A perfect romantic comedy.

Rating: 9/10 (8 August 1998)

With it's witty dialogue, simple and easy story, and the first class acting by sitcom television stars Helen Hunt and Greg Kinnear, and 3-time Oscar Winning silver screen legend Jack Nicholson, "As Good As It Gets" is the funniest and most intelligent- if pretty unrealistic- romantic comedy since "Pretty Woman." Nicholson has great fun as an obsessive-compulsive romance novelist, and has seemed to have matured just a little bit after nearly 30 years of 'bad boy' performances: Easy Rider, The Last Detail, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Witches of Eastwick, Batman, and Wolf. But, I would still bet on him to win a verbal and eye-staring rumble between him and Robert De Niro, Dennis Hopper, Peter Fonda and Michael Douglas. Hunt is extremely good but unrealistic as a lonely waitress whose son is really sick. But she plays the character as best as she can, and she has great screen-chemistry with Jack. Kinnear is probably the actor who steals the show not counting the humor. I'm sure everyone wanted Jack to shut up and put his glasses on when Kinnear told his engaging story about how his father gave him a "sweaty wad of money". That's real acting right there.