By: Goldie Robins
Written by Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, Good Will Hunting (1997) is a phenomenal drama that takes place in Boston, Massachusetts about a janitor at MIT who is brilliant but does not live up to his potential.
Unlike many of the Hollywood “feel good” story films, this one has a twist. It is not your average perfect story with an utterly perfect ending, this one can actually be relatable.
Co-writers Ben Affleck and Matt Damon also star in the film accompanied by a remarkable award-winning cast.
MIT Janitor Will Hunting (Matt Damon) secretly expresses his knowledge by solving the complex math problem when no one was around. The students questioning who solved the equation left the Professor (Stellan Skarsgard) perplexed and curious to know more.
Besides the fact that MIT was involved and that Matt Damon’s character, Will Hunting later finds love with a girl that attends Harvard there were frequent reminders throughout the entire film that it takes place in Massachusetts.
It started out with Ben Affleck’s character, Chuckie Sullivan, Will’s best friend since childhood bringing Will Dunkin Donuts in the morning. Other characters were also seen at Au Bon Pain multiple times. What is similar about these two places is that they both originated in Massachusetts. By including places that fit with the setting and having the actors wear clothes like a Boston Red Sox shirt made it unforgettable to know where the film was taking place. And if for some reason you did forget or were still unsure you can definitely tell by the accents.
The building of the main character, Will Hunting went by slowly but the film itself was fast paced. There was never the same shot on the screen for a long period of time. Movement of the camera was very common and helped support the portrayal of the story. The wide diversity of shots made the film more intriguing. Certain scenes when the actors were talking it would switch back and forth to semi over the shoulder shots which gave you, as the viewer an idea of the characters reactions. There were a lot of up close shots, I felt as though I was in Matt Damon’s personal “bubble” but it also gave a certain feel to the film.
Will Hunting does not want to be any more than your ‘average day Joe’. He solves the incredibly hard math problems while scrubbing the floor of MIT because it is easy for him. He didn’t set himself high goals for him to reach; he just went with what his friends were doing. He had a hard time believing in himself because he felt that no one had ever believed in him.
After numerous mishaps with the police system he was given one chance to actually save himself. Taking this opportunity and going into it not 100% serious made the situation hard. People were there to help him but he was stubborn and was never used to the guidance he was offered which lead him to waste the time people were trying to invest in him. The psychology professor, Sean Maguire (Robin Williams) has a rough start and is dealing with Will’s close mindedness. Some how, over time Sean Maguire finally gets through to him.
The ending of the film was one of my favorite scenes. The switching of the shots and characters on the screen made the whole scene effective. Before watching this film, I was unsure what to expect. I actually enjoyed it, way more than I prepared myself for. The way the characters were represented from the various camera angles and shots and their setting was what made the film get through to me. Throughout the entirety of the film it felt all realistic. Being familiar with locations, colleges, and the type of characters that were portrayed in the film is what made it a not so fairy tale type ending, but of course in a positive way. It is truly a gift to be a genius and have a photographic memory like Will Hunting had and the way the film depicts this and goes through his journey definitely makes it one of my new favorites.
Written by Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, Good Will Hunting (1997) is a phenomenal drama that takes place in Boston, Massachusetts about a janitor at MIT who is brilliant but does not live up to his potential.
Unlike many of the Hollywood “feel good” story films, this one has a twist. It is not your average perfect story with an utterly perfect ending, this one can actually be relatable.
Co-writers Ben Affleck and Matt Damon also star in the film accompanied by a remarkable award-winning cast.
MIT Janitor Will Hunting (Matt Damon) secretly expresses his knowledge by solving the complex math problem when no one was around. The students questioning who solved the equation left the Professor (Stellan Skarsgard) perplexed and curious to know more.
Besides the fact that MIT was involved and that Matt Damon’s character, Will Hunting later finds love with a girl that attends Harvard there were frequent reminders throughout the entire film that it takes place in Massachusetts.
It started out with Ben Affleck’s character, Chuckie Sullivan, Will’s best friend since childhood bringing Will Dunkin Donuts in the morning. Other characters were also seen at Au Bon Pain multiple times. What is similar about these two places is that they both originated in Massachusetts. By including places that fit with the setting and having the actors wear clothes like a Boston Red Sox shirt made it unforgettable to know where the film was taking place. And if for some reason you did forget or were still unsure you can definitely tell by the accents.
The building of the main character, Will Hunting went by slowly but the film itself was fast paced. There was never the same shot on the screen for a long period of time. Movement of the camera was very common and helped support the portrayal of the story. The wide diversity of shots made the film more intriguing. Certain scenes when the actors were talking it would switch back and forth to semi over the shoulder shots which gave you, as the viewer an idea of the characters reactions. There were a lot of up close shots, I felt as though I was in Matt Damon’s personal “bubble” but it also gave a certain feel to the film.
Will Hunting does not want to be any more than your ‘average day Joe’. He solves the incredibly hard math problems while scrubbing the floor of MIT because it is easy for him. He didn’t set himself high goals for him to reach; he just went with what his friends were doing. He had a hard time believing in himself because he felt that no one had ever believed in him.
After numerous mishaps with the police system he was given one chance to actually save himself. Taking this opportunity and going into it not 100% serious made the situation hard. People were there to help him but he was stubborn and was never used to the guidance he was offered which lead him to waste the time people were trying to invest in him. The psychology professor, Sean Maguire (Robin Williams) has a rough start and is dealing with Will’s close mindedness. Some how, over time Sean Maguire finally gets through to him.
The ending of the film was one of my favorite scenes. The switching of the shots and characters on the screen made the whole scene effective. Before watching this film, I was unsure what to expect. I actually enjoyed it, way more than I prepared myself for. The way the characters were represented from the various camera angles and shots and their setting was what made the film get through to me. Throughout the entirety of the film it felt all realistic. Being familiar with locations, colleges, and the type of characters that were portrayed in the film is what made it a not so fairy tale type ending, but of course in a positive way. It is truly a gift to be a genius and have a photographic memory like Will Hunting had and the way the film depicts this and goes through his journey definitely makes it one of my new favorites.