Exposure to Good Will Hunting

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I cannot quite recall when or why I chose to watch Good Will Hunting. Embarrassingly, I think I wanted to watch Dead Poets Society but found the beginning far too boring, moving on but still wanting to watch Robin Williams. As such, I stumbled upon Good Will Hunting which happened to have one of my dad’s favorite actors (Matt Damon). I went into the movie not knowing what to expect. I did not know what the movie was about and never saw a movie like it previously. Despite being released in 1997, this movie is prominent in the hearts of many individuals my age who were not born until nearly a decade after its release. I work as a Resident Assistant for first year students and have recently been collecting everyone’s favorite movies and, to my pleasant surprise, two of my students picked Good Will Hunting. This decision, to me, says a lot about their personality. What is so special about this film that it brings together dramatically different people from drastically different life times? Well, this story brings a lot to the table and does so in a way that is, yes, cinematic, but is also so human.

While this is not my favorite movie, I selected it because this movie reignited a passion in me for my major in psychology. Growing up, there was about a dozen things I wanted to be and about dozen jobs I did pursue. However, none of them were ever in the field of psychology. I definitely did not grow up wanting to be a therapist. I chose this film because I wanted to explore how my exposure to this film catapulted me into accepting the career field of being a psychologist and how, if I had not seen this film, would I have still pursued the same major?

While I cannot recall many details of my initial viewing of this film, I will do my best to recount the original exposure. However, I have rewatched this movie several times so many of the feelings and experiences I will iterate will have occurred in repetition or over time. The first time I chose to watch this movie I was at first confused and then very intent on paying close attention to detail. I spent much of the film filled with curiosity as I truly had no clue what was to come next. I was not aware of the type of movie I was watching and I had no spoilers as to the plot and rather focused on building an understanding of who the character we were following was and why he was doing what he was doing. What does “how do you like them apples” mean? I am still not sure I know the answer to this question, but these are the sorts of things I tried to ascertain in my original viewing. As such, I missed many small details and easter eggs, so I was sure to watch the movie a few more times over the years.

Will was a character very different to me, he had problems with violence and subsequently with the law. He had a close knit pack of devoted friends, he spent much of his time drinking and fooling around, and he grew up in Boston. I, on the other hand, had none of this growing up, did none of this growing up, and grew up in a rural adjacent area of Georgia. Despite these dramatic differences, as the story continued, I found myself identifying heavily with Will and empathizing with him and his struggles with violent behavior.

Despite leading very different lives, Will and I both came from a place without family, with a complicated history with education, and trauma we did not quite know how to deal with. The story captivated me as I wondered what Will would choose to do with his life given three completely different lifestyles at his finger tips. As Will navigated his way through various positions, he demonstrated a grand resilience that I could find in my story too. This post will not cover the entirety of my connection to Will, but my identification with him is key to understanding why being exposed to this story enabled me to continue down the path of pursuing psychology. Will, despite his skepticism, found a therapist who was able to aid him in achieving self-acceptance and a motivation to live beyond surviving. That, right there, is the one of the main reasons this story is so special to me.

Good Will Hunting follows a 20-year-old Will Hunting who works as a janitor at MIT and runs into more legal trouble after garnering an already extensive rap sheet. After solving a complex mathematical equation during work, Will is sought out by a professor at MIT who barters for a conditional release under his supervision. Will is required to attend therapy while assisting the MIT professor with various equations. While exceeding expectations in mathematics, Will failed dramatically in therapy with the vast number of therapists the professor attempted to get him to see would often throw him out and refuse to treat him. It was only when Will met with Sean Maguire that he found a therapist he could truly work with to improve his mental health, capabilities, and standards of living. So what about this story made it so compelling and memorable for me and others? Why, in spite of changing times, is this story still special and applicable to current adolescents?

What I remember

Will had little in the way of a promising future, but he had a great group of friends with whom he lived and hung around town. One night they crashed a Harvard bar where Will met Skylar, a Harvard student with a planned out future. Despite being the undeniable love interest of the film, Skylar was full of imperfections and she did not fit with Will at all. Will pursued her, but as Skylar desired to be closer, Will pulled further away until they disconnected and she moved to California for medical school. As they spent time apart, Will made progress in therapy and realized that the life he was leading was not what he wanted. Ultimately, Will dropped all of his opportunities and decided to chase after Skylar, leading a life he determined to be more worth living.

What’s actually there

Despite my colossal memory issues, I surprisingly remembered this film quite well. Throughout the film Will battles many different conflicts with each challenge presenting a unique circumstance with few options to overcome the situation. Despite this fact, Will seemed to get through everything with ease. Will was on probation despite an extensive rap sheet thanks to his parody like usage of precedents and nomenclature that won over many of his judges. In therapy, after going through numerous therapists, Will finds a worthy opponent in Sean who breaks through Will’s barriers and begins the healing process. Will is forced to face his past and through a secret disclosure we learn that both Sean and Will’s pasts were full of emotional and physical abuse. The film acts as an overwhelming empathy generator with Will breaking down into an apology for his behaviors as he comes to acknowledge his past and how it has impacted his actions. This break through allows for true catharsis as Will experiences a released emotional brake.

Will seemingly went through life a day at a time with no real goals. Day by day he would work menial jobs and go out with his friends, not truly working toward anything. Further, he convinced himself that this life was not only what he wanted then, but what he would be satisfied with forever. Will had not faced his past or the possibilities of the future. As his sessions with Sean got more personal and involved, Will had to consider more of what happened and what could still happen. Will had sabotaged his relationship with Skylar due to his inability to open up and accept himself and his past. This hurt delay prevented Will from pursuing his desires, no matter how strong they were.

Once his walls were broken down through therapy, he chased after Skylar, granting the audience wish fulfillment. Will understood that he did not cause his pain and that he did not need to keep punishing himself for it. Will would come to understand that he could find happiness and be deserving of it. With this understanding Will was able to overcome the condemnation he had established for himself, realizing that he was not stuck in this town for the rest of his life. As such, we get to experience gratitude and the story poses an opportunity to observe followed by a pivot to a positive emotion as Will decides to chase what really matters to him rather than to settle for a luxurious job and promises of money. Truthfully, I would have been happy with the story whether the romance plot was involved or not. While some may have been enticed by the romance category, I was not. Some may have viewed the film in its entirety with anticipation as to whether Skylar and Will would end up together, but I did not share this experience. The film to me is more about Will’s healing journey and how therapy can be a positive, life changing experience even for the most “difficult” of clients with extensive trauma.

While directly related to the love story, my viewing of the film separated the concepts of chasing after love and simply pursuing a life that means something beyond money. Will chose to abandon opportunities of a lifetime, the sort of things people would kill for. As pointed out by Chuckie, Will’s closest friend, Will had a skill set and subsequent opportunities that many, especially those in his home town, could never dream of and it would be a disservice to throw it all away and stay in the town. Chuckie portrayed the situation by explaining to Will that the best part of Chuckie’s day is when he goes to Will’s house and has ten seconds to imagine that he is not there anymore, that he is off chasing a dream, a better life. In society, America especially, there is a prioritization of money. The vast majority of individuals emphasize the importance of a well paying job and set financial goals for themselves or their children to achieve. However, financial accomplishments never meant much to me. The fact that Will turned down these lucrative opportunities depicts how one can make a “stupid” decision while making a beautiful one. Adding in Skylar and the love portion of the story was an added bonus to an important life lesson.

Narration Technologies

So, why is this love story so special and touching? Well, I honestly did not realize this was classified as a romance movie until I looked it up for this assignment. While the story between Will and Skylar is meaningful, powerful, and admirable, this film offers so much than a cheesy romance. Will has to battle with who he was and what happened to him in order to become who he ought to be. Throughout this post I have identified various technologies and experiences that built the catastrophic experience of seeing Will and Skylar’s relationship fall apart as well as the joyous optimism garnered when he decides to attempt to repair it. The story develops through exposing more and more of Will’s character as well as his growth, allowing for a raw observation that provokes empathy and set backs that promote frustration. The ending provides wish fulfillment, gifting a clarity on what matters in life (not money and status, but happiness and love). This could be argued as a parable given the moral lesson, but is best demonstrated as the almighty heart trope given the secret disclosure followed by the wish fulfillment.

Why is the film worth coming back to if it fits securely within identified structures and techniques? Well, despite being summarized through relatively simple tropes, this story offers a unique rawness that draws people in. The movie is not glamorized but rather bluntly personal, facilitating a certain (double) identification that many films rob from viewers or complicate due to otherworldly aspects of their stories. Throughout the story there are also many techniques utilized to maximize engrossment and enjoyment whether from the aforementioned parody, catharsis, empathy, or curiosity. This story offers multiple lessons, ones that are not easy to learn no matter the point one is at in their life. As such, returning to the film allows it to act as an accessible reminder as to possibilities/opportunities and values. Namely, watching someone face such challenges and overcome them, preserving with grand resilience allows someone to envision it for themselves (optimism) and possibly experience their own catharsis. As such, I hope everyone has the opportunity to be exposed to a story like Good Will Hunting.

Works Cited

Experiences Glossary – Story & The Brain. https://unewhavendh.org/story-and-the-brain/experiences-glossary/. Accessed 31 Jan. 2025.

Good Will Hunting – Break-up Scene. Directed by Gus Van Sant, 1997. Youtube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4hXrrc8fA8.

Good Will Hunting – Therapy Scene. Directed by Gus Van Sant, 1997. YouTube, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQht2yOX9Js.

Technologies by Element of Narrative – Story & The Brain. https://unewhavendh.org/story-and-the-brain/technologies-by-element-of-narrative/. Accessed 31 Jan. 2025.

Featured image:

Poster for Good Will Hunting. Miramax Pictures. All Rights Reserved.