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As Good as It Gets is a 1997 film from TriStar Pictures that tells the story of an obsessive-compulsive, misanthropic, and bigoted romantic novelist named Melvin Udall (Jack Nicholson), and how his personality softens and changes.
in Udall is a successful novelist with a brash and abrasive personality who suffers from obsessive-compulsive personality disorder. He insists on sitting at the same table at the same restaurant each day, much to the chagrin of Carol (Helen Hunt), the main waitress who waits on him.
Melvin works from home, and often uses homophobic remarks to berate his neighbor Simon Bishop (Greg Kinnear), a painter who is often seen with his little dog Verdell, which Melvin dislikes.
Simon is robbed and severely beaten in his apartment.
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Quotations
I can't do this without you. I'm afraid he might pull the stiff one-eye on me.
I guess what I'm trying to say is: you make me want to be a better man.
I want your life for one minute where my biggest problem is someone offering me a free convertible so I can get out of this city.
I'm drowning here, and you're describing the water!
If you stare at someone long enough, you discover their humanity.
Lucky for you, you're here for rock-bottom... you absolute horror of a human being.
Encyclopedia
As Good as It Gets is a 1997 film from TriStar Pictures that tells the story of an obsessive-compulsive, misanthropic, and bigoted romantic novelist named Melvin Udall (Jack Nicholson), and how his personality softens and changes.
Plot
Melvin Udall is a successful novelist with a brash and abrasive personality who suffers from obsessive-compulsive personality disorder. He insists on sitting at the same table at the same restaurant each day, much to the chagrin of Carol (Helen Hunt), the main waitress who waits on him.
Melvin works from home, and often uses homophobic remarks to berate his neighbor Simon Bishop (Greg Kinnear), a painter who is often seen with his little dog Verdell, which Melvin dislikes.
Simon is robbed and severely beaten in his apartment. He survives, but has no health insurance for his medical bills. Suddenly broke, he is forced to lay off his housekeeper and also faces the loss of his apartment. His agent Frank (Cuba Gooding, Jr.) pressures Melvin to look after Verdell. Melvin grows fond of the dog.
Melvin goes out to breakfast, finding out that Carol is not at work. He finds out that Carol needed to take her son to the hospital for treatment of an asthma attack. Because his disorder demands a structured routine in order for him to maintain his sanity, Melvin arranges for a doctor to help Carol with her son Spencer's asthma at no charge.
Carol is shocked, moved by the uncharacteristic kindness, but suspicious. She shows up at his doorstep in the rain and tells Melvin she will never have sex with him. Carol later apologizes, and a bond begins to form between her and Melvin.
Meanwhile, Simon decides to swallow some of his pride and ask his estranged parents, who live just south of Baltimore, for money to fend off his creditors. To make the trip, Frank offers the use of his car. Because Simon is still not physically able to drive, Melvin and Carol agree to drive Simon to his parents in Baltimore.
During the trip, Simon and Carol quickly bond, but have difficulties because of Melvin's abrasiveness. She returns to their adjoing rooms, and Simon then sketches Carol in the nude. They sleep together without having sex, and his fading powers as a painter return.
They return to Manhattan, and Simon is touched to realize that Melvin has taken him in after learning that Simon's apartment has been sublet, allowing Simon a real opportunity to get back on his feet.
Carol and Melvin resume their attempts at a relationship, with Carol resignedly telling Melvin it won't work because "all you do is make me feel bad about myself." In unfamiliar territory, Melvin struggles to compliment Carol. He goes on to say that she represents everything that is good and right in the world, the balance he needs to deal with his disorder, and life in general. After this, the pair kisses.
The movie ends with Carol and Melvin walking into a bakery early in the morning, forming a bond and Melvin no longer compulsively avoiding sidewalk cracks.
Primary cast
Reception
The film received generally positive reviews from film critics and was nominated for and received many film awards, including an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture and a Golden Globe award for Best Picture-Music or Comedy. Metacritic, a web site that evaluates films by averaging its overall critical response, gave the film a metascore of 67, signifying generally favorable reviews. The film's two lead actors, Jack Nicholson and Helen Hunt, both received Academy and Golden Globe awards for their performances. Chicago Reader film critic Jonathan Rosenbaum wrote that what director James Brooks "Manages to do with (the characters) as they struggle mightily to connect with one another is funny, painful, beautiful, and basically truthful--a triumph for everyone involved."
However, praise for the film was not uniform among critics. Roger Ebert gave "As Good As it Gets," three stars (out of four) and called the film a "compromise, a film that forces a smile onto material that doesn't wear one easily," writing that the film drew "back to story formulas," but had good dialog and performances.. Washington Post critic Desson Howe gave a generally negative review of the movie, writing that it "gets bogged down in sentimentality, while its wheels spin futilely in life-solving overdrive."
Awards won
Award nominations
External links
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