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Starring: Jack Nicholson, Helen Hunt,
Greg Kinnear, Cuba Gooding Jr.
Partial nudity, sexual discussions and language
Rated PG-13.
A touching movie about
love, but not about being in love; about friendships, but
not flawless ones...and about compromise.
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This is a great
movie to watch with a date, but most people under 19 would probably
find it boring. I wouldn't recommend it for children, especially
if they are naive. I find some subject matter inappropriate for
most children under 15. The homosexual issues are not great, but
I find the blatant discussion and language by Jack Nicholson inappropriate
for children, though necessary to build the character.
My husband enjoyed
this movie as much as I did, and that is rare! I consider this
a great film to watch with someone special. It leaves you with
several lines you won't forget and much to talk about. Schedule
your date around the video first and dinner or dessert second.
As Good as
it Gets is about three people. Melvin Udall, played by Jack
Nicholson, is socially inept and has a serious case of Obsessive
Compulsive Disorder. Carol Connelly, played by Helen Hunt, is
a single parent with a severely asthmatic child and she is a waitress
at the restaurant where Melvin enjoys eating. Simon Nye, played
by Greg Kinnear, is a homosexual artist and Melvin's neighbor.
Cuba has a small part in the movie, but his part is well played
and unforgettable!
The three unlikely
friends, Carol, Melvin and Simon, find each other. Each has lost
something: Carol, her sense of self due to the demands of caring
for her son; Melvin, his ability to have and maintain a relationship
due to his serious disorder; and Simon, his self-respect, due
to his loss of home and possibly career. Each of them finds some
satisfaction by the end of the movie, but realistically, the problems
are not fully resolved.
The story is
the adventure each takes from here to there. It is a touching
movie about love, but not about being in love; about friendships,
but not flawless ones...and about compromise.
The humor in
this film could be offensive to some, so consider yourself forewarned.
It is funny because it is SO politically incorrect, but it is
also sad when looked at more deeply. Melvin is unable to change
to way he relates to others.
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