As Good as It Gets

Melvin is a romantic novelist who is a selfish manic compulsive who is rude and insulting to all he meets. When Melvin's gay neighbour is beaten up and robbed, Melvin agrees to look after his dog. The dog gives Melvin something to care about other than himself and his life is approaching normal until his regular waitress has to leave work to look after her asthmatic son and his neighbour wants his dog back. Melvin starts to realise that his life needs others for more than just selfish reasons.

The big Oscar winner for Jack is recent years is enjoyable if you come to it knowing what to expect. The film is very sentimental but in a good way. The film is gently comic and amusing and the characters (although exaggerated) are winning and involving. The telling is a little long winded at times and the film could have been shorter but it is still enjoyable. It does tip over into sickly sentimentality at times and can be a bit syrupy but it comes with the territory.

Nicholson is excellent and is the main reason it all works well. His un-PC Melvin is funny but also a character that you can hate and pity on several occasions. Kinnear is good because he is a solid understated character and not hammy or OTT like he can be. Hunt is good but is left with the majority of the syrup and sentiment where the other characters get more share of the laughs. Gooding Jr continues his trend of being good in over the top roles and is funny and happily avoids becoming a flaming gay stereotype.

Overall this is a sentimental romantic comedy that is typical for the genre. The story wanders to it's point but the good cast, led by a great Nicholson, hold the whole thing together. A superior piece of sentimentality.

... which is rather strange since it is one of only seven films to win both Best Actor and Best Actress Oscars for its leads. But it is rather quirky and offbeat with unusual subject matter for a romantic comedy.

Melvin Udall (Jack Nicholson) is a misanthropic and obsessive-compulsive novelist living in New York City. He is abrasive and self absorbed past the point that being OCD could just explain it, or even being misanthropic. He goes out of his way to insult his neighbor, Simon Bishop (Greg Kinnear), a gay artist. And he also throws Simon's dog down the building's garbage chute. I'm a misanthrope, but I don't go around hurling slurs at people or hurting animals.

Among Melvin's compulsions is eating breakfast at a specific diner with a specific waitress, Carol Connely (Helen Hunt). Carol knows how to serve breakfast the specific way that will keep Melvin from having a conniption fit. But Carol's only son has a complicated allergy/asthma situation that her HMO doctors either aren't competent to diagnose or don't have the time to dedicate to solving it, so she's been missing work when her son is ill.

At the same time Simon is looking for subjects to pose for him when he sculpts, and he hires a model who turns out to have violent criminal tendencies and badly injures him.

These events all work to draw these three people together in a most interesting way, and they each wind up helping each other with their problems in unexpected ways.

The film's portrayal of New York City is as vibrant as its characters. The cinematography captures the energy and charm of the city, immersing viewers in its unique atmosphere and acts as a snapshot of New York City as it existed in the late 90s when it was going through a bit of a renaissance.

Special kudos to Cuba Gooding Jr. As Simon's agent who knows how to deal with Melvin by going into scary threatening mode. And also to Simon's dog, who winds up being a catalyst for change in Melvin. The dog should at least have gotten a supporting actor nomination.

I saw AS GOOD AS IT GETS in February 2016 and I liked it. I saw it for a second time in August 2019 and I liked it more. I re-watched it for a third and final time last March and I loved it even more. And since I like a lot Jack Nicholson (and some of my friends think that I look a bit like him in his younger years) I couldn't wait to finally review it here.

Melvin Udall (Nicholson) is a misanthropic and obsessive compulsive novelist that lives alone in his apartment. He is obsessed with having everything clean and in order, gets irritated easily even when his neighbours ring the bell or sees his gay artist neighbour's dog and when he goes to have breakfast in his favourite restaurant he avoids walking close to people in the sidewalks and instead of using the restaurant's cutlery, he bring his own silverware from home because he is afraid of germs. One day his neighbour Simon Bishop (Greg Kinnear) is robbed and nearly killed and while Simon is in hospital, Udall has to take care of his dog and while in the first times he couldn't stand it, he then becomes affectionated to him to the point that when Simon is released Udall has problems in giving back the dog. Melvin's life furtherly challenged when Carol (Helen Hunt), the waitress of his favourite restaurant, decides to work in Brooklyn closer to her home because of her son's health problems and Udall arranges to pay for the medical expenses necessary for Carol's son's condition, but she is a bit skeptical.

Since Simon is facing bankruptcy, Udall offers to accompany him to Baltimore and Carol joins them for lessening the awkwardness. Once in Baltimore, Carol insists to Frank that they have to go to dinner in a restaurant. During the dinner Udall's comments flatter and soon upset Carol, and she leaves. In the hotel room Simon starts to sketch her and this rekindles once again his desire to paint. After returning to New York Carol apologizes to Melvin about the rough things she said to him and in the end, they finally start a relationship (the movie ends with the couple walking together at 6 AM).

Jack Nicholson probably gives his best performance ever (closer to greatness only with the ones from SHINING and ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST) and he nailed the role of the misanthropic and obsessive compulsive writer to the point that only he could have played such a part well. Greg Kinnear, Helen Hunt and Cuba Gooding are all very good and give great support, and the dog was very adorable. And overall, the movie gives this great message: if you have to change for the love of someone, you can do it even with one step at a time, and I experienced it in real life too.

Don't miss it if you have a chance because of the acting and the messages it gives in a subtle manner. Very intelligent and witty.

Really, how to make something original, fresh and odd out of absolutely nothing except a few characters? Using characters, only characters and nothing except characters. That's the simple formula Brooks uses in all of his work, but, for me, he has never created so much charm, warmth and sensibility as he did in `As good as it gets'.

Characters write the screenplay in this movie, and everything that happens - happens because of what they are. They are nothing special – they are ordinary people we meet in the street every day and that have the same problems a lot of other people have. This movie presents the example of how much you can pull out of that. And if that is written as well as it is in this case, not even a happy ending can bother you. Because, in real life, shown here, what is the end?

Everything is good and warm in this movie, everything is fresh and vivacious, understandable and well performed. Jack Nicholson brings one of the best performances of his career, that terrific Helen Hunt finally got a chance to show how skilfully an actor can connect naturalism with the laws of the camera performance, and Greg Kinnear shows the most convincing emotions coming from a gay character I've ever seen.

The relationships between the characters are created in the way that you can't predict anything that's going to happen, eventhough you know in advance what could come out of their mouth and what kind of attitude they'll have in a certain situation.

You can simply feel the progressive collaboration that occurred between Brooks and the actors and the mutual understanding they developed, and it's not often that you see that kind of artistic superstructure shining on the screen so much as it does here.

I find `As good as it gets' complexed, vital, intelligent, emotionally deep and studied, fresh, original, amusing, cheerful, funny, and one of the best films of 1997.

As Good As It Gets is one of those incredibly moving films that is also hugely entertaining. It's not just a comedy, you can't quite label it a drama piece, it just is what it is; simply great.

What works here so well are the actors and the script. Nicholson and Hunt both won Oscars and they're simply great but Kinnear is no less effective as Nicholson gay neighbour. Plus that dog is amazing as well. This film really relies on great performances and there's no shortage of that here.

As Good As It Gets is also remarkably well written. So well defined characters and completely involving, you quite simply grow to love them and sympathize with their plight. Nicholson's remarks are terrific, each one very quotable (personal fav; I think of a man and I take away reason and accountability).

Direction is first rate, Brooks made Terms of Endearment so it's well established that he's quite capable of making great films. As Good As It Gets is very nearly as good it gets.