Ben Affleck

I'll grant that reading a screenplay is quite a change-up from novels, but I liked this movie, and the book caught my eye at Goodwill (which by itself is an interesting coincidence).

The story is that of a young math wizard who is hiding his talent under a mop in a bucket full of dirty water. Working as a janitor at M.I.T., Will Hunting, not yet 21, comes upon a blackboard on which a professor has written a math challenge for his students to try to solve for extra credit. Will picks up the show more chalk and quickly writes the solution. Everyone is gobsmacked. Who did this? Who solved it? No one knows, but the professor wants to find out.

The guy who solved it, as well as subsequently posted challenges, is an orphan, physically and mentally abused by foster parents, with a public-school education (if that), living in a rented room in South Boston, and hangin' out with three unskilled, directionless friends. Much beer is consumed in corner taverns; occasionally there's a fight. Will has a police record, and his most recent fight is going to land him in the pokey. Until the professor intercedes with a plan to keep Will working his math genius while getting behavioral/psychological counseling. And so it goes.

Damon and Affleck created the script for themselves and shopped it around filmland. Optioned and produced, it was not only a box office success, it garnered Oscars for the writers and an Oscar for Robin Williams' performance as a psychologist, left adrift by the death of his wife, who helps Will (and himself). show less

This was the gift of a friend who loved the film and thought I would too--and she was right. This is based on book by Dennis Lehane of the same title that is part of a series. The book is actually the fourth in the series, but I hadn't read it back then--neither had my friend--and it stands alone. This book actually touched off a debate with my friend about the ending--about whether the character makes the right choice. Rare that a film makes you think like that. It had a twist I didn't see show more coming that was truly gasp-worthy. And as someone who spent a few years in the Boston area, I loved how it captured the feel of the area. Affleck, who directed, is a Boston native and I think his love and knowledge shows. show less

A fake movie production is used as a cover to extract Americans from Iran.

Its strong point, the suspense that everyone seems to love about it, didn't work for me. Nothing unexpected ever happens, and there's no attempt to make you care about the characters. For a scenario this novel, it's surprising how they managed to force it into a perfectly-predictable, paint-by-number movie script. It's a good movie, but I don't feel it does anything that a documentary wouldn't have done better.

Concept: show more B
Story: D
Characters: D
Dialog: B
Pacing: A
Cinematography: B
Special effects/design: B
Acting: B
Music: B

Enjoyment: B

GPA: 2.7/4 show less

A bank robber dates a witness.

Is it just me, or does this synopsis sound like it should have been a bad Adam Sandler comedy? I don't get what people see in this. It's got some okay action scenes, but nothing exceptional. Mostly I was bored because I had no reason to care. Have mainstream thrillers really fallen so low that this one is able to stand out?

Concept: F
Story: C
Characters: D
Dialog: C
Pacing: C
Cinematography: C
Special effects/design: B
Acting: B
Music: D

Enjoyment: C

GPA: 1.8/4