa, a cigarette was lit to relieve the anxiety, waiting for her husband to return.
Door bell. Although this was exactly the sound she was expecting, she was taken aback. She opened the door for him, and Ted hurriedly went straight to the kitchen to hang up as soon as he came in, because he had an urgent matter to contact the company immediately. It turned out that a colleague named Jack committed suicide.
Joanna watched her husband nervously. Ted murmured unhurriedly on the phone, as if she couldn't tolerate a word in her. Joanna said to his back:
"I'm leaving now!"
Did you hear it, or did you hear it? Ted hung up the phone and was still busy. "Have you eaten dinner?"
"I am leaving!"
Joanna was about to tremble, and she hurriedly approached the many things that had been placed on the closet next to the hall.
"This is my key, this is a credit card, and a checkbook. My deposit of two thousand yuan has been withdrawn--"
"What are you doing? Are you kidding me?"
"This is a laundry ticket. This is a receipt for the laundry room. It will be washed on Saturday. The rent has already been paid. Electricity, water and telephone bills are also..."
Joanna retreated to the door as if rushing away. Ted's face looked terrible--
"Hey, why at this time... I know, I was wrong, I shouldn't have come back so late, but I am so busy for the family. Hey, you understand?"
Joanna opened the door. Ted ran up to snatch her suitcase, but his wife came to the corridor empty-handed.
This is a high-rise apartment building in eastern New York. The couple argued in a low voice in the narrow corridor:
"What did I do wrong? I'm sorry if I'm sorry!"
"There is nothing wrong with you...I am wrong. I mistakenly regarded you as a marriage partner. That's the problem. I can't bear it anymore, no way...I want to bear it, but... Please forgive me. ..."
Ted reached out to pull her, but Joanna hysterically avoided him, she wouldn't let her touch her.
"No, no, please, I won't go in, I won't go in... If you forcibly pull me in, one day... I will jump out of the window!"
"What about Billy?"
Joanna walked into the elevator as if pouring cold water on her back.
"I won't take him away...it's not good for him. I'm too patient, but I can't stand it...the kid should leave me..."
"Joanna, please!"
"But, I don't love you anymore."
"...Where are you going?"
"do not know."
Tears flowed from Joanna's convulsive cheeks. She turned her face and closed the elevator door.
Door bell. Ted checked his watch and went to open the door. Standing at the door was Telma, and she was still muttering: "Oh, Joanna, why are you so confused..." Telma is a neighbor who lives in the same apartment with the Kramers. She received a call from Ted asking her whereabouts of Joanna, and came here in shock. She is Joanna's best friend, but she doesn't seem to be Ted's friend.
"What did she tell you, why on earth?"
"How can I know?"
"You tell my wife all year round, don’t you? I’ve long wanted to sit down and talk with you about this question. You know, someone has to go out to make money... I’ll go. Okay, forget it. Ah, you can go back and sleep under the covers soon!"
"Ted, in fact, Joanna, she..."
"Listen to me. In fact, in the past six months, I have exhausted my efforts in trying to open up all aspects of our company! By five o'clock this afternoon, I have finally arranged everything! At eight o’clock, the deputy manager talked to me about promoting me as a minister. I was about to go home and share the most pleasant moment in my life with my wife. But where did I know, this guy said nonchalantly that he didn’t want to be with me anymore. I'm living together. Do you understand, how much a blow this guy has given me?!"
"...That said, the happiest moment in your life is blowing!"
Telma was not here to comfort the distressed male host. Ted Huaibei drove her out, he opened the door and said:
"Before you and Charlie broke up, there was no problem between Joanna and me... Honestly, did you instigate it behind your back?"
"No... Joanna and I did talk a lot. Joanna is a very, very unfortunate woman. And... she needs extraordinary courage to leave this home!"
"How much courage does it take to get rid of one's own children?"
The face of Terma who was speechless and speechless.
Early the next morning, the noise of a street sweeper broke into the child's room in a good dream. Billy woke up, he went to the bathroom sleepily, and then went to his parents' bedroom.
Many photos were scattered on the double bed, and his father didn't take off his coat. He slept on the bed alone.
"Where did mom go? Where did mom go?"
Ted was awakened by the child's voice. He opened his sleepy eyes and immediately returned to the reality. He walked into the bathroom, urinated, and talked to the child waiting outside: "I had a fight, I want to stay quiet for a while, right? Mom walked away because of this." Ted said, tapping with his fingers. He sounded, deliberately pretending to be full of air, and coaxed Billy into the kitchen.
"What do you want for breakfast?"
"French croutons."
"Daddy will cook whatever you want."
The father, who hadn’t shaved his beard, was busy doing it, and he was still telling the child: "Look at it, use one hand with one hand!" He picked up a bowl and used one. Break an egg with one hand and pour the broken egg into a bowl.
"The best chefs in the world are men. Did you know that? It's so pleasant. It's not good not to do it all year round."
"The egg shells have fallen in!"
"That's okay. Make French croutons loose and crispy."
Ted gave his son the job of whisking the eggs. "It's fun!" But when he cut the bread ready to dip it in the egg, he realized that the bowl was too small. So he tore the bread in half with a pair of dirty hands and stuffed it into a bowl.
"Did you forget to add milk?"
"Milk must be added last... When people are too happy, they will forget important things. Dad wants to test your attention... How about it, is it fun? Mom, isn't she? I'll let you come to the kitchen... To make French croutons, you have to split the bread in half. This is common sense. This is how it is done in first-class restaurants."
The milk and eggs in the frying pan can't cover the bread slices; the coffee pot is almost half a pot of coffee powder. Billy looked at his father's busy state with a distrustful mood, with critical eyes... Suddenly Billy cried out:
"Dad, it's a mess! It's a mess!"
Ted saw smoke in the frying pan, and when he was anxious, he reached out for the iron handle of the frying pan. It was so hot that he couldn't stand it. "Wow--" he let go, "Clang!" The sound of the sound, the contents of the pot were scattered all over the floor. "This bastard woman!" He couldn't help but cursed his wife who had run away. Billy looked up at him in surprise. He kicked the frying pan again. The child's surprised expression woke him up again, and quickly re-pretended to look as if nothing had happened: "It's okay! It doesn't matter! There is no problem at all, it's okay!"
The time for class is approaching. Ted himself was afraid of being late for work, so he took the child and hurried forward. Billy shook off his father's hand (daddy was sweaty) and asked the same sentence over and over again:
"When will mother come back? Will you come to pick me up when school is over?"
"Probably coming. If you don't come, Dad will come to pick you up."
"What if Dad forgot? What if Dad is run over by a truck?"
Ted didn't mind such discouraging words, just hurried hard. When I came to the school door, I remembered and asked:
"How old are you?"
He knew (for the first time) that his son was in the first grade. So he pushed the child to a woman who happened to pass by and said, "This is Billy in the first grade, please take him in." He turned around and shouted a taxi and left.
Okner's office. Ted is telling his boss how his wife ran away from home. He rested his right hand on the back of the beautiful leather sofa and waved his left hand with expression. On the left finger was the sparkling wedding ring.
"...This guy is actually very kind...Usually I always ask her: Is there anything unsatisfactory... She has a friend named Telma who lives below us, and the two of them are very close. But, that guy is a member of the'Women's Liberation Movement'. I suspect that this time the two of them may have negotiated a good job... Could it be her intention? It's crazy."
Hearing what this colleague said, Okner had no choice but to laugh. However, his boss is worried about another thing:
"Ted, I am totally dependent on you. 100%, seven days a week, twenty-four hours a day, I have to rely on you. But if you let a snot-dragging doll hold your hands and feet, I can’t help but Worry about."
Ted stood up. He didn't want to entrust the child to his own management.
"Well, twenty-five hours a day, eight days a week, it doesn't matter. I will never let housework interfere with work...I am full of energy!"
Some night. In the living room. Sitting on the sofa, Ted was immersed in a beautiful advertisement photo, desperately trying to figure out a solution. There are many materials and negatives scattered on the table with two feet. A plastic cup is filled with the red sherbet that Billy drinks. Billy is playing a game of cosmic navigation with a toy airplane, while trying to attract his father's attention.
"Dad! Daddy! When did the elephant go into the yard? After the new wall was built..."
"Hey! Don't bother me, okay... just finally remembered a good way, but you..."
Billy's plane knocked down the very light plastic cup and splashed the red sherbet all over the table. "Dad!" The child's urgent cry finally awakened Ted. He just looked up, and saw that many important materials were soaked in sherbet, and he couldn't help but get angry, "Asshole!" He grabbed a handful of napkins from the kitchen and wiped the table indiscriminately.
"Why don't you listen to me and drink it in the kitchen!"
"please forgive."
"Who brought you to the park?"
"dad."
"Who bought you ice cream?"
"dad."
Under his father's rage, Billy had to curl up on the sofa, but he didn't think anything was wrong, his eyes showed contempt for Ted. Those precious negatives are no longer usable. Ted saw that look of resistance, his anger was suppressed, and he had to go to bed. Billy walked toward his bedroom in frustration, and Ted looked at his young figure from behind, feeling that everything was really bad.
The morning of a rest day less than a week after Joanna left. Ted found in the mail that there was a letter from Joanna. Although it was a day of rest, Billy was still sitting on the bed with the doll in his arms, watching the comics on TV very unhappily. As soon as he heard a letter from his mother, he asked, "When will I be back?" Ted told Billy by the pillow the belief that his wife had written to his son:
"Dearest Billy: Mom left home... why? Because mom feels it is necessary to find something in this world that can bring her own pleasure. Anyone in the world must do the same. I am Your mother, but you can't just be your mother. Mom must be like this... From now on I will always be your mother and love you forever... But I am no longer the mother who is locked up at home, I am the mother in your heart... …"
"Mother in my heart," Ted smiled slightly to his son, as if to say, you must be very happy to hear it. "Mother in my heart", this is also an ultimatum to her husband Ted. Billy didn't wait until he finished reading, and turned his face unhappily. He turned the button that controls the volume to maximize the volume of the TV. The sound of reading the letter can't be heard. But Ted was not easy to criticize him, he just said "Let's read it later" and stood up.
"I do not want!"
The father had to leave the seven-year-old son behind and walked away alone.
Ted put all his wife's clothes, books, holiday supplies, cosmetics, etc. in a cardboard box and hid them all from the house. In this way, the cursable opponent and the cursed fate began to gradually disappear from his mind.
One Saturday afternoon, Ted was about to leave the office in a hurry. Okner poked his head out of the neighboring room, and saw him attend a small rally that was taking place there.
"I wanted to come, but I have to rush to pick up Billy... until Monday..."
Okner watched nervously at the back of his arm who hurriedly ran out for the reason of picking up the child.
Ted hired a taxi to get to Billy's friend's apartment. The child was invited to attend his friend’s birthday tea party there today. When Ted visited the house, Billy was the only one of the visitors. He was playing his temper, and the master seemed to be embarrassed. When the father and son came to the corridor, Ted was trying to comfort him, but Billy said to his father:
"Dad is late!"
"No more than twenty minutes, Billy."
"You bet? Others' mothers come earlier than their fathers!"
Billy walked quickly into the elevator as he spoke.
The same night. The father and son were sitting at the dinner table. On the table is a ready-made dinner on a plate that can be turned in compartments (this kind of meal is called "TV dinner". This means that as long as it is placed in the oven for 30 minutes-the time for a TV show- It can be eaten out. It is a tasteless dinner). Billy was probably still awkward about today's affairs, and kept silent slouchingly. Although Ted had already cut the meat for him, he just fiddled with his fingers and didn't want to eat it.
"You can't eat with your fingers. Billy, good boy, sit down. How is the school?"
"It's still the same."
"Oh, how about Nicks (New York hockey team) finally winning?"
"Nothing great..."
"why?"
"I support the Boston team."
"Boston? Why do you support Boston again?"
"That's where my mother was born... can I go? I want to sleep."
Ted looked at the back of the kid walking slowly to the bedroom, and said:
"I'm afraid the birthday cake is too much, right?"
"Oh, probably."
Billy's sweater showed the hem of his shirt. After Ted watched him go, he put his fork down and bowed his head for a long time in deep thought.
That night. It was late at night, and Ted picked up the toys and small clothes scattered around and took them to the child's bedroom. He folded his clothes on the porch and opened the drawer in the closet. In the draw, there was a picture of Joanna he had hidden. He moved in his heart, and when he looked back, he saw the child curled up and fell asleep without even taking off his shirt. He put the picture next to Billy's pillow. At this moment, Billy turned over and looked like he was about to fall off the bed. By this time, Ted still didn't know how a father should deal with a sleeping child. He gently pulled up the quilt to cover him, and then tiptoed out of Billy's bedroom. He didn't close the drawer of the closet... it was on like it was when it surprised him just now.
On the wall of Billy's bedroom, there were letters and photos from his mother dazzlingly pasted.
Only the father and son live in the morning. Billy got up first, pissed, and came to the dining room with donuts, plates and comic books. Then Ted also got up. He walked into the bathroom sleepily, peeing louder than a child, and then he went out to get the newspaper, the pullover was reversed. He came to the dining room with a glass, milk and juice. The father and son read their own newspapers and picture albums while having breakfast. The father drank something like vitamins. No one spoke, almost without even looking at each other.
Ted even seemed to be late for some important meetings. I often leave the office with my shopping bags in the supermarket. The number of the phone number that the secretary jot down to him, the notice of going to a parent meeting or attending a birthday party for congratulations, etc., has also increased.
Central Park on weekends. Ted brought Billy to play; and Terma, who came with her baby, sat on a bench. This woman, who has been separated from her husband for a year and a half, is said to not want to get married again. she says:
"If you don’t have children, maybe it’s a different matter... Even though they don’t live together, even though they are sleeping with their own, even if Charlie has remarried, he is my husband and the father of my children after all. Can be separated', this is the truth."
"What if Charlie comes to pay you?"
"If he really loves me... I don't think he will divorce me."
Ted gently stroked this friend's cheek with his hand.
"Still thinking of him?"
"I miss him often, you don't want Joanna?"
"not at all."
"lie!"
"We are in the same situation!"
The two also laughed like self-deprecating.
Eight months after Joanna left. Okner was very angry about Ted's work. Even when he called Ted to the office to give a warning, the child would hang up, and Ted patiently educates the child even in front of his boss:
"The time to watch TV is only allowed for one hour a day. This is a rule."
This night. The plate on the dinner table contained fried beef patties, which seemed to be frozen food. Billy was wearing a dirty shirt and brought the toy airplane to the table. He was still playing, refused to eat, and deliberately made it difficult for his father.
"What is this, it's terribly dirty. I don't like it!"
"Didn't you say it was delicious last week?"
"I hate this dark color, it's so dirty!"
"This is the shallot and beef juice!"
"I have a reaction as soon as I eat green onions."
"Nonsense! I ate it last week. I said this was my father's favorite food when I was a kid, and you said, "Me too."
Billy was still prevarication with something disgusting, etc.
"Did you buy me chocolate powder ice cream?"
Billy seemed to understand his father's way and acted like a baby as usual.
"It was eaten after dinner." Billy stood up in a challenging posture when he heard his father say this. He carried the chair to the refrigerator, looking at his father's warning look, climbed up the chair as usual, took out the ice cream from the refrigerator, and returned to the table in a magnificent manner.
"Okay! You try one bite! Take that bite and pull it down... Put it down! Put it down!... Heard no! You just have to eat, then, then, that's a bad luck!"
Billy ate it spoon by spoon as if he could see through his father's helplessness.
"Can't eat anymore! This is the final warning!"
The warning seemed to act as a trigger on the contrary, stiffening instead. Ted was furious, stood up and lifted the child sideways, and walked to the child's room. Billy cried loudly and kicked his father desperately.
"I hate Dad!"
"I'm spoiled for you! I must be a worthless villain in the future!"
Ted threw Billy on the bed.
"I hate Dad!"
"I hate you too! You bastard kid!"
"I want my mother!"
"You only have father!"
Ted walked out of the room and closed the door with a "bang", only to hear that the room was still crying, "I want my mother, I want my mother". Father couldn't cry himself, so he had to drink sullen wine.
Late at night of this day. After Ted cleaned up the kitchen, he went to see the child who was left in the dark room. He seemed to be asleep, and he turned to leave when he suddenly heard:
"Dad... please forgive me."
"I beg for forgiveness... well, it's late, go to sleep."
When Ted was about to leave again, he heard:
"dad!……"
"What's the matter this time?"
"Does Dad leave home to go there too?"
"No, I'll stay here with you. Dad can't get out even if he rushes."
"Mom left because I was a bad boy?"
"Do you think so?"
In the gloom, Billy can be seen nodding.
"No, Billy. Mom loves you very much... I don't know if you can understand. May I tell you something?"
Billy nodded deeply again.
"The reason why mom ran away from home, Billy, according to my dad... That's because for a long time, my dad always wanted to make mom a certain type of person, and my dad thought she should be a certain type of wife... But, Your mother is not such a person...not at all. For a long time, your mother has been working hard to make father happy. When she thinks she can't do it, she wants to tell father, do you understand? Dad doesn’t listen to her. I’m too busy...I just think about my own business. Because I think that when I am happy, my wife is bound to be happy. But deep in my heart, I always feel that your mother is very painful. She loves you because she loves you. Reluctantly stay at home. She can't stay any longer...because she can't stand me anymore. Billy, the reason is not with you, the reason is with Dad...well, it's time to go to bed, it's already late. "
For the first time, my father said what was in his heart. Billy was listening to his whispers with tears in his eyes.
"Go to sleep, sleep beautifully."
This was originally said by my mother every day, but today is said by my father.
"See you tomorrow morning..."
As the father said, he walked to the dim porch.
"Dad... I love you."
"I love you too."
When Ted closed the door, he saw the child lying with his arms around the pillow, tears dripping from his cheeks——
At the show party on Halloween (Note 1), Billy served as an announcer. The children's mothers were all on the guest table, and Ted was sitting among them. He forgot the lines as soon as he saw his son appear on the stage, and he couldn't help but sweat for him. Although his father spoke for him, Billy couldn't hear him.
One night, Ted brought Phyllis, his most sensual female colleague, home to share with him. The next morning, she went to the bathroom naked and met Billy with sleepy eyes in the hallway. Billy asked her name, whether she liked fried chicken, etc. Ted in the bedroom turned pale with fright when he saw this situation.
Central Park on weekends. Billy just learned to ride a bicycle with the help of his father. After a while, he staggered and desperately pedaled forward without his father's support. Looking at his fading back, Ted was overjoyed, and quickly pointed the camera at him.
Time to send children to school. Ted listened carefully to what Billy said to him. After saying goodbye to the child calmly, he walked and looked back from time to time before he greeted a taxi after he entered the school. Joanna can be seen in the glass window of a coffee shop across the road.
Central Park one day. Ted and Thelma looked after the children who were playing, and Ted also chatted with her like a woman. Billy climbed to the top of the climbing frame, trying to get the plane down from the highest point. Hearing the child yelling: "Dad, look!" Ted looked up and saw the child's dangerous appearance, so scared to know what to do. Telma ran to the climbing frame, but in a moment she didn't notice, Billy slipped and fell off the frame. When she touched the ground, the plane in her hand hurt her eyes...
"Dad! It hurts! It hurts!" Ted ran forward on the streets of New York desperately, holding the child in his arms...
Emergency hospital. The doctor said: He will not be blind, but he will have ten stitches on his face, and the operation will be completed in fifteen minutes. Let him go outside and wait. But Ted insisted:
"This is my son. I must watch his surgery."
During the operation, Ted kept the child's ears and kindly encouraged him. He held Billy's head and watched him convulse with every stitch, and Billy's cries stung his heart.
That night. Billy finally fell asleep. Ted gently stroked his naked back, still wearing the clothes stained with blood from the child during the day, and his face looked haggard.
In the kitchen, Telma is washing dishes:
"……How about it?"
"It doesn't matter, I'm already asleep. Let me wash the dishes."
Terma turned around very excitedly:
"Ted, I'm so sorry. This is totally my fault...I haven't had time to figure out what to do, the child has fallen off..."
"Where is the word. Telma, listen to me, there is one thing to ask you. This is a very important thing... If I have something in case, for example, the building collapses and smashes me to death... You Can you take care of Billy for me?...I can't think of anyone else I can trust. If it's you, Billy will be relieved...because you are a very good mother."
Terma seldom shed tears before, and sobbed with excitement. Ted immediately washed the dishes awkwardly, as if to say, "Look at Chai awkwardly, to make her laugh."
"O—K—?"
"...O-K."
Ted hugged Telma's shoulder, then began to wipe the dishes beside her. Telma also put her arms around Ted's shoulders, and wiped her eyes with her napkin.
Someday. In the office. Ted had lunch while dealing with the backlog of work. The phone rang. Perhaps because it was time for a break at noon, the female secretary was not there. Ted picked up the microphone: "Hey! Hey! Who?" His face suddenly changed:
"... Is it Joanna?"
In a corner of the restaurant, Joanna was waiting. When she saw Ted, she smiled and Ying first: "I'm in good spirits, how about your work?" The smiles on both sides were somewhat reluctant. On the table were two glasses of white wine, and no one touched them.
"...Billy, how are you doing?"
"Okay, okay. But... About two weeks ago, there was a small accident and I suffered a little injury... I didn't take care of it, so..."
"Really? It's too far apart, I didn't see it."
Ted couldn't help being taken aback. Only then did he know that his wife was looking at the child in secret. According to her, she came back to New York two months ago. Ted urged her to start talking:
"In the past, I always thought: I am someone's wife, someone's mother, someone's daughter... During this long period of living with you, I just don't know who I am. So, I left this home. In California, I finally found myself. I had a job and I was treated by a very good psychotherapist... This is the first time since I was born that I have built up a sense of self-confidence in myself and understand Many things."
"Like...oh, really, I really want to know what you learned."
"Yes. I learned...I love my child and I have the ability to raise him."
"What does it mean?"
"I want a child!"
The atmosphere changed suddenly. Ted sullen his face and put on a defensive posture, and the two lowered their voices and started arguing.
"...Just two or three postcards, what kind of mother are you?! —"
"I always wanted this child."
"Can you say with confidence that your child likes you?"
"Then can you safely say that the child doesn't like me?...I know it will be like this."
Ted stood up suddenly, said "goodbye" threateningly, then swept the glass on the table horizontally, turned and walked out. The glass hit the wall and shattered, making a harsh sound. Joanna was shaking with anger.
"I don't understand the legal terms, but I think this is obviously an illegal abandonment."
Ted is visiting Naxi, a defense lawyer. But the lawyer told him that the issue of custody is very complicated, and disputes in this area are difficult to deal with. Not only must it be an arduous struggle in court, it also requires a lot of money. Moreover, if the child is young, the court tends to take the side of the mother...
That night. According to the lawyer’s advice, Ted wrote down all the favorable and unfavorable conditions on paper and studied it. As a result, the unfavorable items increased one by one. The wall behind him is covered with pictures drawn by Billy...
In the child's room, the light was dim, and the child was asleep with his head resting on Ted's arms. Ted shook him gently, murmured in his mouth:
"I love you, Billy... You are asleep, don't you hear me, but... I love you in my heart..."
the next day. In the restaurant. Okner invited Ted to lunch. Ted also boasted about his child's ability to handle some things in front of the boss. Unexpectedly, Okner suddenly announced the dismissal of Ted with a painful mood. He said that the people above have a lot of opinions about him... there is really no other way... Ted's expression was that he didn't believe it happened.
"I'm about to fight with my wife for custody in court. If you lose your job at this time, think about what the consequences will be! I beg you, help me, it depends on my friends..."
"You are a very talented person, and you will be able to overcome difficulties on your own."
Okner then took out an envelope containing cash and said that it was taken care of by the company. He estimated that he was in need of money at the moment.
"shameful!"
Ted yelled and left angrily. On the streets of New York near the end of the new year, Ted was hesitating in the biting cold wind, wearing a British tarp trench coat suitable for the identity of an advertiser on Madison Avenue.
That night, Ted arranged the Christmas tree with Billy with the same expression as usual. The lawyer called and told him that he had decided to open the court on January 9. The lawyer said that the request to hold the court after finding a job could not be fulfilled.
"Okay! You must find a job within 24 hours!"
December 22. The Christmas holiday is just around the corner. This is the most difficult season of the year to find a job. Ted used a pencil to draw the bars one by one with small grids of job advertisements in the newspaper. He worked hard without being discouraged. The staff in the employment agency were also busy cleaning the table, but couldn't stand Ted's death and begging, and finally contacted him a place to make an appointment for an interview. Ted thought that even if he was qualified, a person like him who used to instruct creation would definitely have to do graphics this time. He took a big leather bag with past works out of the elevator. This is the Friday before Christmas. A big Christmas tree has been arranged in the lobby of the advertising agency, and people are busy happily. The people who came to meet Ted were too busy to stand and talk to him. He didn't seem surprised by Ted's great resume. He was forced to see the person in charge by Ted's request, so he had to open the door to the neighboring room. A party was being held in that room, and the minister came out with the man just now. He was tired of playing and was ready to go home. As he walked, he said, "I can only talk for ten minutes!"
"Mr. Kramer, our position here is obviously lower than your qualifications. Why would you be interested?"
"I am eager to have a career."
As expected, the other party meant to wait a while. So he said:
"This makes me embarrassed. I can only apply today. Both of my works have been reviewed, and I must already know that I am competent for this job. I will never care about lower wages. I hope that it is today. It's decided."
Ted sat alone in the corner amidst the quiet conversations of the people at the assembly, nervously awaiting the final decision. After a while, someone from the neighboring room called him in and informed him of his decision to "hire". Ted was relieved. He came to the party again, approached a woman he thought was the most beautiful, went forward and said "Merry Christmas!" He kissed her unexpectedly, turned and left.
On a Saturday. Ted took Billy to the company for his new career. His office is on the highest floor of a super high-rise building, from where you can see the whole of New York and the distant horizon. Billy is very happy. The two of them came to the door of a room.
"What's on this sign?"
"Kremer."
"Who is that referring to?"
"It's us."
Ted opened the door sharply. With a cheer, Billy rushed to the window, put his face on the windowpane and looked out. "Be careful!" Kramer shouted, feeling extremely happy in his heart.
"...There is the East River, and after the river is the Queensland, where is it going to go down there? Do you know?"
"Brooklyn, where Dad lived when he was a kid."
"Yes. This is where Dad works."
"Ho! Great! Is this Dad's desk?"
This is a cheap drawing board on which the paints used to paint advertisements are laid out. The child sat down here, feeling very excited:
"Dad... still married?"
"...I haven't thought about this."
"Married to Phyllis?"
"No... she's just my ordinary friend."
"Marry mom again?"
"No... Mom and Dad will never get married again."
Ted is watching the child's reaction to this sentence.
"If Mom sees this room, she will definitely marry Dad again."
Time to school. Ted walked with Billy and asked him why he didn't implement the rule of washing his hair twice a week. He wanted to discuss this issue with the child. When he arrived at the school gate, Ted squatted down and negotiated with the child. He looked over Billy's shoulder and saw Joanna in the cafe across the road. Ted kissed Billy, and when he watched him run into the school, he forgot to blame him just now, and shouted:
"Hey...you are a good boy!"
That night. Ted read to Billy's room the story as usual. The phone rang. Ted was answering the child's question, and rushed to the phone. The call was made by the defense lawyer. It is said that Joanna asked him to meet with the child. Ted suppressed his anxiety and returned to Billy's room.
Saturday morning. central Park. Ted came with Billy, who was still pestering his father about toys. Ted looked uneasy. On the road in front of them stood Joanna. She was so nervous, she simply sat down. "Billy! Billy!" It was the mother's call... When the father was just about to dress the child and let him go, Billy shook off his father's hand and ran forward. He ran desperately towards his mother... When Joanna, with tears in her eyes, waited for him to come in front of him, she hugged him tightly and lifted him into the air, then turned and walked in the opposite direction. Before leaving, he said:
"Let him come back at six o'clock in the afternoon!"
Ted stood there watching the meeting of mother and son, and went back listlessly after they had gone away.
The judge agreed to start questioning Joanna at the request of the plaintiff’s defense attorney Grayson. From Joanna’s answer, we can know that after eight years of marriage, after the first two years passed, she felt distressed. Before getting married, after graduating from Smith Women's University, she has been working in the art department of "Girls" magazine. After getting married, he resigned because he could not obtain the understanding of the husband. Now I work as a sweatshirt designer for Selke, with an annual income of US$310,000, and so on. (Ted's mouth leaks a "shit!" that is almost inaudible.) Joanna has been suppressing her nervousness and calmly answering questions.
Grayson: "Do you love your son?"
Joanna: "Yes, I love him, I love him very, very much."
Grayson: "Nevertheless, you still put him down!"
Joanna: "Yes...it's like this. In the five years of married life... I have gradually developed a feeling of misfortune, and this feeling has become more and more serious. I need someone to reach out to me. Helping hand. I asked Ted for help... He ignored me at all. In this way, the two of us gradually separated and we were in a state of separation from each other... He devoted himself wholeheartedly to his work. I. I felt scared because of his attitude towards my psychology and his inability to deal with my feelings, which even made me completely lose confidence in myself. I felt scared... I felt so unfortunate. So I thought about it. There was no other way except to leave this home. At that time, I felt that there must be some serious flaws in my body, so I thought it was better for my son to leave me. However, after arriving in California and receiving psychotherapy... Realize that I myself am not the kind of person with serious defects. I just want to find a way out and sustenance for creativity and emotion in addition to children. Therefore, I am not an unqualified mother."
Joanna provided a report from a psychotherapist.
Grayson: "What is your reason for raising custody?"
Joanna: "Because he is my son... and I still love him. I also understand how ruthless it is to leave the child behind. But there is no other way. I think, For the children, this is the best way. I am in that home and cannot fulfill my responsibilities... However, I ask for help from people to make myself a perfect person. I have done my best in this regard. I believe that I shouldn’t be punished for leaving my child behind, so of course my son shouldn’t be punished for it. Billy is only seven years old and he needs me. Of course, he I need my father too. But I believe that he needs me more... I have been a mother for five and a half years, and Ted only took over for 18 months. Can it be said that, as a child’s mother, I don’t have Cray Is Mr. Mo doing well!...I am the mother of this child..."
Grayson's questioning is over. When Joanna was about to stand up, she was stopped by the defendant's lawyer, Shang Naxi. He began to question Joanna the opposite. Joanna immediately adopted a challenge attitude. Shang Naxi asked her a series of questions: Has your husband ever used violence against you? Has he abused children? Is he alcoholic? Do you often drink alcohol? Is there any act of being unfaithful to your wife? and many more. Joanna's answer to these questions is always one word: "No." She sneered.
Shang Naxi: "Husband did not fulfill the responsibility of raising?"
Joanna: "No."
Shang Naxi: "That's it. Why did you run away from home."
Then I asked whether there was a lover in the past and now, and every sentence was sarcasm. Ted couldn't help looking back to the gallery. It can be seen that the wife has a man with her.
Shang Naxi: "Except for your parents and female friends, which person have you maintained the longest relationship with?"
Joanna: "I think it's with my child."
Shang Naxi: "Isn't it said that I only met twice in a year?... Isn't the one who has the longest relationship with your now divorced husband?... Please speak up, you can't hear clearly."
Joanna: "Yes."
Shang Naxi: "You failed in this most important relationship between people, right?"
The plaintiff's lawyer protested. The judge dismissed it and ordered the questioning to continue.
Joanna: "I didn't fail."
Shang Naxi: "So it is a success? Is this kind of marriage that ends in divorce a success?"
Joanna: "My husband and I are the same failure."
Shang Naxi: "That would be great. You have amended the Marriage Law now, and both parties have agreed to divorce... At this point, is it a failure?"
Joanna: "It's the failure of marriage."
Shang Naxi: "It's not about getting married, but about failing in the most important relationship between people, right?"
Tears leaked from Joanna's eyes. Under Shang Naxi's repeated questions, she couldn't help turning her face to look at Ted nervously. Ted shook his head with a sympathetic expression, as if saying, it’s not like that...
Shang Naxi: "How is it?"
Joanna nodded slightly as if having a high fever. That's the end of the day's interrogation.
After the lawyer returned to his seat, Ted quietly said to him:
"You don't need to force her to be so fierce."
"Don't you want children anymore?"
That night. Like those nights shortly after Joanna left, Ted sat on the sofa in the living room doing his own thing. Billy was right beside him, just as it was then, always struggling to attract his father's attention. Ted put aside his work, hugged the child to his knees, and told him about his childhood. The child started yawning soon...
"Mr. Ted is really a self-sacrificing father. He has lived with Billy for a long time... is an amazing father."
This is Telma's answer to Shang Naxi's question. She is a witness for Ted. The witness's speaking platform is close to the plaintiff's booth. When Terma spoke, she looked at the pale face of Joanna, who was once a close friend of hers, in front of her. Grayson's counter-question almost forbids Theelma to say a word of sympathy for Ted. Every sentence of her answer was almost interrupted by a sharp attack like a razor. When the judge ordered Telma to leave the witness stand, she still sat there for a while watching Joanna motionlessly, and began to pour her heart out to this friend:
"The situation has changed! Ted is different from the past. You don't know how hard he worked... They are so good. They are so good. If you see how good they are, Joanna, you I won’t be sitting here like today!"
Regardless of the judge's repeated stops, Terma finished what she wanted to say without fear. Joanna showed a very distressed expression, and she suddenly turned her gaze away.
Ted sat down at the witness stand. He was calm and sincere. It was not so much that he was answering Shang Naxi's question as he was speaking to Joanna:
"...By now, it’s useless to say anything. My wife...My former wife loved Billy, and I believe this is completely true...but today we have to figure out that is not the problem. Today is the most important thing. The question is, for our children and for Billy, what should be done best. Isn’t it such a problem? My wife often says, why can’t women have the same entrepreneurial ambition as men? Not bad, I I understand it. But for the sake of proof, I want to know whether there is such a requirement in the law, just because she is a woman, she is more qualified to be the parent of a child than a man? What kind of parent is a good parent? I am concerned about this question After thinking about it for a long time... Good parents must be in a constant mood... Must have a lot of patience. They must be able to listen to their children, even if they are unwilling to listen, they must act as if they are listening, and be full of love... Just like what she said. Regarding this point, if you say that women are one hand higher than men, and men have less sincerity than women, I would like to ask, where is there such a clear stipulation? Billy and I have our own family. . I did my best to build and maintain this family. Of course it’s not perfect, and I’m not a perfect parent. I’ll show anxiety from time to time... I forget that my object is like a young child. But I am A member of this family. Get up early in the morning... Two people have breakfast together, he talks with me, and then I send him to school... In the evening we have dinner together and chat. Then I read to him the story from the book , And then... we have established a common life of two people, we love each other. Once this life is destroyed, it may be impossible to recover....Joanna, please don't do this, don't let this Let the child suffer this misfortune again!"
Joanna listened nervously with her eyes wide open, and suddenly lowered her eyes as if avoiding something. Then Grayson raised a counter-question. He mentioned the issue of past salary and current salary at the beginning...
Ted: "Um... about 29,000 yuan."
Grayson: "Please be more specific about the numbers."
Ted: "...It's 28,200 yuan."
Grayson used cold interrogation techniques in an attempt to prove the fact that the defendant cannot be at odds between working and raising children. Regarding his dismissal from the original company, Grayson questioned one by one: You leave some important meetings aside, right? Isn't it time to get things done? and many more. Moreover, for these questions, it is not allowed to state reasons, which annoys Ted:
"I'm going to answer your question! But these are not simply "yes" or "no" to make it clear... The child has a fever of 38 degrees and lies at home. At this time, I still Shouldn't you go home!"
Joanna, who was sitting quietly, looked at Ted as if she felt she should ask questions.
Grayson: "Mr. Kramer, do you think you are a suitable and responsible father for the writer?"
Ted: "Yes, I think so."
Grayson: "Then, your son is almost in danger of blindness under your custody. Is this true?"
Ted was taken aback and turned to look at Joanna.
Joanna clutched her chest as if feeling cold.
The questioning came to an end. Ted shook hands with Shang Naxi, then walked tiredly towards the old elevator in the court. Joanna, who was sitting on the bench waiting, got up and came to Ted.
"Ted... Please forgive me... I never expected that he would bring up the accident... Really, I knew he was like this, I wouldn't tell him."
A futile apology... Ted walked into the elevator without a word. "Excuse me, I..." She watched the old iron cage-like box sink and disappear with her husband, and the elevator once again separated the two men.
It's a windy and snowy day. Ted took the washed clothes and walked back. He walked with Thelma who was going home with a big paper bag.
"Unexpectedly? Charlie and I may have come together."
"Really? He hung up?"
"Oh, I called him."
"Why do you want to do this again?"
"Ah... After that appearance in court, I thought of many, many things. It may not be possible, but it seems that he seems to have this meaning. So..."
"Isn't that great? What do you think?"
"I don't know... I feel a little scared."
In the restaurant. Shang Naxi sat and watched, with a bad whiskey in front of him. Ted came in and looked at the face of the defense lawyer:
"You lost the case, right?"
The lawyer told him that the court is a friend of motherhood. The content of the verdict is: Ted pays the child 400 yuan a month for child support, allows him to visit once every other week, and the child spends half of his vacation with him, and so on. Ted didn't even look at the verdict.
"How about another lawsuit?"
"It can be appealed, but it is not necessarily certain."
"Try your luck, you can spend as much money!"
"Ted, I can say that if you want to go to court again, Billy will also be in court, so you have to let the child come out to testify."
"Then you can't let him be like this...no, I don't want to let him be like this...thank you, I'm leaving."
That night, Telma rushed into the apartment, came to the door of Ted's house, and knocked on the door.
"Ted, I just heard... it doesn't matter, right?"
In the dim room, only Ted was sitting alone, not even taking off his coat. Ted said, "Go back, let me be alone for a while..." Thelma walked to the door, leaned her forehead against the door and sobbed.
Central Park on a weekend. The father and son walked to the scaffold where the creeping flowers and plants had withered. After Ted let Billy sit down, with a calm smile, he explained the matter to him in an instructive tone.
"...So, I had to let the judge decide, because he is a very smart and experienced person...In this way, he agreed with his mother. However, Dad actually followed you. Every I have a meal with you every other week, and I can spend the weekend with you twice a month."
"...Where is my bed? Where do I sleep?"
"All this, my mother will arrange for you."
"What about toys?"
"Then you can take them all to mom. And, if you are obedient, mom will buy you new ones."
"Sleep at night, who read me the story from the book?"
"Of course it's mother."
"Then before I go to bed, dad doesn't kiss me anymore?"
"That, that... of course not. But I will come to see you, isn't it great?"
There were tears in Billy's eyes.
"If you don't want to, can you come back?"
"How do you say that? It's so happy to be with mom. Really, how much mom loves you."
"Hey, dad must hang up and call me!"
Bi used the back of his little hand to wipe tears. Ted suppressed his excitement and forced a smile:
"Okay... OK, let's buy ice cream!"
The father let his son ride under the flower stand on his shoulders.
The morning of the farewell day. The father and son make French croutons. In the very tidy kitchen, Ted and Billy are both neatly dressed. Ted took the milk and two eggs from the refrigerator. Break the eggs with both hands and put them in the bowl. Add the milk and give it to Billy. Billy beat the eggs and milk desperately. At the same time Ted heated the frying pan to melt the butter. Billy put the bread soaked in egg and milk into the pan piece by piece. Ted was holding the handle of the frying pan, which of course had a cover to prevent hot hands. ... The two of them are very coordinated, Billy's expression is quick, and Ted is also smiling.
"Okay, all right! Eat it all!"
Ted picked up Billy, and he restrained his sobbing. He held the child tighter. In front of the packed luggage, the father and son waited nervously. After a while, the service desk downstairs hung up. It was Joanna, she said she wanted Ted to go down alone. Ted came downstairs and saw that his ex-wife Joanna was very haggard with suffering.
Ted: "Huh...what's the matter?"
Joanna finally stopped crying:
"After I got up this morning...I have been thinking about Billy. The kid woke up in the morning...woke up in the room where I painted him floating white clouds...If only I could paint some white clouds there too. La. Because... this way, he can feel like he is at home when he wakes up... I came here to take the child home, but I thought, he is at home now—"
Joanna couldn't help it, leaning on Ted's shoulder and crying: "What to do, how much I love this child!..." Joanna's words also hurt Ted's heart.
In the same painful mood, the two embraced together...
"I won't take the child away... Let me go upstairs... Can you talk to him?"
"of course!"
When Joanna was about to walk into the elevator, Ted said again:
"Oh, you... If someone goes to talk to him, then I'll be waiting for you here."
Joanna paused, wiping the tears from her face with the palm of her hand, and said:
"How about my face?"
"...It's beautiful..."
Joanna tilted her head slightly, as if she was saying "Really?" With an unnatural and beautiful smile... she closed the elevator door...
(End)
Notes:
Note 1: According to the Western custom, every November 1st is Halloween, and the night of October 31st is the eve of Halloween. Children can indulge in fun on this night.
appendix:
Comment on "The Kramers"
Text/〔美〕Frridge
"The Kramers" is a rare film. It sets the tone, focus and poetry of the film through the first image. This first image is a close-up of a woman in extreme pain, her face shrouded in darkness. This lens exposes what is deep in the individual's heart. At the beginning, the audience wanted to relax, but this ease never really appeared. The movie "The Kramers" is almost entirely composed of the faces of actors, strong feelings and winter glory. Dustin Hoffman and Meryl Streep were so sincere in their performances that the audience soon found that they could not help but stare at the screen.
"The Kramers" is the most emotional film of the year. The director Robert Benton and the actors made their own "A Wedding Scene" (Note 1), but they do not imitate Bergman, but are very American.
"The Kramers" depicts a sad woman who abandoned her husband and six-year-old son and ran away, and returned eighteen months later to demand custody of the child. This film is not only a satisfying description of the eternal tragedy of couples and fathers and sons, but it also touches on many explosive contemporary social issues. The characters in the film are very typical of the 1970s. Their troubles highlight the edge of the times. In this era, all the old definitions of marriage and family are torn to pieces.
Of course, this is not the first film to describe such issues. In the past ten years, several American films have re-evaluated the role of men and women. Mike Nichols's "Knowledge of Sexuality" and Paul Meshursky's "Bloom in Love" show the hypocrisy of smart and lustful American men in a comedy form. After the women’s movement, films like Martin Scorsese’s "Alice Don’t Live Here" and Meshursky’s "An Unmarried Woman" further tried to promote a new and liberated kind to the audience. Thinking of women. Then there appeared a series of films carefully depicting sensitive unmarried men. Both Woody Allen's "Manhattan" and Bob Foss's "The World of Jazz" have the male protagonist in the film revealing how to play with women to satisfy their selfish neurotic requirements. Blake Edwards' sensational film "Perfectly Perfect" is a moving farce depicting the childish sexual fantasies of male menopausal patients. In "Restart", Burt Reynolds turns from a newly liberated wife to an equally liberated lover. Allen Arda’s "The Temptation of Joe Tynan" describes roughly the same content from a more melancholic point of view (note 2).
"The Kramers" is different because the film does not have any kind of fashionable words or fashionable opinions. Benton did not portray his characters as representatives of various factional lines in today's gender politics, but instead allowed the questions in the film to develop freely and reasoningly based on the strong emotions that are difficult to control in the storyline. "The Kramers" avoids overt feminist debates, nor does it present the heroes and heroines as heroes or villains. This film is very different from almost all films about unmarried men and women. It does not use infidelity as a medium for plot development. Kramer is the only couple in the film, and their conflict is so deep that it does not begin and cannot end in the bedroom.
Benton encourages the audience to have anticipation and hasty opinions at every turning point of the story, thus deepening the depth and complexity of the film. This process began in the first few scenes of the film. When Joanna told Ted that she was leaving, the film was completely on her side. Ted seems to be an incorrigible demon. But as soon as Joanna left, Benton put his sympathy on Ted, who must take on the task of raising his son alone. When the male protagonist had to choose between career and housework, he did not make a second mistake. He started experimentally, and later devoted himself to improving the relationship with his son. This film shows scenes that are rare in real life and in movies, making a character who seems to be stereotyped, working desperately to become a newcomer. Generally, movies only express this kind of change for the sake of the plot, and the change process is rapid jump. Benton made Ted's changes on the screen little by little. The entire middle part of the film completely captures a series of peculiar scenes between father and son, these scenes fully illustrate Scott Fitzgerald's famous saying "action is personality." One is a movie star, and the other is a little boy with no acting experience. Together, the two created the most convincing father-son relationship on American screens. In order to capture Ted's changing mood, Hoffman performed nuances of varying degrees. He was angry at first, pale and panicked, and then gradually added tenderness and sympathy to the role he played. Justin Henry, who played the son, also played well. He doesn't have the kind of unnaturalness that makes children fail on the screen. When he fights with his father at the dinner table or cries for his mother at night, his feelings are spontaneous. Benton deliberately let the little actor improvise, rather than let him rehearse until perfect. The characters played by Henry also grew up in the film. At the end of the film, when the son prepares breakfast with his dad who is in a bad mood, the son uses the forced smile and comforting gestures that dad used in the same situation at the beginning of the film in order to make him feel better. This is an extremely ingenious technique that allows the audience to know indirectly that these two father and son, who were once almost strangers, have established the strongest relationship in their lives. Therefore, when Joanna finally reappears, it makes it difficult to accept her. This woman, when she got the sympathy of the audience when she bravely got rid of the imprisonment of her married life, she is now a villain because she wants to take her son away from her father, who once sacrificed her job and changed her life for his son Way. However, when Joanna answered questions in the court where the guardianship was judged, her virtues gradually reappeared. She exposed layer by layer in pain Show her past. Within a few minutes, she reproduced her life on the screen, a bride full of love, a wife who failed and self-hatred, and finally an independent woman. This segment is another overwhelming one in the film. This "in-the-film" not only shocked the audience, but also shocked the husband in the film. After the judge pronounced the sentence, it is difficult for the audience to say who really won. This ambiguity continues until the last shot of the film. The last shot was the same as the first shot, it was a close-up of the heroine, but she seemed more painful than before.
Xie Rongjin excerpted and translated from the US "Time" on December 3, 1979
Notes:
Note 1: "A Wedding Scene" is a TV series produced by the famous Swedish director Ingmar Bergman in 1973.
Note 2: "Manhattan", "Jazz World", "Restart", "Joe Tynan's Temptation" are all new Hollywood films in 1979.
Legal experts talk about "The Kramers"
Text/(美) Joe Dooley
In a country where one million children have their lives changed every year due to their parents' divorce, the filmmakers of "The Kramers" simply chose the topic that provokes the most discussion. However, does the trial in "The Kramers" correctly reflect the way the court handles custody cases today? Does it really show how lawyers actually handle such cases, how judges actually make decisions, and how parents actually reacted after they expressed their opinions in court?
Four legal experts have recently considered the above issues and believe that what happened in "The Kramers" will not happen in any enlightened court today. They said that the current trend in courts does not necessarily believe that it is better for young children to be under the custody of mothers, as shown in the film. Judges generally do not make a ruling before conducting a psychological investigation and seeking the opinions of the children.
Acting Judge Feliz Shea of the New York State Supreme Court said on behalf of the four people, “The film portrays the legal world fifty years behind the times, which is too bad.... In many ways, the film portrays court proceedings. Unreasonable and unrealistic.” But experts say the film is successful in showing modern parents. They all know a couple like Kramer, they appear in the New York court every day, and they talk about the same situation as the film.
But the film’s legal flaws conceal its advantages. Norman Sieleski, chairman of the New York Chapter of the American Association of Marriage Lawyers, said that in the film, "the case was handled very badly, perhaps a very bad judgment." Philip Solomon, the former president of the American Association of Matrimonial Lawyers, insisted, “The ruling is incorrect, and the audience was deceived by thinking that the ruling should be so.” Doris Jonas, chairman of the Family Law Department of the American Bar Association and a national authority on guardianship law Dr. Fried said, “I’m very surprised that in 1979, I could still hear lawyers saying to my father, “If you want custody, we have to take extreme measures.” The lawyer in the film refers to the old law in the past. It is best for a "minor" child to be under the custody of the mother, unless it is proven that she is not suitable for custody. This law has been repealed in most states, including New York. Dr. Fried said she does not deny that certain judges still believe that children should belong to their mothers, but Judge Shea believes that such judges do not exist in New York City courts. Judge Shea said, “This is a revocable wrong decision in New York. No judge will make a decision on custody without consulting the child.” If Judge Shea hears the Kramer case, she will not only The child’s opinions must be sought, and a neutral expert, psychiatrist, or protector must be appointed to protect the child’s interests.
If the Kramers' case goes back to trial, Judge Shea said, "I would be happy to let them resolve it on the basis of mutual consent."
It is said that the film producer is preparing for the sequel to "The Kramers", which may be used as the basis for its script.
Xie Rongjin excerpted and translated from "Joint Times" on December 21, 1979
Film Director Robert Benton
Text/(美) Joe Dooley
Robert Benton gave "The Cramers" a breath of life because he abandoned most American filmmakers to turn life experiences into so-called entertainment practices. His movie script removes unnecessary details and background conditions from Avery Coleman’s original novel. His directing technique is to focus on the emotions of the characters. He never uses music to enhance a scene, and only moves the camera when the actor is walking back and forth, and when he has to.
Although Benton has only directed "Bad Companion" (a weird western film starring Jeff Bridges) and "Evening Scene" (a grotesque detective film by Art Carney and Lily Tomlin) Starring), but he is engaged in a film career. It was ten years old. He and his old partner David Newman co-wrote the most influential film script of the 1960s, "Pawnee and
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