Average Rating: 7.2/10
Reviews Counted: 76
Fresh: 65 | Rotten: 11
James L. Brooks and Jack Nicholson, doing what they do best, combine smart dialogue and flawless acting to squeeze fresh entertainment value out of the romantic-comedy genre.
Average Rating: 7.3/10
Critic Reviews: 21
Fresh: 19 | Rotten: 2
James L. Brooks and Jack Nicholson, doing what they do best, combine smart dialogue and flawless acting to squeeze fresh entertainment value out of the romantic-comedy genre.
liked it
Average Rating: 3.5/5
User Ratings: 352,188
Get your friends' movie recommendations by adding Rotten Tomatoes to your Facebook Timeline.
James L. Brooks (Terms of Endearment, Broadcast News) directed this $50 million-plus romantic comedy, set in Manhattan. Dysfunctional, acid-tongued romance novelist Melvin Udall (Jack Nicholson), who suffers from an obsessive-compulsive disorder, takes pride in his ability to offend. At a nearby cafe, the only waitress willing to stand up to his sarcastic tirades is Carol Connelly (Helen Hunt), a single mother struggling to raise her chronically asthmatic son. In Melvin's West Village apartment
Dec 23, 1997 Wide
May 19, 1998
TriStar Pictures
All Critics (77) | Top Critics (21) | Fresh (65) | Rotten (11) | DVD (13)
A sporadically funny romantic comedy with all the dramatic plausibility and tonal consistency of a TV variety show.
Romance comedies definitely come better than this, although perhaps not lately.
It's fun to watch Jack Nicholson draw on great reservoirs of bile to play a mean SOB with an obsessive-compulsive disorder.
It's a mark of how magically written, directed and acted As Good as It Gets is that we end up loving this film despite knowing how haphazard, scattershot and almost indefinable its charm is.
The movie succeeds at many moments even while pursuing its doomed grand design.
Wicked, but it works.
Funny, but not a light comedy for youngsters.
The greatest pleasures come from the acting.
The movie's too long, and the direction is sometimes slack -- but the script is crammed with withering ripostes, ably delivered by Nicholson and Hunt.
Not only one of the best romantic comedies of the year, but one of the best films in ages.
The trouble lies in the rambling narrative, Brooks' cautious direction and the cosy tone which renders the whole thing reminiscent of an extended sitcom.
Both funny and sad, the comedy was in the vein of Brooks' Terms of Endearment, except it was more eccentric and nuttier and in moments genuinely touching due to strong chemistry between Jack Nicholson and Helen Hunt.
An inflated TV show by a sitcom creator.
The character is written as the most unlikable person one could ever meet. Despite this fact, Jack manages to make the character sympathetic.
The unpredictable and fresh 'As Good As It Gets' is peppered with memorable Brooks lines and physical schtick.
Mildly likable.
...a precariously balanced movie, one that flirts with smugness. That it isn't awful is in some respects amazing.
... it coaxes us to be more open to each other, more compassionate, and more loving.
Like Broadcast News, James L. Brooks' new film is a dark-edged adult comedy that hits the spot for those who like their romances splashed with acidic wit.
Even the familiar scenes and situations look refreshing.
Humorous, romantic, personal.
Perhaps, though, it is Carol's (and Hunt's) ongoing commitment to emotional honesty and fair play that make it increasingly difficult to ignore the film's encroaching patterns of sentimentality and uninspired developments.
An honest, original comedy about recognizable human beings.
This is Jack at his best, the kind of role that makes him a star. He gets to bear his teeth, take control of a room, and be devilishly cuddly at the same time.
It's a touching romantic comedy that balances itself properly right in between being energetic and schmultsy. Nicholson is fantastic in his role as Melvin and the same goes for the supporting cast. The direction is near solid but at time's bumbling and unnatural. It's a bit to lengthy but As Good as it Gets is a
March 11, 2012
Super Reviewer
The way I see it, this film holds Jack Nicholson's most stellar delivery yet. He proves that he can use the same straightforward personality he did in films such as ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST and THE SHINING, whilst successfully adding in an original, comedic taste. In more than just one scene, his character
July 19, 2011Super Reviewer
| 29% | The Vow |
| 93% | Mission: Impossible Ghost Protoc... |
| 87% | The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo |
| 28% | Underworld Awakening |
| 85% | Chronicle |
| 85% | Chronicle |
| 79% | The Grey |
| 7% | The Devil Inside |
| 2% | One for the Money |
| 76% | Rampart |
The Avengers stays strong at No. 1
Trailer: In bed with Zoe and Bradley
Video: Your friendly four minute preview
Latest trailer from Michel Gondry