Good Will Hunting (1997)

User Rating:

8.0/10   

Director:

Gus Van Sant

Writers (WGA):

Matt Damon (written by) &
Ben Affleck (written by)

Release Date:

9 January 1998 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

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

Plot:

Will Hunting, a janitor at MIT, has a gift for mathematics but needs help from a psychologist to find direction in his life.

Plot Keywords:

Janitor | Genius | Mathematics | Jail | Professor

Awards:

Won 2 Oscars. Another 16 wins & 35 nominations

Cast

Robin Williams	...	Sean Maguire
Matt Damon	...	Will Hunting
Ben Affleck	...	Chuckie Sullivan
Stellan Skarsgård	...	Prof. Gerald Lambeau
Minnie Driver	...	Skylar
Casey Affleck	...	Morgan O'Mally
Cole Hauser	...	Billy McBride
John Mighton	...	Tom - Lambeau's Teaching Assistant
Rachel Majorowski	...	Krystyn
Colleen McCauley	...	Cathy
Matt Mercier	...	Barbershop Quartet #1
Ralph St. George	...	Barbershop Quartet #2
Rob Lynds	...	Barbershop Quartet #3
Dan Washington	...	Barbershop Quartet #4
Alison Folland	...	M.I.T. Student #1

MPAA:

Rated R for strong language, including some sex-related dialogue.

Runtime:

126 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:14A (Alberta) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Canada:PG (British Columbia) | USA:R (certificate #35614) | South Korea:12 | Philippines:PG-13 (cut) | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Belgium:KT | Brazil:14 | Chile:14 | Czech Republic:12 | Finland:K-12 | France:U | Germany:12 | Mexico:B | Netherlands:12 | Norway:15 | Peru:14 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG (cut) | Spain:T | Sweden:11 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15 | Israel:PG | Singapore:NC-16

Filming Locations:

Boston, Massachusetts, USA

Company:

Be Gentlemen Limited Partnership

Trivia:

The real Skylar whom Matt Damon dated, and who inspired the role in "Good Will Hunting" was married to Lars Ulrich of Metallica. She is as an ER doctor.

Goofs:

Continuity: The location of the writing that Will puts on the chalkboards in the hallway.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Lambeau: Mod fx... squared... dx. So please finish Parceval, by next time. I know many of you had this as undergraduates, but it won't hurt to brush up.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Sabrina, the Teenage Witch: Good Will Haunting (#3.6)" (1998)

Soundtrack:

Fisherman's Blues

Worth Seeing

This is a screenplay, whose script was written by Ben Affleck and Matt Damon and sold for $ 600,000. (They split the proceeds)I love this movie. I have seen it several times, and I still want more at the end (Isn't that what good movies do to you?) The subplots make for mini-movies of their own, especially the interplay between Robin Williams' character and Stellan Skarsgard's character.

Damon's real life buddy Affleck plays that same buddy role in GWH, and provides the definition for true friendship.

Minnie Driver is compelling, and I just love a couple of scenes when she and Damon are in a novelty store, and another where she is telling a joke in a bar with Damon, Affleck and friends. The love story which develops with Driver is very convincing, and it's "under the surface" portrayal plus input from one of our favorite characters makes for one of the best definitions of intimacy I have ever seen on film.

When I see some of the movies in IDB's top 250, I am sad that this movie isn't in there, but that is my opinion. Torn between GWH and Rounders as Damon's best movie, though I think GWD plays to a wider audience.