Moving story of brilliant, troubled youth for older teens.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 15+?
Any Positive Content?
Language
a lot
Very frequent strong language includes many uses of "f--k" in numerous forms, as well as words like "s--t," "bitch," "prick," "a--hole," "retard," and "balls" and phrases/terms like "up your a--," "jerking off," and "douchebag."
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In the South Boston culture portrayed here, the young men consistently hang out in bars, and smoking and drinking play a major part in their socializing. College kids and teachers are also seen using alcohol as an integral part of their social activity.
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Both gentle and passionate kissing in several scenes. In one post-sexual moment, a couple cuddles and kisses. In one scene masturbation is inferred but not shown.
Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.
One violent fist fight early in the film: Street toughs attack another group of young men in a no-holds-barred kicking and punching session. Police arrive and take control by pummeling the participants. Also references to the lead character’s suffering physical abuse at the hands of a parent.
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The movie sends the message that finding your special gifts can rescue even the most seemingly powerless individuals from hard lives. It also says that love and commitment are incomparable sources of healing and change and that true friendship is selfless, not envious. Themes include compassion, empathy, communication and integrity.
Positive Role Models
some
The story follows an angry, bitter, self-destructive young man who's transformed by caring, unselfish relationships. Two college teachers are portrayed as having distinctly different motivations: One is dedicated to advancing science while the other hopes to enable his student to transcend an abusive childhood, realize his full potential, and find a balance in life.
Parents Need to Know
Parents need to know that despite a constant onslaught of angry, sexual, and insulting language ("f--k" and its comrades "s--t," "retard," and "a--hole" are used incessantly, as are other salty words and terms) in Good Will Hunting, mature teens and adults will find this Oscar-winning drama about a self-destructive young man who's transformed by caring relationships to be an uplifting and inspiring story. One street brawl early in the film includes bloody fistfights, kicking, and pounding; sexuality includes some passionate kissing, post-sexual cuddling, and one session of inferred masturbation. The young people -- both college students and street kids -- drink beer and other alcohol throughout the movie. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails.
I watched this as an adult and was uncomfortable with the language (IMDb says the f-bomb is used 154 times) and sexual references. Most definitely not for kids and wouldn’t let my teenagers watch it. There are some positive messages but honestly the language and unnecessary sexual content ruined it for me.
I'm 22 and this movie made me deeply uncomfortable with the amount of sexual jokes it contained. As other reviewers have said, f*** is used more times than is really necessary, and there's lots of other bad language. I can deal with that. But the sexual jokes are off the wall. For reference, I'm a Zoomer who was raised by YouTube, and I've seen plenty of R-rated movies. Don't watch this with your kids.
I will say that the therapy is very good, and pretty much any scene that doesn't have Will's friends in it is pretty okay. It's a compelling story, I just wish it wasn't set in such a foul movie. Save yourself the trouble and just watch Cinema Therapy's video about the movie on YouTube. They have a lot of really good things to say about the movie, and show some of the more important clips.
What's the Story?
In GOOD WILL HUNTING, Will (Matt Damon), who grew up as an abused foster child in tough South Boston, works as a janitor at MIT. When he solves complicated math problems that stumped the students, a professor searches for him, only to find that he's in jail for hitting a policeman. The professor promises that he'll work with Will and will get him psychiatric help. When Will manages to scare off a string of therapists, the professor seeks out his estranged friend from college, Sean (Robin Williams). Like Will, Sean is the survivor of a tough Southie upbringing is still struggling with his own loss -- which means Sean is able to help Will realize that he's not betraying his friends by using his gifts to enlarge his world. Along the way, Will falls in love with Harvard pre-med student Skylar (Minnie Driver). She and Sean teach him that the walls he built to protect himself from pain are no longer needed and are in fact getting in his way.
Mature teens will appreciate this movie -- which earned a writing Oscar for Damon and co-star Ben Affleck -- as a compelling story about a brilliant young man with a troubled past. Both gritty and moving, Good Will Hunting is a powerful tale of realizing your potential -- and the often-painful realities of growing up.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about friendship in Good Will Hunting. How do friends help and hinder each other in this movie? Do their relationships seem realistic?
How does the movie portray sex and drinking? Parents, talk to your teens about your own family's perspective on these topics.
MPAA explanation:
very strong language, sexual references and situations, and some violence
Last updated:
September 7, 2024
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