Jerry McQuire insults the intelligence!

Rating: 1/10 (5 January 2010)

It can take me years sometimes to see movies.
On a whim, I decided to rent "Jerry McQuire" to find out why colleagues have been chanting "show me the money" all these years. I guess part of the reason is Cuba Gooding Jr's performance - he really is fantastic. But his character is symptomatic of why I wish I hadn't bothered.
I'm taking into consideration that Jerry McQuire is an aging movie - and pre-11th September, 2001 - but was/is America really this shallow? I don't understand why any of the characters in this movie should be considered heroes.
Overpaid sports "stars" ranting and demanding to be multi-millionaires because they feel they deserve it?
A good-looking high-flyer who is irresistible to women?
The best thing this movie does is expose an insidious industry for what it is, while managing to fool the majority of viewers into thinking there has been some kind of redemption and victory.
If Tom Cruises' character had simply gone and sold hot dogs outside the Monday Night Football stadium after being fired he would have been making more of a personal journey and arguably more of a contribution to society.
I enjoyed the scene where Cruise searches for a decent song on the radio in order to appreciate his upbeat mood. But as usual, it's Cruise playing.. well, Tom. He only ever plays one character - himself. If it was near the end of "Rain man" he would have had a true reason to be happy with himself. But the premise of the celebration is very, very dubious indeed.
I kept waiting for the big revelation to arrive; when was McQuire going to reinvent himself or reinvent the industry to acknowledge and minimize the greed? I sat through an incredibly boring wedding and an even more boring break-up to arrive at the conclusion: an arrogant sports star is a hero for getting up after tripping over (in full protective gear!) and is now able to negotiate the contract which will keep his even more arrogant family happy.
When you consider that the average African-American family would have been more than happy with the offer that was on the table during the bleak dark days before this movie reaches its "climax", I fail to see how "Jerry McQuire" connected with anyone.
This movie insults the intelligence.