Good Will Hunting

Rating: Null/10 (22 September 2011)

At first glance, Good Will Hunting in its title alone does not lure anyone into grabbing this DVD off the Blockbuster shelf. But once rented, the pleasure was all mine. Filled with the humor of Ben Affleck, intensity of Robin Williams and mystery of Matt Damon the nine out of ten stars basically rolls right off my tongue. Picture the drama of a tear filled chick-flick combined with the raw brash fight scenes of a Bruce Willis action thriller all while kicking back with microwave popcorn and can of cokepriceless, minus the popcorn and coke! This movie is Affleck and Damon's break out moment. The movie, set in the gritty streets of South Boston, finds its irony in Matt Damon's character, Will Hunting, an unusual 21 year- old math prodigy holding a job as a janitor at the prestigious MIT. Although a bit far-fetched, the cast is perfection in leaving one to wonder why no one dreams to be a janitor. Why can't that be fulfilling enough?
Moving on to junior mints, everyone will relate to the simple story line. Ben Affleck's chain smoking, beer drinking character Chuckie, tries to persuade Will toward a better life. Of course, don't we all have a friend like that? Will has a way off the streets that have hurt him, but loyalty is hard to leave. When Will's abusive past continues to haunt his future, enters Sean (Robin Williams) as his new therapist. From here on in the battle is waged whether Will's life of work and bar brawls with friends is the happy ending of his story. Ah, a breath of fresh air and a far cry from our open era of self-induced reality stardom and athletic phenoms, finding success only in the money they spend. It brings to life what makes any of us tick. What keeps us from staying safely where we are and what pushes us to dream?
Renting now is a no brainer since these names today would fill theater seats on star power alonedo take into account no one had heard of Affleck or Damon when it hit the big screen. Robin Williams surprises straying from his in your face stand-up comedy to play a therapist who maybe hasn't quite reached his potential. And expect him to have to take a long hard look at his own life. Insert dramatic music and play in slow motion-not that sappy.
My infatuation with the movie stops short as I take one star from my count due to the made for Hollywood ending. The film is inspirational, witty and smartuntil the ending. I understand that the grand finale sells tickets and the audience appreciates certain outcomes but no need to dumb down what is central to the story as reality begs for loose ends or bad choices or death or something. No one's life is neat and tidy and Will Hunting along with the rest of the cast could conceivably be in rehab for a very long time. I was not ready to say The End and think happily ever after.
Good Will Huntingsurprisingly not about hunting at all. I hesitate to push people to see a film held in such high regards, but it carries itself with a simple charm that allows a deep story to be told. The acting is top notch with the characters believable. Fix the ending and we can run down the beach with Bo Derek in the pursuit of that perfect 10!