Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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25 of 28 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
...But only because 5 is too obvious. Everyone gives 5., 3 Sep 2003
Most famously known as the movie which launched the big screen careers of Matt Damon and Ben Affleck, Good Will Hunting is a quietly beautiful, character driven piece. Damon is eminently watchable as the title character, portraying the mood swings and self destruction required with an engaging charm. Considering its associations with his fame, Affleck is actually little more than an extra - while he is entertaining as best friend Chucky, decked out in a Boston-ghetto uniform of tracksuits and bad hairstyles, he isn't really given much to do.
The thrust of the film is in Damon's struggle with his own genius, and his relationships with the people trying to make him see it and use it. First discovered by College Professor Skellan Skargard, he is bounced from prison by Skarsgard, who hopes to join forces with the wunderkind in order to leave his mark more indellibly on the Mathematical world. As part of the deal Damon enters into therapy with blue-collar shrink Robin Williams, who holsters his manic tendencies to move Will down the road to recovery with warmth and a much gentler good humour. The growing relationship between the two provides the best scenes in the film, from a lovely moment in which they ruminate on love and regret over memories of a baseball game, to the famous payoff of 'It's not your fault.'
William's performances so far outstrips the sap-fests of 'Patch Adams' and 'Jack', and here is almost unrecognisable as the childish Peter Pan character he has been so associated with in other films. Both impossibly wise and disarmingly humble, Williams marshalls the role with working class grit and great intelligence - its a shame he hasn't really been this good since, although he does play against type brilliantly in his recent work (see Insomnia, or One Hour Photo).
The dramatic drive behind Will's change, however, comes from his relationship with Minnie Driver's Skyla. Their growing bond is shown tremendously, managing to be touchingly sweet while also managing to be realistic in its awkwardness and uncertainty - a first kiss is arranged early as a way of getting the pressure off at the end of the evening. The depth of the bond between the two does grow a little too quickly and without explanation - their initial fumblings turn almost without warning into love, with Skyla asking Will to follow her across the country to pursue their relationship. Having said that, the on-screen chemistry between the two is palpable (possibly due the relationship blossoming between the two off it), and they do make for one of the better pairings in recent film.
It could be said that Good Will Hunting is little more than clever series of audience manipulations, and it is true that it is indeed often sentimental. However, it never slips into the kind of cloying sappiness that you might expect from this, and the result is simply pure, mainly unchallenging but extremely well-crafted drama.
This is the kind of film that could have been a best picture contender if it had come after it's stars breakouts, remaining at the same time intelligent and literary while also balancing mass appeal. With uniformly excellent performances, Williams' breakthrough as a proper actor and a script that gave its writers both the fame and the Oscar they deserved, this a film that deserves to be in everyone's collection, if only to remember a time before its stars went about the humdrum business of being regular movie stars. Top notch.
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12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent! Powerful & Moving!, 20 Oct 2002
The basic story of this film (Written by Matt Damon and Ben Affleck surprisingly) centres around the life of Will Hunting (brilliantly played by Matt Damon) Will Hunting is a closet maths genius who ignores his gift in favour of nightly boozing and fighting with South Boston buddies (co-writer Ben Affleck among them). While working as a university janitor, he solves an impossible calculus problem scribbled on a hallway blackboard and reluctantly becomes the prodigy of an arrogant MIT professor (Stellan Skarsgård). Damon only avoids prison by agreeing to see psychiatrists, all of whom he mocks or psychologically destroys until he meets his match in the professor's former childhood friend, played by Williams. Both doctor and patient are haunted by the past and, as mutual respect develops, the healing process begins. The film's beauty lies not with grand climaxes, but with small, quiet moments. Scenes such as Affleck's clumsy pep talk to Damon while they drink beer after work, or any number of therapy session between Williams and Damon offer poignant looks at the awkward ways men show affection and feeling for one another This film has been beautifully written and directed and all involved deserved the high praise they received! I was so shocked to find out that this masterful story was written by Damon and Affleck as I had no idea that they had such writing talent to go along side their huge acting talents which are also shown to the full in this film. Robin Williams is superb as Will's psychologist as he endevours to help Will deal with a troubled and violent past that is preventing him from achieving his full potential both academically and emotionally. Brilliant performances all round in this emtional. tragic and sometimes very funny film, that will tug at every heart-string. A must see that is powerful and moving. Excellent!
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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
I'm pumped! Let the healing begin!, 3 Nov 2007
A math genius, Will, grows up in the back streets of Boston. Will has never sought any formal education and frequently gets in trouble with the law. He gets a job as a janitor at Harvard University. Between sweeping floors and cleaning toilets, he finds the time to solve extremely complicated math equations. A professor at Harvard attempts to take him under his wing and to save him from his latest prison sentence. The professor guarantees the court that Will will seek psychotherapy. After a number of therapists refuse to work with him, the professor asks an old friend to counsel Will. Enter Sean, Robin Williams, a man who also grew up in the back streets of Boston. Sean is able to relate to the troubled Will, and thus the healing begins...
I adored this film when it first opened. It had a fresh, funny, emotionally-charged script. The script was written by two young writers, who had lots of potential to become the most celebrated writers in Hollywood. Instead of sticking to the writing, Ben Affleck and Matt Damon chose the easier path. They became "action" movie stars on the back of Good Will Hunting and left their writing behind. I always thought that this was a shame, that they didn't stick with writing screenplays. Because of this, I think the film lost some of its initial impact. Don't get me wrong. It is still a notable work. When most audiences watch it, they find themselves cheering Will on, as he "cuts" elitist college students down to size. The most hardened and cynical viewers will find it hard not to shed a tear, as Will confronts his past. But what really makes this film masterful is that we are not just told that Will is a Genius. He proves it in every scene. Whether you are listening to his piquant repartee with other characters or his philosophy on life, you are struck by the intelligence of his remarks. The dialogue throughout the film is exceptional. It is earthy and natural (to stay true to the background of Will's character), but it is also adept and sometimes quite, profound.
In the ten years since Good Will hunting was released, Affleck and Damon have written only two other screenplays. In fact, they dropped off the writing "radar" to such a degree that rumours began to surface that William Goldman wrote the script. Goldman vehemently denies this. So it appears, for now, that Good Will Hunting may be a one-hit wonder. But I still have hope that when Affleck and Damon's action movie days are behind them, they will collaborate on one last script. And if it is half as good as Good Will Hunting, it will be a smart script with Oscar-winning potential.
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