Day 1: Assignment 1 – GOOD WILL HUNTING Scene

[Wilton Blake]

1st Viewing – Will’s Traits

– Self-assured

– Brilliant

– Willing to hang back and protect his friend

– Protective of his friend

– Ready to go to the mat if necessary

2nd Viewing – Drama

– The drama centered around the male dynamic when trying to pick up chicks by impressing them. Two competing camps were fighting over the girls. The trigger was the insulting way Will’s friend was getting treated.

– They picked a Harvard bar because that’s where the hot and socially valuable girls are.

[Elizabeth Koenig]

What I learned: you can always see/learn something new.

Will:

· Protective/loyal

· Tough – a fighter

· Sensitive

· Brilliant/photographic mind

Great as a (written) character because: of the juxtaposition of tough/street smarts with learnedness and genius. Will has “the furthest to go” as a fiercely-loyal, wounded and impoverished ‘kid’ who must leave friends (the only family he’s had) to embrace the manhood he’s called to, which involves a long-term romantic relationship and the kind of work that he’s got the rarest of gifts to do.

Skylar:

· Supportive/respectful

· Confident

· Smart

· Playful/fun

Great as a (written) character because: her fun lightens Will’s journey (and enlivens the stuffiness of this academic setting/topic) as she offers the respectful support Will needs.

Chuckie:

· Hip/cool

· Spirited/with ‘game’

· Limited education

· Leader

Great as a (written) character because: there’s an attempt to portray a cognitively much less-endowed character who truly values, without jealously, another man’s brilliant mind—and wants him to succeed in ways he can not. Though I’m not sure Ben was the best actor for this role. It’s hard to hide that kind of intellect, imho. The eyes betray…

Harvard – because the movie is “About” genius—so setting delivers the concept. Bar because it’s entertaining, and creates an opportunity to show, at once, Will as loyal, tough and wicked-smart.

Drama that triggers/delivers:

Chuckie, with his hip/cool game-strut, leads the way into the bar and quickly engages more educated women with a pick-up line that triggers Skylar’s playful engagement. Morgan and Will watch, like they expect Chuckie to entertain (delivering: he’s their spirited leader). Then a Harvard grad student sadistically and effectively (delivering Chuckie’s limited education) challenges Chuckie’s “you were in my history class” play, which triggers Skylar’s confident and supportive counterstrike at the student, as she registers (delivers: she’ssmart) the power-imbalance between the mens’ education and intellect.

The Harvard grad student shaming Chuckie for sport triggers Will’s empathetic/sensitive facial expression, after which he loyally jumps in to protect/defend his friend. After defeating the student intellectually, by exposing his plagiarism and lack of original thought—which delivers Will’s Brilliant/photographic mind trait—Will suggests they “take it outside,” delivering his fighter” one.

[Eugene Mandelcorn]

Will’s Traits

1) Well Read

2) Photographic Mind

3) Physically Powerful

4) Not Afraid of Anyone

5) Willing to Step in and Help a Friend

On the 2nd Viewing

1) Skylar was defending Chuckie: She could emphasize and understand his struggle to make a connection.

2) A Harvard Bar is a great place to make a connection. A place to socialize in a very strict school environment.

3) Will is very aware that this guy is trying to impress Skylar by putting down Chuckie to make himself look smart.

4) Even before Will puts the competition into an intellectual corner, Skylar has put the guy down for his actions, and when he strikes back by trying to put Will down as a nobody who will always be a nobody, Will offers to settle the matter outside, which ends the debate with a physical threat.

• This reply was modified 2 years, 5 months ago by  Eugene Mandelcorn.
• This reply was modified 2 years, 5 months ago by  Eugene Mandelcorn.

[Natacha Tomc]

1st time : the traits:

Will is a clearly a clever and pugnacious man

He doesn’t care who he’s talking to

He is reckless yet brave and start the verbal battle without any reluctance

2nd time :The drama created by the writer to trigger and deliver these traits:

First Will is watching from afar his friend trying to handle the situation with the posh guy,

Then he’s feeling clearly his friend’s lack of consistency as he is trying to engage the conversation

Finally he is facing a horrendous feeling of injustice welling up and he enters the verbal battle himself

Why do you think the group picked a Harvard bar?

It seems that Will is looking for alter egos to challenge himself

that bar is the best place for him to compete with smart guys

• This reply was modified 2 years, 5 months ago by  Natacha Tomc.
• This reply was modified 2 years, 5 months ago by  Natacha Tomc.

[Joan Butler]

GOOD WILL HUNTING

What I learned: My characters do not give everyone in the audience something to like.

Will is:

Brilliant

Loyal

Poor

Fighter

The underdog

He’s good looking, smart, able to fight, and the under-dog. Everyone in the audience can find something to like about him. This gives the film wide appeal. The expectation is that it will make money.

This scene leaves the audience asking questions and wanting more. For example:

Will Will’s physicality be at war with his intellect?

Will his poverty make him jealous of rich students? Will he sell out in order to be wealthy?

Will is brilliant. Chuckie is not. Will this create problems or will they stay loyal to each other?

Skylar aligns with Will in putting down Mr. Posh. This foreshadows their relationship. How and when will they get together? Will it be boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl?

Chuckie is looking for a woman. Will he find one?

[Ann Marie]

First viewing –

Will’s traits

– reserved, stands back and let’s his friend chat up the girls

– loyal – steps in when his friend is getting hassled

– ‘wicked smart’ – probably has a photographic memory

– calm – takes an insult and laughs at it

– not afraid to fight – offers to take it outside if necessary

– not much respect for eduction – can get it for a dollar in the library

-philosphical – tells the guy what he’ll think in 50 years

Chuckie traits –

Sociable – easily chats up the girls

Easy going – doesn’t mind the girls laughing at him standing there, uses it as an opportunity

self-deprecating – isn’t afraid to look a bit stupid

non-confrontational – doesn’t react to the guy coming up to him aggressively

can tell harmless lies- not afraid to bend the truth

not proud or aggressive- lets will step in to finish his sentence

Skyler

Easy going – doesn’t mind Chuckie’s chat up line she doesn’t believe

Speaks her mind – tells the guy to get lost

not afraid – she doesn’t appear to be afraid of anyone

Insight

Scene set-up : flirtation about the history class lie allows for an

1. an altercation with a real history student which shows the traits of each character while also exhibiting Will’s brilliant mind/photographic (?)

Breakthrough – create a scenario in my scenes, particularly the early ones, that will allow the main traits of my characters to be acted out – create conflict that causes them to act out their nature.

[Robert Kerr]

First Viewing:

Will’s Traits:

Protector, hyper-intelligent, willing to engage in combat and observant

Skylar Traits:

Curious, playful, deflects and impressed

Chuckie’s Traits:

Confident, salesman, girl crazy and leader

2nd viewing:

The drama was heightened by the various observers in the scene. The face-off was a great opportunity to watch the brewing conflict and allowed the viewing audience to see the impact that two intellectual combatants were oblivious to.

Why sit the scene in a Harvard bar – for the working class men this is the best opportunity to meet young women with real capital both socially, sexually and future orientation. Froth with tension and territorial sparring between the Harvard students and the working class.

[Liz Janzen]

1st viewing

Will’s traits:

Observant: sees right away Chuckie is walking into trouble

Loyal: sticks up for his friend – intervenes without being asked to

Highly intelligent: knows U.S. economic history PLUS historians’/economists’ perspectives

Confident: not intimidated by the Harvard swell who is trying to humiliate Chuckie

Brawn AND Brain: offers to take the fight outside

Prizes originality: laughs at the Harvard swell’s insult re ‘you’ll be serving my kids French fries down the road’

Chuckie’s traits

Self-deceived: believes he’s a charmer

Not very original in his approach to picking up women

More bravura than brains – takes a risky approach as an opening by posing as a former fellow student of Skylar’s

Naive to think he can pull off the caper

An outsider in this Harvard bar milieu

Doesn’t recognize when he’s in too deep

Skylar’s traits

Self-possessed: doesn’t react negatively to Chuckie’s ploy to pick her up; experienced with men’s approaches

Knows when to keep to herself: doesn’t defend Chuckie to the swell – just observes how it’s going to go.

Kind: she doesn’t blow off Chuckie by calling him on his lie.

Second viewing:

In fact Skylar does rebut the swell when he starts picking on Chuckie and tells him to go away. That didn’t register with me on the first viewing. Nor did her surprise at Will’s genius, a reaction I caught the second time around.

Insight: Chuckie rides Will’s coattails at the end of the scene, getting in the last word after Will has won is battle for him. Chuckie is happy to capitalize on Will’s genius.

[Patrick Malone]

Week 1 Day 1: Character Traits – GOOD WILL HUNTING

Will

1st viewing:

-confident

– smart

– well spoken

2nd viewing

– aggressive/tough

– protective (of Chuckie)

CHUCKIE

1st viewing:

– conniving

– impulsive

2nd viewing

– insecure

SKYLAR

1st viewing:

– nothing

2nd viewing

– inquisitive

Drama: As Chuckie tries to impress the girls, Clark sees through Chuckie’s deception and steps in to expose him. Clark is arrogant and Will then intercedes on behalf of Chuckie to humiliate the pompous Clark. Skylar’s expression indicates she is impressed with Will.

The boys went to this bar to meet girls. Perhaps Will went for the chance to engage intellectually with students.

[Lynn Vincentnathan]

WATCH 1ST TIME – TRAITS:

WILL’S TRAITS:

– protective of his friend, who is trying to impress a Harvard coed & gets pulled down by a grad student.

– dislikes Clark and perhaps all snobbish Harvard grad students.

– extremely knowledgeable about pre-revolutionary U.S. history

– a tough guy, ready to fight for his dignity and that of his friend

– ends by expressing contempt for the upper class & okay with his working class status/job.

SKYAR’S TRAITS:

– She’s a Harvard student out for fun and pickup?

– She dislikes Clark’s snobbery and dissing of Chuckie

CHUCKIE’S TRAITS:

– out to pickup a girl

– tries to impress her, though she doesn’t seem interested whether he does or not

– spars with Clark over the fake “history course,” but is losing it when Will steps in.

– admires Will

—————————————————————————————

WATCH 2ND TIME – MORE TRAITS:

– has a strong Boston accent, probably working class (saw the movie, so I know that much)

– also his shirt has tears.

– he has a cut lip — did he already fight someone?

– humor — smiles at the exchange between his friend (thick accent, working class) and the Harvard guy (without accent).

– puts the grad down by outdoing him re knowledge — in defense of his friend

– re his extreme knowledge about pre-revolutionary history, since this was just brought up, we can assume he’s very knowledgeable about many other subjects. He’s probably a genius.

– interesting that part of the subject is that last part is about class differences, which is what’s going on in the scene

SKYAR’S TRAITS:

– gets embarrassed by Clark’s attack on Chuckie

– dislikes Clark’s snobbery and dissing of Chuckie, tells Clark to go away

– astonished by Will’s knowledge

CHUCKIE’S TRAITS:

– spars with Clark over the fake “history course,” but is losing AND ABOUT TO PICK A FIGHT, when Will steps in

– admires Will

– once Will puts Clark in his place, he throws a “chop.” Has to have the last word.

[Mi Lock]

-1st viewing:

WILL: discreet, observer, expert, controls the situation, confident

SKYLAR: curious, not judgemental, open to the conversation with this guy she doesn’t know

CHUCKIE: seductive, provocative, confident, playful

– 2nd viewing: SKYLAR is upset/ strong enough to express her disapproval to the other guy.

– Drama: As Chuckie seduces Skylar, a guy shows up and starts to put Chuckie down by “showing” he’s smarter to impress the girls => competition to win the girls, he plays “I’m smarter than you, this is not a bar for you”. But it’s all fake and that triggers Will.

– Why this bar? Because the students there represent the exact opposite of what Will is (a janitor), they paid $150K to learn something they could have learnt for $1.50 in a public library.

– That scene shows that money, social status, prestige don’t make people smarter but sometimes only more arrogant and that despite appearances, the discreet one (Will) who is in a less privileged situation is actually in a stronger position to destroy the guy because he has the knowledge and an opinion, he is authentic.

[Caroline Fritz]

Will

1. Traits:

Loyal to his friends

Not afraid to defend his friends

Photographic memory

2. Living Into Their Future

Future: He is smart and maybe can go far.

3. Right Character

Well-read

Is a townie living in a rich person’s world

4. Secret and Reveal

Might not leave this town

5. Wound

Has a giant chip on his shoulder

Skylar

1. Traits
She defends Chuckie
She plays along with Chuckie’s pick-up line

2. Living Into Their Future
She is British so maybe she leaves the country? I don’t know I have not seen this movie.

3. Right Character
She’s nice and not pretentious to the townies

4. Secret and Reveal
We don’t know yet

5. Wound
We don’t know yet

Chuckie

1. Traits
He seems to be an ok person
Not smooth with the ladies

2. Living Into Their Future
Chuckie will probably never leave the area

3. Right Character
He seems to be a good friend of Will

4. Secret and Reveal
We don’t know yet.

5. Wound
We don’t know yet

What drama did the writers create to trigger and deliver these traits?
The group looks like low-rent townies so the writers wanted them to square off against the rich kids. A tale as old as time.

Why do you think the group picked a Harvard bar?
They live in town and knew there would be someone who thought he knew more than he did and Will could show off.

[Jojo Wilson]

Most of the items have been well covered above. But two points seem worthy of note.

First, we are being snowed by the scriptwriters. No one, photographic memory or not, could have that strong of a grasp of the subject of American history. There are just too many textbooks, scholarly articles, etc. So we should just take it as a metaphor and suspend disbelief. The point is that Will is extraordinarily gifted. There are better ways of showing this, however.

Second, why the Harvard bar? As we will learn later, Chuckie wants Will to make something of himself. This is a sneaky way to introduce Will to Harvard. And it evolves from there.

By the way, the screenwriters are Matt and Ben. I believe shortly after they left Harvard was the development timeframe. Good way to start in Hollywood, apparently.

[Judith Watson]

CHARACTER MASTERY CLASS – WEEK 1 – Day 1: Good Will Hunting – Dec. 6, 2022

Post the answer to the question, “What I learned rewriting my script is to create more tension and unanswered questions to what is going to happen.

SETUP FOR THE SCENE: We’ve just met Will (Matt Damon), who is a janitor at MIT. He anonymously solves a genius level problem, then runs when the teacher shows up. Now, he and his friends go to a Harvard bar for fun where someone there is sure to object to them being there – are they looking for trouble?

Watch 1st time for:

What traits do you see or hear in these main characters – Will, Skylar, and Chuckie?TRAITS: WILL: Smart/self-learned – uses smarts to feel good about himselfObservantProtectiveBrave/angry (wound) – “You have a problem with that we’ll go outside and figure it out.” CHUCKIE: impulsive – acts before he thinksConfidentFriendlySKYLAR: she’s not a snob – she responds to ChuckieAcceptingShe’s impressed with knowledgeGenuine

Watch 2nd time for:

What drama did the writers create to trigger and deliver these traits?Poor kids enter the rich and privileged territory – sure to have someone protest them being there and not belongingWhy do you think the group picked a Harvard bar? They seem to be looking for a fight – had pent up energy to get rid of

Daily Focus – Searching for Breakthroughs:

Please watch this scene and provide your insights/breakthroughs into what makes this character great from a writing perspective.Will is unexpected. Here is this poor kid, goes to a prestige’s college and puts out a smart ass knowing more than he does about a subject that the Harvard Kid challenged Chuckie with. The writer’s picked a big contrast between the two groups of kids and set up the future for one of them, Will, to move forward and live up to his abilities instead of staying where he has always been. Read the other writers comments and make notes of any insights/breakthroughs you like.Rethink or create a scene for your script using your new insights and rewrite that scene/character.Post the answer to the question, “What I learned rewriting my scene/character…?” and post it in the 5 PM daily post in the forums.

[Orit Mazor]

Well, first time I watched I understood it’s a rich boy’s club against poor boy’s… but one of the under dog club surprisingly very smart boy. Kind of a genius.

Will seems to be loyal, well reader and have a lot of knolege,also has sharp and quick thinking, streetwise and brave.

The second time I notice Will watching what’s going on…and than come to the rescue of his friend. It’s seems to me maybe deep inside a little bit of him wanted to impress the ladies on the bar and “get the girl”. and seems to be that he succeeded by the impressed reaction and curious look he got from her.

The drama was built to surprise us. To change our expectations.

• This reply was modified 2 years, 5 months ago by  Orit Mazor.

[Donna Stockwell]

I think if I had watched the whole movie, more character traits and hidden meanings may appear. But for now, at this college bar where it’s routine for guys to try to pick up girls, this is what I see.

GOOD WILL HUNTING
1 – traits
Will – (Matt Damon) – janitor – genius, protective of underdog/injustice, confident, photographic memory
Skylar – (Minnie Driver) – amused by boys trying to impress her, respectful, laid back, confident in herself
Chuckie – (Ben Affleck) – a bit shy, wanting a girlfriend, trying to play along and not make waves
2 – drama to trigger & deliver the traits – boys trying to impress girls at a pick-up bar
– group picked a Harvard bar because – it was close to school, girls are hot and intelligent, very social and easy to talk to everyone; enforce the contrast of learning from books rather than applying knowledge.

What I learned rewriting my scene/character is to contrast traits, looks can be deceiving, and seemingly contradicting traits can surface at unexpected times.