Good Will Hunting
1997 · Gus Van Sant · 126 min · Drama
A small film that became a phenomenon, built almost entirely on the strength of its performances and a screenplay that knows exactly when to be funny, when to be raw, and when to shut up and let two actors sit across from each other in a room. Robin Williams turned in career-best dramatic work, Matt Damon announced himself as a serious talent, and the script they all believed in earned every bit of its commercial and critical success. It follows a familiar path and wraps things up a little too cleanly, but the emotional core hits so hard that most people don't care. Nearly three decades later, the therapy scenes alone are enough to justify its reputation.
drama Boston 1990s coming of age