The Best Movie not in the IMDb Top 250- one of the best ever made

Rating: 10/10 (23 October 2008)

If you've seen the movie Paycheck, you would not assume that Ben Affleck has brilliant writing talent in him. He apparently does and, along with childhood pal Matt Damon, in Good Will Hunting, he has penned a nearly perfect script. Good Will Hunting will make you laugh and make you cry. It will make you angry and sad and happy and excited all at once. It makes you root for its protagonist one moment and then hate him for being so stubborn the next. In short, it is one of the most powerful screenplays ever written.
Besides the writing, it is also perfectly acted. Ben Affleck is fantastic as Will Hunting's best friend and deserved an Oscar nomination simply for the scene in which he tells Will that he wishes Will would one day simply not be at his house. While Affleck is great in a relatively small role, however, it is Damon and Robin Williams who steal the show as the titular character and his psychologist, respectively. Damon's Will Hunting is just about the smartest man in the world, a man who can solve the most difficult calculus problem in his head and can read a book in a matter of minutes. Despite his genius, he is deeply emotionally troubled, due to his upbringing on the rough streets of Boston. Williams won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his brilliant portrayal of the only man who was able to get under Will's skin.
The movie, as stated above, makes you feel a wide span of emotions. Will is such a complex character that we cannot ever fully understand what makes him tick. Sometimes, we feel like he is growing emotionally, and sometimes we just can't grasp why he is being so stubborn and immature. The movie flows beautifully from one scene to the next and only seems to get better as it progresses. Also, it stands up wonderfully upon multiple viewings.
Good Will Hunting was nominated for nine Academy Awards in 1997 but only came away with two wins, Robin Williams for Best Supporting Actor and Damon and Affleck for Best Original Screenplay. I have seen all five films nominated for Best Picture that year, and this film is far and away the best of them. Titanic is a very good movie and certainly groundbreaking in terms of visual effects, but it comes nowhere close to making the emotional impact that this film makes. Also, Matt Damon was absolutely robbed of an Oscar for Best Actor by Jack Nicholson (As Good as it Gets).
Simply put, Good Will Hunting is one of the best films of the 1990's and one of my personal favorites of all time. I have handed out only 20 ratings of perfect 10's on IMDb out of over 600 films that I've rated. Good Will Hunting earned this coveted rating by combining a phenomenal screenplay with superb direction and impeccable acting. This film is truly one not to miss.