AS GOOD AS IT GETS
A Film Review by Brian Takeshita
Rating: ***1/2 out of ****
Jack Nicholson has a funny way of playing characters with very few redeeming qualities, but whom you end up liking anyway. In AS GOOD AS IT GETS, the character in question is Melvin Udall, a successful novelist with obsessive-compulsive disorder who seems bent on having as little contact with people around him as possible, except when he feels like being a royal pain in the you-know-where. He's mean. I mean really mean. The opening scene shows him shoving a little dog down the trash chute of his Manhattan condominium.
Every day, Melvin eats at the same cafe, sits at the same table, and gets served by the same waitress. You can tell that this is his favorite place to be a vicious nuisance, when his waitress Carol (Helen Hunt) tells him he can just go sit in another section, and all the other waitresses just cringe. One day, Melvin makes a comment that goes to far, and Carol, genuinely hurt, comes down on him like a ton of bricks. At that point we find that she is not only the only person who can put up with him as a matter of course, but is also the only person who can get to him, too.
Another person who often crosses Melvin's sights is Simon (Greg Kinnear), an artist who lives on Melvin's floor. Aside from the fact that he lives near the terror of the city, Simon has the added benefit of being gay, making him a prime target. Simon's friend Frank (Cuba Gooding, Jr.), also gay, does not fare much better. When Simon walks in on a pair of men robbing his apartment, he is brutally beaten and sent to the hospital, and Frank, who has grown tired of seeing his friend take the verbal abuse dished out by his neighbor, intimidates Melvin into watching after Simon's dog while he convalesces. This is the same dog Melvin had earlier shoved down the garbage.
An interesting thing happens when Melvin takes this dog in: Melvin gets to like the dog, and the two develop an attachment which is the catalyst to Melvin's softening up to the world around him. It doesn't happen overnight, but throughout the film, he bites his tongue here, cares a little there, and most miraculously, falls in love. One of the best elements of this film is watching Melvin try to express feelings which are not the usual negative ones he so often shares with others. He's traveling terra incognita here, and it shows.
Good performances are turned in by all principal players in this film, especially by Nicholson and Hunt. They play well off of each other and have a genuine chemistry which makes it a pleasure to watch them on screen. Greg Kinnear, who is becoming known for his supporting film roles, is also very good at playing the vulnerable Simon. He gives a short monologue about what it means for him to be an artist, and delivers it with such inspiration and conviction that you actually get to feel some of what he feels. Cuba Gooding Jr. performs with a hyped-up level of energy which contrasts nicely with that of Kinnear, and comes through with a near constant comic performance.
The screenplay, by Mark Andrus and James L. Brooks, is clever, touching, and funny. The best part about it, however, is that it is filled with characters we care about because they are actually interesting. Melvin is a man we can't quite figure out, but whose mannerisms and quirky qualities capture our attention. Carol is a working woman living with her mother, trying to take care of a child with a debilitating respiratory problem. Simon is a man who is a success in his circle of peers, but who is still not accepted by much of society. Combined with the talent of the actors, these characters make the film. The one noticeable area where the film is lacking, however, is the absence of Cuba Gooding, Jr. through the second half. His character makes an exit which is supposed to be temporary, but the film ends before his return, leaving his relationship with Simon and Melvin unresolved. I would have liked to have seen more of his character in general, in addition to a part in the film's conclusion.
There's one actor, who will probably not be recognized by any awards, but who contributes greatly to many of the movie's best scenes and who deserves mention. This is that little dog. He plays such a pivotal role to Melvin's character development, actually serves to forward the plot, and has some absolutely scene-stealing moments, that it is hard to believe he is simply an animal. Award or no, however, when even the dog puts in a good performance, you know you've got an outstanding movie.
Review posted January 26, 1998
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