F***, Will Hunting (the character) isn't that f***ing good

Rating: 5/10 (12 September 2013)

I don't usually talk like that; I'm just poking fun at the characters in the film. If you find that blurb offensive you'd better skip this movie.
"Good Will Hunting" (1997) tells the story of a young genius, Will Hunting (Matt Damon), who comes from a tough neighborhood in South Boston and works as a janitor at MIT. A Math professor, Lambeau (Stellan Skarsgård), posts a difficult problem on the board and is amazed to discover that Will solves it. Will gets in trouble with the law but Lambeau gives succor and enlists the help of psychologist Sean Maguire (Robin Williams) to get him on the right path. Meanwhile Will is falling for a Harvard girl (Minnie Driver).
The plot of a genius janitor is great and I thought I'd like the film more than I did, but a couple of things really bog it down.
For one, Will Hunting is not a "good" person, as the title suggests (I'm sure they were being ironic). In fact, he's so smart he's stupid. Doesn't he know that smoking will destroy his body and send him to an early grave? But that's the least of Will's shortcomings. He's arrogant and unnecessarily mean. For instance, Professor Lambeau visits him in jail and Will's first words are, "What the f*** do you want?" Could anyone be that stupid? How about, "Hi, I'm Will. Who are you, Sir?" I get it -- he's from a tough neighborhood and was abused as a kid, but 99% of guys from tough neighborhoods who were abused as kids don't talk unnecessary sheet like Will does in this film.
In fact, too much of the cussing rings untrue. Will and his three friends from South Boston (including Ben Affleck) use the f-word practically every other word and it strikes an inauthentic chord. Yes, I get it -- they're trying to act like hooligans from a rough neighborhood -- but they try too hard and it comes off contrived.
I should add that I hail from a hooligan-oriented neighborhood where the gang cussed, drank & smoked like sailors, but even we could construe eight words together without throwing in the f-word. I have no problem with realistic cussing in films; in fact, I prefer it. But when it's so over-the-top that it seems artificial it detracts from the drama.
Furthermore, Damon doesn't LOOK like a tough guy from the wrong side of the tracks (neither does Ben, but he's a little better). Matt's miscast because he just looks too soft with his baby-face. I think he knew this because he tries too hard to be a tough punk, and it shows.
The fact that the main protagonist is thoroughly unlikable takes away from the story. Who cares about some disrespectful punk who doesn't care to better himself, genius or not? As a result, the drama isn't nearly as compelling as it could've been. When Sean (Williams) finally gets Will to break at the end, I wasn't much interested.
Still, if you can handle the trying-too-hard-to-appear-tough acting and dialog, "Good Will Hunting" is worth catching if you like dramas. For one, Robin Williams is great in an atypical role as a serious psycho-therapist who is able to handle Will and overcome his (genius) defense mechanisms. Skarsgård is also excellent. And please don't take my criticisms the wrong way because there IS some good drama in this film, but it's buried underneath contrived writing and the corresponding performances (mainly Matt and Ben).
Incidentally, Minnie and Matt hooked up after this movie, so the romantic sparks are real.
The film runs 126 minutes and was shot on location in Massachusetts and Toronto.
GRADE: C+