Mountaineer Minutes

Movie Review: Good Will Hunting

By Brittany Moorehead

In the film Good Will Hunting, directed by Gus Van Sant, Matt Damon plays the role of Will Hunting, a troubled young man who can’t seem to let go of his past. Will is forced to accept his inner genius and true feelings rather than letting his past ruin his present life.

Good Will Hunting displays the hardest times as well as some of the best times Will experiences. Van Sant infused the film with comedy and twisted it up with a little drama. Rather than focusing on the drama, he did a terrific job with transitioning the scenes.

Will finds himself in jail until a mathematician named Lambeau, played by Stellan Skarsgard, bails him out under two conditions. He must meet with a psychiatrist and do math with Lambeau. The math was easy for him but meeting with his new shrink, Sean McGuire, played by Robin Williams, wasn’t that easy.

Will has difficulty opening up to Sean and talking about his feelings. He has so many issues that he can’t even manage to tell his girlfriend, played by Minnie Driver, whom he clearly loves, how he feels towards her. Everything he loves and cares about seems to eventually get pushed away because he is scared and feels alone in the world.

Will is caught between two worlds; what he is and what he could be. Throughout the film, Sean and Will push each other to do things that make them feel uncomfortable. Their relationship is one of give and take. They both come to realize that they need one another in order to grow. Lambeau pushes him by helping him find a way out with his incredible mathematic skills. Lambeau realizes that he has the ability to be something more than the old Will.

Will can’t seem to trade in his old life and try something new and different. He doesn’t want to give up his friends because he loves them and doesn’t know how to be without them. Even his best buddy, Chuckie, played by Ben Affleck hopes that he will take a risk because he knows that Will has the ability to accomplish so much in life. His girlfriend Skylar asks him to move out to California with her and he can’t even make a change for the woman that he loves. He would rather be alone than take a chance.

His options are to stay in Boston and be the same Will Hunting that he and everyone else has always known or take a chance and become a new man. The truth is Will is scared to death of what he might become and this is what’s holding him back. He doesn’t want to leave his closest friends to start a new life. Will doesn’t want to work for Lambeau because he thinks he will become a code breaker, which he believes will negatively affect the lives of others due to his choice in occupation. He is worried about endangering the lives of people he has never even met. But what’s even more scary is him recognizing his own ability and potential to be something other than a hoodlum.

One of the most memorable scenes was when Will and his buddies were at one of the Harvard bars. Chuckie was trying to impress a girl named Skylar (his future girlfriend), when a Harvard student tried to interrupt and embarrass him. Will stands up for his friend and is able to outsmart the other guy, which I found very impressive. The fact that he was able to show up a Harvard student proves how much potential and intelligence Will possesses.

Even though Will has so many reasons to remain in Boston, deep down he knows what the right choice is for him. Making this choice though, depends on whether or not he can put his fears aside and try something new and unpredictable.

After many heart to hearts with Sean, Will realizes how similar their lives are and how they can help each other. With the help of Sean, he is able to weigh out his options and finally make a decision.

I found the movie to be funny, sad, and even dramatic. Gus Van Sant did a wonderful job of combining all of these diverse aspects in the film. My thoughts are that Good Will Hunting is a film created for all to enjoy. I would say that watching this film is two hours well spent.