Michael J. Glass joins me for a discussion of Gus Van Sant’s GOOD WILL HUNTING (1997), a blockbuster success in its day; a film that won Robin Williams an Oscar, made stars of Matt Damon and Ben Affleck, and left a big cultural imprint. It’s since been much parodied (in COMMUNITY, THE SIMPSONS, all over youtube) and a dominant critical perspective is slightly sniffy on the film: filmmaking by numbers and committees on a ‘we need a job’ script. We found it an extremely easy watch that holds up and is even more interesting on second viewing. GOOD WILL HUNTING is an effective piece that is surprising in all kinds of ways and still works. We discuss its critique of the US, its focus on class, on abuse, on the fragility of young men. Its rare to see a film that dramatizes how American foreign policy is one of extraction and exploitation and how social mobility in the US is available only to geniuses with sponsorship. We also discuss whether how Van Sant films and what he focuses on might be connected to sexual identity.
The podcast may be listened to here:
The podcast may also be listened to on: Spotify here: https://open.spotify.com/show/2zWZ7Egdy6xPCwHPHlOOaT
and on itunes here: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/first-impressions-thinking-aloud-about-film/id1548559546
Some of the clips discussed may be seen below:
Ben’s Speech:
Denunciatory Speech:
A look in the mirror:
Matt’s Look:
The fight:
Perspective:
Community Parody:
Family Guy Parody:
Michael J. Glass is co-host, with myself, of the Eavesdropping at the Movies podcast
Jose Arroyo
