Review of Good Will Hunting (1997) by Danny O — 19 Jul 2015

"Some people can never believe in themselves, until someone believes in them.".

Good Will Hunting is one of my favorite movies and a powerful and emotional, character driven drama. This is the type of movie I love. A movie about human struggle, human emotion, and human relationships, where the plot buildups aren't manufactured, but are real(or at least appear real). This is a masterpiece.

Will Hunting is a janitor at MIT, who lives in a rundown one bedroom apartment in South Boston. He spends his nights drinking with his friends and looking for trouble. Will has been in trouble a lot, mostly assault charges and after he gets into another fight, the judge is about to throw the book at him. In his spare time, however, Will is an avid reader and a mathematical genius. After he solves a problem on a chalkboard at MIT, that few ever have; a professor tracks him down and gets him out of jail. The terms- that he works with the professor and sees a counselor. Soon Will is excelling at his work with the professor, but is guarded about his past and scared of his future.

The performances in Good Will Hunting are extraordinary. Matt Damon gives, what I believe to be, his best performance. He exudes pain and emotion, in a powerful performance. Robin Williams is equally as haunting, as Will's psychiatrist, who tries to get Will to open up and see his potential. Minnie Driver gives a great performance as Will's love interest. As good as the performances are, the best aspect of the movie is the great script by Damon and Affleck and solid direction from Gus Van Sant.

There are a lot of powerful moments through out Good Will Hunting, but none more than when Will finally reveals his past to the love interest, Skyler. It's a scene so real, not forced, not manufactured, but something that comes about in a natural progression of great storytelling. If you haven't seen Good Will Hunting, it is one that you should seek out.