Rating: 
Summary: Egregious
Review: I've recently struck up a mini-conversation with friends about the crummy director Gus Van Sant. Well, tonight I did something I almost never do: I walked out of a movie that was still playing. I sat through 75 minutes of _Good Will Hunting_, my suffering steadily increasing, till I found I could take no more, and left. I already had a VERY bad premonition when the opening credits included the following: WRITTEN BY MATT DAMON AND BEN AFFLECK As I read this, I swore under my breath. What can you expect of a movie written by two so-called handsome young actors, and directed by the inept Van Sant? A disaster. And disaster we got. I don't think _Good Will Hunting_ manages to depict truthfully, or entertainingly, ANYthing that it has made its subject. Nevertheless, I'd like to remark that *IF* the atmosphere at M. I. T. and Harvard is in any way similar to what we got to see in this movie, I pray I'll never get to visit those and similar places, and will never have to deal with people educated in those and similar establishments. 8-) The biggest shortcoming of _Good Will Hunting_ is its total LACK OF BEAUTY. But there's no art without beauty. Last night I saw another recent American movie that has been enjoying the reputation of a masterpiece here in Europe: Tony Kaye's _American History X_. It IS a masterpiece -- gripping, affecting from the first minute to the last. (The cast, including Hollywood legends in supporting roles, is uniformly superb, but Edward Norton tops them all.) Kaye's is a BRUTAL, VIOLENT, OBSCENE movie -- but, at the same time, it manages to be BEAUTIFUL, not only in certain moments but consistently. By contrast, in the supposedly feel-good movie _Good Will Hunting_ what we get in place of beauty are daft cliches spoken by an absurdly solemn-faced Robin Williams; these shots alternate with close-ups of Matt Damon's mug, who pretends to be affected to tears by what Williams has to say -- after all, Damon CO-WROTE Williams' lines (and this shows unfavorably throughout). Just as the authors of the movie wanted to make us believe that Will Hunting was a genius, it must have been immediately obvious to the viewers that the SCREENWRITERS of this movie were the opposites of geniuses: blundering dilettantes of the worst sort. I'm no Robin Williams fan, but I thought he was considered to be one of the greatest American actors of his generation. Why does he DEBASE HIMSELF like this? Is he *that* short of money? How could he ever say yes to a trite screenplay written by a pair of obviously immature, dabbling, amateurish screenwriters and fellow actors who could have been his sons? I've no idea who Matt Damon is and I don't care. But it was pitiful to see Ben Affleck in this disaster and, above all, to learn that he co-wrote it. Don't know about you guys, but has any of you ever seen a MERCUTIO that was as PERFECT, thrilling to watch, as Ben Affleck was in _Shakespeare in Love_? Ah, but there he was declaiming lines written by Tom Stoppard, not his own!
Rating: 
Summary: Great Movie...
Review: This was simply a great movie for great cast and acting.One of the best... it really is.
Rating:
Summary: From My point of View
Review: As a kid that grew up on the streets of Southie, I as well as so many other "inner city" kids have a lot to relate to with Will. Will represents a kid that has a chance to do something with himself and use his brain. So many inner city kids today don't. The absentee of a parent(s) and the lack of guidance is all too common in the city. The close knit group that he hangs around with too is something that a kid from Southie can relate to. Sean ( Williams ) even points that out when he is talking to Will about "letting people in". As far as the excessive foul language that I have seen people mention... right or wrong it is the common vernacular of the neighborhood. Personally, I grew up in the projects of Southie, managed to get into the prestigous Boston Latin School and from there went on to the Air Force Academy. Like Will, I got out, but I will always be proud of where I am from, and I think that Matt Damon and Ben Afflick did a pretty good job of representing Southie kids. But perhaps that is why I think that this movie is outstanding. I can relate.
Rating:
Summary: Ok screenplay....but SUPERB ACTING!
Review: Well. To start of with, let me just say that this movie is not one of my favorits. It's far to common and ordinary to be a classic, and the screenplay by Damon and Afflec is lacking and falls well short of what it could have been. Well, that's about all the negative words I have to say about this movie. The best thing about this movie is Matt Damon and Robin Willams. Espsially Damond is awesom, and to me it is the biggest joke of all time that he did'nt even get nominated for an oscar. Anyway, this movie has many good sides. Another is Danny Elfman's very original score. Finally I would like to say, that this is a movie you have to see. Not because of it's originallity or for the script. But simply for the acting. The meaning "Worldclass acting" has gotten a new meaning!
Rating:
Summary: Great movie(but we need some time to put it in perspective)
Review: I loved this movie, quite frankly because the characters were as real as any I've seen in a film in a long time. I believe that the film is more of a guy movie, since it actaully focusses on the relationships between Will and his friends and with Sean and Lambeau more than anything else. I do think, though, that it will appeal to most people on some level. The stongest criticism I hear of the movie is the extreme amount of swearing, and that is definitely present in the movie, and I know that it ruined the film for a lot of people. But if you'll notice, the swearing primarily occurs when Will is just hanging out with his friends, and if you've ever been around a group of guys in their early twenties, (if not visit a college campus on the weekend) they swear like it is nothing (particularly when they've been drinking). Some people have even commented that the excessive swearing actually makes the terms lose their power and meaning, but the terms are essentially common vocabulary, they have no special meaning to these guys when talking to each other. The use of those swear words for that group of guys is comparable to the excessive use of the word "like" in the late eighties. Many who hate the film agree that Robin Williams deserved his Oscar for Best Supporting Actor, and I'll give them no argument. And while The rest of the actors did outstanding jobs (particularly in the smaller roles), Damon and Driver definitely did not deserve to beat Nicholson and Hunt for those acting awards. As for Best Screenplay, so much of the screenplay was changed by everyone on the set, it is tough to really know whether the duo deserved the award or not, but I felt as though the story and particularly the dialogue were the best of that year. So, I'm definitely recommending that you see it, because the odds are good that you will enjoy this movie, but if you are one of the few who can not stand it for some reason or other, I apologize, though I would like to know what you found to be the films weakest points.
Rating:
Summary: Juvenile nonsense
Review: This movie really deserves 0 stars. Whoever wrote the screenplay obviously knew nothing about mathematics and mathematicians. Damon's character is supposed to be a mathematical genius, yet it seems like he doesn't really know any mathematics and is just faking it. I doubt whether Hollywood filmmakers have the maturity to make a movie about a mathematical genius that is realistic and honest.
Rating:
Summary: Want a film with passion, intensity and fire? This is it.
Review: At a time when Hollywood seems incapable of churning out anything with soul or passion, it's a joy to find such a well-crafted film as this. It achieved what only a handful of movies ever do by being both evocative and inspiring. To waffle on about the plot is to lose it. When a film is as involving and rewarding to watch as this, disecting it merely serves to detract from the whole. It's incredible to think that Matt Damon and Ben Affleck were only in their early 20s when they penned it. Good work fellas! Shallow action-seekers should avoid it: go watch the latest Arnie brain-rotter. If, on the other hand, you want to be inspired and uplifted, then you have to watch this film.
Rating: 
Summary: Not the greatest (not even close!) but very good.
Review: I liked this movie because it simply told a good story. We dont' get movies like this anymore in the 90s. I think they were all used up in the 70s. But every now and then, something surprisng comes along and gives us a reason to watch. Along with it's fine performances, GOOD WILL HUNTING delivers something audiences haven't seen in a while: a likeable drama. No action, no sex (not much anyway), and no over acting by overpayed actors. Robin Williams actually deserved the Oscar he recived for this movie. Thumbs up.
Rating:
Summary: It was up for best picture, there's a reason for that.
Review: A brilliant, intelligent drama, with fine touches of all sorts of comedy. This movie is for anyone who has ever had fears about his/her future.
Rating:
Summary: frat boys in love
Review: two rich kid frat boy actors(Ben Affleck and Matt Damon) write a script. it starts out as a spy thriller. then a studio buys it and brings in lots of high paid script doctors (WIlliam Goldman, etc) who essentially re-write the script only keeping the fratboy jokes entact. Never mind that these two products of the upper middle class write themselves as being poor and underprivileged. Never mind all the PR spinning that has invented a false mythology for the film. Never mind that it is essentially a terrible re-make of Ordinary People (itself overrated. Never mind all of that, and see if for what it is - a bad movie, hackneyed and cliched. For a Romantic Comedy go watch another film that this one steals from - ANNIE HALL. It's much better. And while you are at it, go see BRINGING UP BABY and HOLIDAY and a few Preston Sturges and Ernst Lubitsch films. Maybe then having seen a few of the truly greats will you have the ability to say that it is "the greatest movie of all time" as so many have been saying here.
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