Movies I Love: Good Will Hunting
“I look at you; I don’t see an intelligent, confident man; I see a cocky, scared shitless kid. But you’re a genius, Will. No one denies that. No one could possibly understand the depths of you. But you presume to know everything about me because you saw a painting of mine and you ripped my fuckin’ life apart. You’re an orphan right? Do you think I’d know the first thing about how hard your life has been, how you feel, who you are because I read Oliver Twist? Does that encapsulate you?”
This dialogue is from the iconic park bench scene from Good Will Hunting. When Robin William died in 2014, the bench on which the scene was shot on was turned into a memorial to honor the actor’s legacy.
The movie which was released in 1998, marked the debut of two of the finest actors in Hollywood today, Matt Damon and Ben Affleck. The script idea came from Matt Damon actually, during a play- writing class he took in Harvard. Seeing the potential of the idea, his childhood friend Ben Affleck jumped in and helped him write the screenplay.
After spending 6 years in Hollywood, pitching it to one company after another, the film was finally picked up by Miramax. While Matt Damon got the lead, Ben Affleck and his brother Casey Affleck were cast as supporting actors.
Good Will Hunting is about Will (Matt Damon) who is a genius, but works as a janitor. When he solves a difficult math problem, that no one in the advanced Mathematics class could solve, Professor Gerald Lambeau (Stellan Skarsgard) decides to take him under his wing, but Will refuses.
When Will is arrested for fighting with a police officer, Gerald makes a deal with the judge that would allow Will to walk free and work for him. But because of the nature of his crime, he is asked to get treatment from a therapist (Robin Williams)
What makes Good Will Hunting such a special film in my heart, is the fact that every monologue, every scene adds to new perspective and brings more depth. What obviously makes every scene work, is the universal nature of some dialogues.
When Will meets Sean(Robin Williams) for the first time, there is a bit of tension, as Will makes a remark about his dead wife. When it turns physical, Will walks away and in that very moment, Sean realizes that he needs to help the kid, and he won’t get there by trying to lecture him about things.
When they next meet in a park, Sean makes him understand that you can’t really know someone by looking at things from their life. To know someone, you have to understand them. This specific scene itself, just makes you think about things in life, that you end up passing over, because the first impression was of a certain way.
Although Damon’s character has its own characteristics which make it special, it is Williams’ character that really stayed with me. Robin Williams has had some brilliant performances, but his performance as the wise old therapist is the one that stands out for me.
Every therapy scene, he isn’t just talking to Will, he’s addressing the issues the young people face every day. For example when Will talks about not calling a girl back, because he thinks that she’s perfect for him right now and doesn’t want to ruin that, Sean says “You’re not perfect, sport, and let me save you the suspense: this girl you’ve met, she’s not perfect either. But the question is whether or not you’re perfect for each other. You can know everything in the world, but the only way you’re finding’ that one out is by giving it a shot
Boom. If there was any other statement that characterized majority of the romantic issues, this is it. The fear to give it a try. In the film, Sean doesn’t just give out the advice, he’s also the guy who’s seen the best things in life come his way for doing so. Like the time he abandoned a playoff baseball game, for a drink in a bar with his future wife. He tells Will, “If I had gone to see that game I’d be in here talking’ about a girl I saw at a bar twenty years ago. And how I always regretted not going’ over there and talking’ to her.
A sign of good art, is always the new perspective that it gives people about the world. In the movie, when Sean realizes that Will has issues from his past that actively affect how he lives his life now, Sean tries to help him by creating that atmosphere from to talk. That is what this movie actively addressees, the fact that everyone has issues and only by talking about them we receive clarity on why we do what we do.
At the Oscars, the Best Screenplay award as well as the Best Supporting Actor went to Matt Damon/Ben Affleck and Robin Williams respectively. Despite the massive reaction from the critics, the movie did not perform at the box office. It was only years later when people started noticing it and giving it the appreciation it deserved.
Good Will Hunting changed the way I think about life. When it seems as though everything is going south with my life, I think about Sean and I think about the line “ You’ll Have Bad Times, But It’ll Always Wake You Up To The Good Stuff You Weren’t Paying Attention To” and life goes on.
