THE MATT DAMON REVIEW

by Nate Lee

BEST FILM: Good Will Hunting and Saving Private Ryan... Certainly “Private Ryan” is a masterpiece, but Damon as the titular character is not the major force of the movie and really barely a minor force. His debut in screenwriting and lead acting, though—Good Will Hunting-- is a brilliant film, driven almost completely by both Damon’s acting and his writing chops.

GREAT PERFORMANCES YOU MAY NOT HAVE SEEN:

The Informant (a comically disturbed ADM whistleblower)

Invictus (Francois Pienaar, the South African rugby captain who united with Nelson Mandela)

Stuck on You (Greg Kinnear’s conjoined twin)

Dogma (vengeful angel Loki)

The Talented Mr. Ripley (man obsessed with Jude Law, Golden Globe nominated performance)

Chasing Amy

The Rainmaker 

BLOCKBUSTERS:

Saving Private Ryan

Good Will Hunting

The Ocean’s Eleven trilogy

The Bourne trilogy

The Good Shepherd

Syriana

Courage Under Fire 

THE REAL DAMON:

Good Will Hunting...

Co-written by Damon with pal Ben Affleck, for which they won Oscars, and for which Damon’s acting received Golden Globe, Oscar and SAG nominations. Damon was a student at Harvard while he wrote about an outsider genius coping (or not coping) with the Ivy League society.  

ACTING STYLE:

Though he is word perfect in the long speeches by Will Hunting, Damon’s natural style is complete unassuming flatness, which is why some of his best roles – a spy in “Bourne” and “Good Shepherd,” a man taking over another’s identity in “Mr. Ripley,” and the pickpocket/con man of “Ocean,” are about people who can disappear.  

BITS AND QUIRKS:

A funny clunky walk. Chagrined smile or tight grimace. The sudden outburst. The fast and witty speech. The flat voice. 

GREAT SCENES:

DOGMA -

“Punishing” the board of directors for their sins

GOOD WILL HUNTING -

The bar fight > The interview with the defense contractors

STUCK ON YOU -

“Sticking” around as brother Kinnear pursues acting > Spongebob-like skill on the grill > Getting stuck on either side of the bus door

BOURNE -

Too many to mention >> The hand-to-hand stuff in the apartment > The spycraft > Returning to the scene of the birth of Jason > Tracking down CIA sub-chief Joan Allen and talking to her on the phone while watching her from a nearby building > Confessing to the daughter of the Russians he killed

OCEAN -

“The nose” bit, seducing Ellen Barkin > With Cherry Jones, as his mom

SAVING PRIVATE RYAN -

Tom Hanks & Company find him and he refuses to abandon his station

THE GOOD SHEPHERD -

Holding the scene without saying a word >> Dealing with the KGB chief in various stages > Realizing his secretary is a mole > Talking with Mafia chief Joe Pesci about America 

MOVIES HE PROBABLY WISHES HE DIDN’T DO:

The Legend of Bagger Vance

All the Pretty Horses

Finding Forrester

Mean Streets

Gerry

Brothers Grimm 

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