Director: James L. Brooks
Starring: Jack Nicholson, Helen Hunt, Greg Kinnear, and Cuba Gooding Jr
Ahh yes the infamous Jack Nicholson back from the goo that he came from. "As Good as it Gets" is a movie about insanity gone good, or is it good, gone insane? Well either way it is a great movie with colorful characters which actually makes the movie move forward rather than sit there and not do anything. As the story goes, Nicholson plays Melvin, a romance novelist, who is also a bit crazy in the head. His problem? I guess you can say he's just plain rude. This rude romance novelist falls in love with a waitress at his favorite restaurant. In the beginning you don't think he loves anything. You think he hates everything and he insults everything. The funny part is everyone in this film changes in some way. I thought, at least at the end of the film, that Hunt's character had changed. Her change though was more of an internal motivation, maybe even sub conscious, but Melvin's motivation were his pills. I figure that if Carol did not meet Melvin in the middle, they would have never gotten together.
Hunt plays a mother and a waitress, named Carol, but she has some problems. First, her son is allergic to everything in the world. She also has a problem with Melvin. As the movie progresses you can tell that he is a regular at the restaurant she works at. Carol's mother is also some what an annoying character, though she is there to help. Carol finds thought that even though Melvin is repulsive and mean, she cannot help feeling a certain attraction to him.
Another theme this film stresses is the theme of change. For example, Melvin plays an insane writer but he is getting help. The reason why he wants help is evident after he tells Carol that "She makes him want to be a better man". It turns out he has been prescribed pills but was not taking them. He is now taking those pills. Carol on the other hand also changes. It is evident through the film, and even to the end, that there is no way Melvin could ever change all the way to meet up to Carol's standards. So Melvin must change and so does Carol. So Carol does change. It becomes evident that she becomes a bit more insane so at least the two could meet in the middle.
Now on to Greg Kinnear. Sorry but I thought he did such a good job of acting this part. I felt for this guy. I mean being homosexual is not a bad thing (at least not in his eyes) But I think Melvin feels a bit of resentment, not just from the fact that he writes romance novels about females and males but maybe a resentment for Melvin himself. Maybe Melvin feels that he is just as afflicted as the gay painter. I am not saying that being homosexual is an affliction, on the contrary. What I am saying is that in Melvin's eyes being gay is an affliction. I just loved Greg's performance and thought he added a whole new spectrum to what the people have seen in the world of homosexual characters.
So all in all I thought it was a great film and I also think that the performances were wonderful. Themes of change are evident throughout the film and changes occur many times. I believe that change is the primary goal of all films and without it there is no acting. I also enjoyed the story and how such an insane man can grab the hearts of people. Sure it's a bit stretchy but hey that's what love stories are for. The funny part is I get the feeling that Melvin himself wrote this film and is just acting another one out. Think about that one for a sec.
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