The story of the Good will Hunting

 what are you so scared of what ami so

Scared of

fear is an unusual part of life

and it manifests itself in all sorts of

different ways

the fear can be something small and in

the moment

or something deeper and more extensive

causing the person either to become

physically aggressive

or to flee the scene to retreat to

safety

gus van sant's good will hunting is a

subtle examination

in fear and how if you let it it can

constrain your potential

and even push you away from what you

really want

let's take a look at how will hunting

has his fears confronted

and relieved by sean maguire over the

course of just eight

face-to-face interactions and how sean

breaks through will's defense

mechanisms

to change him for the better

the very opening shot tells us a lot

about willhe lives alone in a single dark room the

blinds are pulled shielding him from the

outside world

as he indulges in what he secretly loves

reading this immediately tells us that

will is afraid to be seen

for who he really is will was moved

around a lot

as a kid between foster homes and

juvenile detention centers

he now lives a small life built on

routine

he gets picked up by his best friend

chuck every morning they hang out drive

around

drink beer and get in fights as things

stand his future

is just this it's the life he knows and

therefore

what is perceived to be safe but will

has a secret curiosity about what else

is

out there for him he hides his

motivations from even himself

choosing to be a night janitor at

harvard this is his way

of subconsciously scoping the place out

for a while almost pretending he was

accepted there

by welbing tha halle ot nigbt ondby walking the halls at night and

soaking up the atmosphere

then he sees a mathematical theorem left

on the chalkboard

for the students who were accepted to

solve only a handful of people

in the world could solve this theorem

and as it turns out

will is one of them almost like a secret

love affair

will's passion for mathematics can only

be revealed

late at night while no one else is

around as will has two contradictory

fears driving him

the fear of being stuck here forever and

never unlocking his potential

and the fear of unlocking his potential

and failing

this attitude is the polar opposite to

the students and professors

at harvard who fear being perceived as

not

smart enough this is shown when

professor lambeau

or obnoxious students like clark are

always flexing their

intellect to try to attract women i was

this clashes with wales worldview as a

life has conditioned him

to hide his abilities causing him to

resent those who posture their intellect

in public so will keeps his identity a

secret

letting the work speak for itself at a

safe distance

the harvard community are puzzled as in

their worlds

there is a clear incentive to come

forward and receive

praise so the mystery of the secret

genius

grows when lambeau discovers willand confronts him will runs away not

wanting to be seen

as he is scared of being perceived to

want more

as that betrays the life he has built

with his loyal friends

but he also holds a resentment of the

education world

fearing that he won't be accepted in it

this constant push-pull

feeling inside of him lying to himself

about what he really wants

after being arrested for assault will is

sentenced to jail time and professor

lambeau steps in

the court allowing will to be released

under his supervision

under two requirements that he solves

mathematical equations with him

and that he also attends therapy will

rejects the idea of therapy but now has

a safe eXCUse

to truly test his potential will always

wants an

out an exXCUse in case he fails so being

forced

into it by the courts relieves some of

his personal responsibility

but to lambos disappointment will

refuses to take therapyseriously having been abandoned by his

parents and abused in foster care homes

will has an inherent distrust of

authority figures

and instead uses these sessions as a

chance to outsmart the psychologists to

prove

they don't deserve his trust look into

my eye

get out wheels i dont need therapy

enter sean the last option who from his

very first

Scene sums up what he is all about

trust he also grew up in southie

and was lambo's former college

roommate

session one it's a poker game with this

kid don't let him know what you've got

just like the others will's defense

starts with

offense he tests sean inspecting the

books in his office

trying to read him as a man he views

these books as mere props

as if sean is just another posturing

intellectual

So challenges him on that front but

there are small moments that will can't

win

on first he sees a photo of sean serving

in vietnam.