Review of As Good as It Gets (1997) by Vaikelly — 24 Mar 2011

The first thing I asked myself after I saw this movie was - how good can Jack Nicholson, Helen Hunt, Greg Kinnear, and Cuba Gooding be? Can they be any better? Director James L Brook's speciality is exploring the human psyche, emotions and portrayals of these many emotions and parts.

Nicholson's Melvin Udall is an obsessive-compulsive disorder, frantic and unstable-yet-stable in his ways in life. I liked how Hunt gave life to her Carol Conelly's single mom-waitress act. I was a tad disappointed at the way how Carol's new boyfriend starts to make out - it just didn't fit with the Carol I saw, the Carol who's working many shifts to ensure that she has the money to afford her little boy's asthma treatment, as well as making sure she can also afford the day-to-day finance of her house, where her mom also lives in.

I enjoyed Kinnear's 'Simon the **** portrayal, his subtle movements, his manner of speech and delivery, and his physical presence. Cuba Gooding has a very few scenes in the movie, but is no less memorable.

I somehow felt that the second half was a little dull compared to the first, but maybe that's because the early fun of seeing Melvin Udall's 'disgrace of a human being' starts to mellow out, and the actual evolution of the movie's plot begins to grow.

The screenplay was just strong enough for the material and characters at hand. Obviously, one cannot take one's eyes off Nicholson whenever he's on the screen, whether explaining in such clever sarcasm to Greg about why he works alone at night, or handling Greg's maid, or even when Carol confronts him with the 'you crazy .

...' after he tells her quite insensitively that 'we all die, and from what I hear, your son will too'. It's hilarious and its hurtful, but that's the best part - Melvin Udall is a single man, and it's because of a reason - he's just impossible to get along with.

It's not for a lack of trying, it's just that he has never met anyone who could show him the mirror and pick out the flaws in his face. Enter Carol, let the movie take its course, and you'll see just how one can change when one is receptive to one's environment.

"You make me wanna be a better man" isn't just your standard movie cliched lines, it actually is resonant of Melvin's feelings towards Carol, and it is deeply moving how their relationship evolves and grows.

Melvin's attachment to Simon's dog over time is moving and natural. Melvin feels something inside and he is grateful that he has a visitor in his house, and it is disturbingly pleasant. I've seen this movie time and again, because it is Nicholson and Hunt at their very best, and Brooks' direction at its most truthful and honest core.