Kramer vs Kramer has a very simple plot: a divorced father fighting for the custody of his son. Director Robert Benton deliveres the story by focusing on the relationship between Ted Kramer (Dustin Hoffman) and his son, Billy (Justin Henry). The film revolves mostly around Ted, a career-oriented man trying to take care of Billy on his own after his wife, Joanna (Meryl Streep), left him. Benton also shows Ted’s struggle to be a responsible father in order to win over the custody of his beloved son. The father-son relationship was shown in one of the most memorable scenes, where Billy has an accident at a playground and Ted has to sprint several blocks through ongoing traffic to bring Billy to the hospital, showing his tenderness and sense of responsibility toward Billy. The film ends with a touching conversation between Ted and Joanna which also adds to the emotional value in Kramer vs Kramer.

Young Meryl Streep and Justin Hoffman did a great job with their roles. Both of them successfully showed the emotions of a couple who fought for the custody of their one and only child. Their acting in this movie were awarded in the 52nd Academy Awards where Dustin Hoffman won the trophy as the Best Actor and Meryl Streep as the Best Supporting Actress. Kramer vs Kramer was nominated in 9 categories and won 5 of them in total including Best Picture and Best Director.

Synopsys:
Ted Kramer is a career man for whom his work comes before his family. His wife Joanna cannot take this anymore, so she decides to leave him. Ted is now faced with the tasks of housekeeping and taking care of himself and their young son Billy. When he has learned to adjust his life to these new responsibilities, Joanna resurfaces and wants Billy back. Ted, however, refuses to give him up, so they go to court to fight for the custody of their son. (imdb.com)

article by: Elsa Safira Hestriana