Good Will Hunting

This was a simple story, even though it portrayed Will's life as complex, and it kind of had a poetic justice to it.  You wanted Will to conquer his demons and although the evil isn't punished in the film, you felt that if Will could overcome his fears that somehow the evil was being punished.

Internal truth is central to the film's structure and external truth plays a supporting role.  You wanted to believe this story was true because Will had suffered and deserved a chance at a good life (internal truth), but you also knew that this was life as it is (external truth), and that sometimes bad things just happen (The Art of Watching Films, p. 46).

The story was told using linear structure, so the internal conflict of Will does not become apparent until the complication (The Art of Watching Films, p. 55).  The major conflict of the film is Will himself.  Will can't adjust socially because of his past.  His character would be onsidered a developing character because he is not the same person at the end of the film as he was in the beginning.  He has overcome his demons (The Art of Watching Films, p. 68).  Will would also be labeled a round character because of his uniqueness and complexity (The Art of Watching Films, p. 72).

The title of the film, to me, could be taken two ways:  one as Will Hunting being good and one as goodwill hunting, that Will is hunting for the good.  Either way, the title named the theme of the film.

The scene that appears three time in the film, Chuckie going to pick up Will, is symbolic in that it shows Will as a symbol of success for the working class.  In the beginning, Will believed that he didn't deserve any better than janitorial or construction work, and the third time the scene appears, it leads you to believe that Will finally believed in himself and that he deserved better.

In the article Coming of Age in American Films & Novels, it said that some felt director Gus Van Sant had lost his edge as a leading director.  I felt that Van Sant's directing gave a sense of being there.  He did an excellent job of giving a good understanding of Will without overdoing it.

Definitely two thumbs up!