"Good Will Hunting": Movie Review

Good Will Hunting is a cinematic masterpiece that tells the story of a traumatized young genius, gifted by unimaginable knowledge and an uncomparable photographic memory. The movie captures a young Matt Damon as “Will Hunting” and a young Ben Affleck as “Chuckie” before their big Hollywood debut. The movie was written by both Matt Damon and Ben Affleck in their early careers; however, the movie is not held back by their inexperience in the film industry. The story’s enthusiastic exchange is the key segment of this film and hearts contracting while the camera pans deep into the unmentionable pieces of life.

"Good Will Hunting" Summary Essay

The story dives deep into its characters and everyone is completely developed. Will Hunting never had a family as he would switch from foster home to foster home as a child. He experienced most of his childhood in a household with an injurious, alcoholic father. While seeming unrelatable to most “normal” households, it is indirectly related to pretty much every family circumstance. Nobody has an ideal family, yet everybody must figure out how to develop and adjust even if they experience life’s hardest situations. A family foundation, social presumptions, instruction, and financial status impact one’s perspectives impact Will’s personality in the introduction of the film however a visible transition is present following its climax. It is hard to think why somebody so gifted as Will isn’t in school, however, his psychological goes unrecognized without training. He can’t overcome his harsh family foundation and doesn’t think he deserves a more prominent life despite even his best friend Chuckie saying it would be rude if Will is still in the slums of Brooklyn after 20 years. The film’s choice to expand on Wills choice to move on from his traumatized past and open up, and only then could he move on. Good Will Hunting is extremely generic and predictable, however, its cliché storyline is overpowered by emotion and top their acting. This element the film introduces not only sets it apart from other films that include an element of trama, but it also allows Will to uplift his audience of teens through the message delivered on the big screen.

Love, reliance, and trust are likewise the indirect themes of the film. Will’s choice to let his girlfriend see his vulnerable and passionate side forces causes him to discover what he had been searching for throughout everyday life. The solutions to his issues couldn’t be found in books, they were meant to be found in the affection of others. Will’s female counterpart “Skylar,” played by Minnie Driver, is an oddball in the movie’s set up that truly changes the course of the movie for the better. Her past shares many characteristics with Will’s, tying back to the whole family problem theme. While her father might have not been abusive, he died while she was a youngin and left her with the family fortune. While not seeming tragic she “would give all of it back just for one day with him.” The writers chose to incorporate such a traumatic past to both of their main characters allows for emphasis on Will’s failure to move past his past. He refuses to make decisions for himself and allows for the weight of failure to rest on his shoulders.

The film captures Will at rock bottom, at an all-time high, and rock bottom again, leaving the viewers to assume the conclusion to the story of will hunting. The film’s choice to do so is ever so right, as any ending they could have shot out would never properly conclude the story of Will Hunting. Direction was under Gus Van Sant, and his first choice was develop a proper ending; however, after reviewing the few scenes they had shot he realized that a developed ending would feel displaced since the movie ended when Will dropped off the letter to Maguire. If one were to live in a world filled with nothing but education, the education would mean nothing in the end. The meaning of life is to give life a meaning, after all. “Good Will Hunting” shows how a life strictly devoted to education instead of love, faith or trust would be a sad existence.

Works Cited:

1. Carter, T. (Director). (2005). Coach Carter [Motion Picture]. United States: Paramount Pictures.
2. Jain, R. (2019, June 5). Coach Carter: An Analysis of Leadership Qualities. Medium.
3. Ken Carter (basketball). (2023, April 1). Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ken_Carter_(basketball)
4. Leadership Lessons from Coach Carter. (2015, January 14). Skip Prichard. https://www.skipprichard.com/leadership-lessons-from-coach-carter/
5. The Impact of Ken Carter's Decision to Lock Out His High School Basketball Team. (2016, January 14). Vice. https://www.vice.com/en/article/5gqj3q/the-impact-of-ken-carters-decision-to-lock-out-his-high-school-basketball-team