Average Rating: 8/10
Reviews Counted: 68
Fresh: 66 | Rotten: 2
It follows a predictable narrative arc, but Good Will Hunting adds enough quirks to the journey -- and is loaded with enough powerful performances -- that it remains an entertaining, emotionally rich drama.
Average Rating: 7.9/10
Critic Reviews: 16
Fresh: 16 | Rotten: 0
It follows a predictable narrative arc, but Good Will Hunting adds enough quirks to the journey -- and is loaded with enough powerful performances -- that it remains an entertaining, emotionally rich drama.
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Average Rating: 3.9/5
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Matt Damon and Ben Affleck co-scripted and star in this drama, set in Boston and Cambridge, about rebellious 20-year-old MIT janitor Will Hunting (Damon), gifted with a photographic memory, who hangs out with his South Boston bar buddies, his best friend Chuckie (Affleck), and his affluent British girlfriend Skylar (Minnie Driver). After MIT professor Lambeau (Stellan Skarsgard) stumps students with a challenging math formula on a hallway blackboard, Will anonymously leaves the correct solution,
Dec 5, 1997 Wide
Dec 8, 1998
Miramax Films
All Critics (68) | Top Critics (16) | Fresh (69) | Rotten (2) | DVD (15)
Towering performance by Matt Damon as a troubled working class who needs to address his creative genius elevates this drama way above its therapeutic approach, resulting in a zeitgeist film that may touch chord with young viewers the way The Graduate did
The film works as a character-driven narrative because Mr. Van Sant and his co-screenwriters are not afraid to unlock the psychological mysteries of their five major characters with clear and concise dialogue.
While the charismatic performances of Damon and Affleck make "Good Will Hunting" a difficult entertainment to resist, doing just that is not as hard as the film would like to think.
Good Will Hunting narrowly avoids many sentimental pitfalls thanks to what doesn't happen...
Even rarer than a breath of fresh air is a breath of fresh Hollywood film. Brainy and heartfelt and right on target, Good Will Hunting is such a film.
This has not been a great year for language in movies, but people are going to be memorizing and reciting some of these lines for years to come.
Whether it's one of his "safe" movies or not, Good Will Hunting has all the strong markings of a Gus Van Sant movie and Lionsgate shows the film requisite care on its Blu-ray transfer.
Moving story of brilliant, troubled youth for mature teens.
Despite its coarse exterior, Good Will Hunting proves to be a rather positive and motivational experience.
The picture can get overly sentimental at times, but Gus Van Sant's sensitive direction, his admiration for beautiful faces and his excellent use of the city make it a hugely entertaining and effective film.
Can get overly sentimental at times, but Gus Van Sant's sensitive direction... and his excellent use of the city make it a hugely entertaining and effective film.
It's acted and directed with care, and Damon is outstanding, his scenes with Driver being especially sparky.
The film succeeds not because of an overall arc, but as a chain of smaller moments that glimmer in their minuscule perfection.
For the first time in his career, Van Sant is invisible as a filmmaker, simply getting out of the way of the story and his performers. The film is richer for it.
Affleck is on my long list for Academy notice this year.
... beneath their arrogance and crass behavior, you'll find a lot of hurt and many defense mechanisms raised against a compassionless, manipulative society.
Uno sale del cine y se da cuenta de por qué la película recibió tanta atención.
A charming, entertaining and uplifting movie with the title that perfectly fits its quality.
Not a work of art or great power, but it has some moving moments.
Though the movie tells a straightforward story, there are enough offbeat touches along the way to balance out its more predictable aspects.
Reality of story combines with reality of performance to give us some of the most heartfelt emotions currently on the big screen.
The name of the film is as smart and powerful as the movie itself. Good Will Hunting is about a janitor (Damon) who doesn't use his outstanding intelligence the way he should, consequently he fails to live his life to his full potential. A therapist (Williams)is hired to boost his confidence and open his eyes. And it's
February 5, 2012
Super Reviewer
Although now Matt Damon is a bona fide superstar with an action trilogy and a heist trilogy both securely under his belt, there was a time when he wasn't so well known as to have his own marionette in Team America. With a few bit parts and a couple of supporting roles behind him, Damon had yet to make any sort of
August 1, 2009Super Reviewer
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