nine nominations, it also made $225 million against its modest $10 million dollar budget.

In the role that'd make him a household name, Matt Damon stars as the title character: a

math prodigy who is wasting his life away living in South Boston, and working a janitor.

The involved plot involves his quarrelsome relationship with his court-ordered therapist,

dealing with his townie friend Ben Affleck, his budding romantic involvement with Minnie

Driver, and studying under a renowned MIT professor. The infinitely versatile Robin

Williams is positively brilliant as the physiatrist, who challenges and battles Damon with long

emotional, soul-searching monologues in an Oscar-winning turn. Their adversarial contention

begets a loving friendship, and his the absolute bedrock of this 126-minute picture's story.

The original screenplay by Damon and Affleck famously won the two young boys from Boston

an Academy Award - and rightly so: the dialogue and writing here is nearly unparalleled...

one of the all-time best scripts, with Van Sant doing a fantastic job bringing it all

to life, framed by extremely lengthy close-ups, and beautiful repetition and imagery. Perfectly

paced, this movie flows effortlessly from one long sequence to the next, each one showcasing

the magnificent acting talent of the tight-nit cast, and highlighting another dramatic moment

from each of them, especially an overwhelmingly powerful exchange where Williams repeatedly

reassures Damon that his troubled past is "not his fault". The R-rated movie is also

wickedly funny - particularly if you're from the Boston area, and can relate to the antics

and camaraderie between Damon, Affleck, and their Southie buddies, like in a marvelous

scene where they confront a Harvard student at a bar, hilariously schooling him in front

of a potential female conquest. Or, when Affleck serves up sophisticated sounding malapropisms

to trick an interviewing board into believing he's Will, the math genius. Danny Elfman's

mellow score winds in and out of the picture beautifully, occasionally accompanied by some

wonderful acoustic ballads from singer-songwriter Elliot Smith. Taken from afar, the over-arching

plot here rarely surprises... but the small moments littered throughout is what makes

this experience so rewarding and powerful. An examination of trust, compassion, and finding

your true purpose in life - this is a relatable and enjoyable film that resonates with me

the more I watch, and the older I get. "Good Will Hunting", is a "Refreshingly emotional

and uplifting experience." Now let's hear your thoughts from the YouTube comments.

Our scores for "Good Will Hunting"... a double NINE. Although most held-off on the top score,

we all agreed the acting and writing in this picture was phenomenal, with both of us rating

this picture an AWESOME.