Line #70 Film/AsGoodAsItGets


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/as_good_as_it_gets_poster.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:"You make me want to be a better man."]]
3
4	->''"A comedy from the heart that goes for the throat."''
5	-->-- '''{{Tagline}}'''
6
7	''As Good As It Gets'' is a 1997 RomCom from the mind of Creator/JamesLBrooks, and starring Creator/JackNicholson, Creator/HelenHunt, and Creator/GregKinnear. Featuring a relatively small cast, the crux of the story revolves around a reclusive novelist named Melvin Udall: his hostility toward his neighbour, Simon (Kinnear) and his [[strike: fixation]] dependence on Carol Connolly (Hunt), a down on her luck single mom with a perennially-ill son. The main characters are as follows:
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9	--Melvin Udall (Nicholson): a reclusive, Obsessive-Compulsive bigot and, in classic Nicholson style, the name at the top of the marquee; Udall also happens to be his publisher's highest-selling novelist (62 books, on par with Creator/StephenKing, for a sense of scale), and chronically dependent on waitress Carol Connolly, who waits on him--patiently--in the Manhattan restaurant at which he dines daily.
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11	--Carol Connolly (Hunt): a beleaguered single mom, working a comfortable (if somewhat unfulfilling) waitress job at a Manhattan diner. Melvin's chosen waitress--for little other reason than his OCD-fuelled dependence on her, and, at least in his mind, her willingness to put up with him. Lives with her mother and chronically-ill son, Spencer (Creator/{{Jesse James\|Actor}}) in Brooklyn.
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13	--Simon Bishop (Kinnear): Melvin's neighbor. A painter whose two passions in life are his beloved Brussels-Griffon, Verdell, and painting. His dreams get dashed violently when a street ruffian and his friends rob Simon and beat him to within an inch of his life. Hereafter, while Simon's away getting treated, Verdell the dog falls under the care of Melvin--who has trouble adjusting. Then gets over it. Then has trouble dealing with the absence in his life once Verdell goes back to Simon.
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15	From here, RuleOfDrama ensues. A Creator/JamesLBrooks production, with the soundtrack, by Music/HansZimmer. Creator/CubaGoodingJr plays Simon's manager, Frank. A young Creator/MayaRudolph can be seen briefly as a cop.
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17	----
18	!!I think of a trope, and I take away reason and accountability:
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20	* AlliterativeName: Carol Connolly.
21	* AntiHero: Melvin is a homophobic, racist and misanthropic man who puts off the neighbors in his apartment building and nearly everyone else with whom he comes into contact. However, he becomes more gentle towards the end.
22	--> '''Melvin''': I've got JEWS at my table!
23	** And:
24	--> '''Simon''': Which colour was that ?
25	--> '''Melvin''': [Talking about the skin of a black man] Like THICK MOLAAAASSES with a broad nose. Perfect for smelling trouble and prison food.
26	* BerserkButton: Carol is as patient as one can humanly be when dealing with Melvin, but when he makes a snarky comment that everyone eventually will die, including her sick son, she chews him out in public, with a PrecisionFStrike (as an noun towards Melvin). It is such a shock that even Melvin is rendered speechless, and quietly apologizes.
27	** Also, don't interrupt Melvin while he's writing.
28	* TheBigDamnKiss:
29	** Carol to Melvin at the restaurant.
30	** At the end, as they're walking around at 4 am, Melvin kisses Carol somewhat awkwardly. They break, he says "I know I can do better than that," and he lays TheBigDamnKiss on her.
31	--> '''Carol''': Better. ''Definitely'' better.
32	* BigShutUp: Melvin to the schoolkids running behind Carol and parroting her cries of "Melvin, wait!"
33	* BitchInSheepsClothing: Simon's manager Frank likes to play as if he's kind, caring, and attentive, but he consistently avoids actually having to do anything to be helpful himself, going so far as to threaten Melvin into forcing him to be the good guy.
34	** There's also Frank's reaction to the elderly lady declining to take care of Verdell: "Old bitch!"
35	* BondingOverDislikes: The first conversation between Melvin and Simon that doesn't involve Melvin insulting him is when they talk about hating the feeling of being tired. It marks the first step to them finally becoming friends.
36	* BunnyEarsLawyer: Melvin is a successful and prolific author which is why he can insult his publisher and get away with it. And since he works from home he doesn't have to interact with any other colleagues.
37	* TheCameo: Creator/LawrenceKasdan plays Melvin's doctor, and Creator/ToddSolondz is one of the passengers on the bus when Carol goes to see Melvin. Creator/HaroldRamis plays Spencer's new doctor, hired by Melvin. Creator/ShaneBlack plays the manager of the restaurant where Carol works.
38	* CampGay: Melvin certainly seems to think Simon is one. Aside from a positively {{Squick}}y attachment to his dog, he's slightly effeminate but otherwise fairly StraightGay.
39	* DarkAndTroubledPast: ''Everyone!''
40	** Simon's back story involved his childhood pastime of painting his mother in the nude. His dad didn't approve.
41	** We never find out much about Melvin before the events of the film, but he admits in one scene that his father used to beat him on the hands with a yardstick whenever Melvin made a mistake playing the piano. Also, his father didn't leave his room for eleven years. [[FridgeHorror Makes you think, doesn't it?]]
42	** Carol's past is mostly an InformedAbility, revolving around her current SingleMom-ness and her attachment to her son. The earliest date she mentions is Spencer being six months old, and even then, it's an afterthought to the big problem of his illness.
43	** Frank ''briefly'' references having one, but he may just be pretending to be a ScaryBlackMan to keep Melvin from picking on Simon so much.
44	* DeadpanSnarker: Pretty much every character in the film but especially Melvin.
45	* DisappearedDad: The father of Spencer, Carol's son, is never mentioned or seen. It may be that, given Spencer's health problems, he ran out on them.
46	* DisneyDogFight: A twist on this is done between Verdell (the dog) and Simon and Melvin, as Melvin was trying ''not'' to win to cheer Simon up.
47	* TheDogBitesBack: Simon gets angry enough at Melvin's cruel remarks to take a swing at him. It misses, but it does get Melvin to approach the situation a little more tenderly.
48	* DoubleTake: A passerby gives one at Carol's breasts; a rain-soaked Carol finds this odd, but it's because she doesn't realize her breasts are showing through [[SexySoakedShirt her wet T-shirt]].
49	* DysfunctionJunction
50	* {{Facepalm}}: Carol does this when Melvin yells an order to a waiter across the room at dinner.
51	* {{Gayngst}}: Lampshaded when straight Melvin asks Simon after all the horrible things that have happened to him if he thinks his life would have been easier if he were straight, which causes Simon to ask back: "Do you consider your life ''easy''?"
52	-->'''Melvin:''' [[{{Touche}} All right, I give you that one.]]
53	* GilliganCut: Carol shoots down Melvin's invite to come with him and Simon to Maryland; it then cuts to her packing for the trip.
54	** Another one nestled inside: Carol tries sorting her messy belongings and shoving them into a suitcase, while complaining that it's impossible to pack for the trip. Cut to Melvin, his packing neatly sorted, bagged, and arranged while he marks off a checklist of what he's taking.
55	* GoodIsNotNice: Melvin and how!!
56	* HatesBeingTouched: Melvin
57	* HeldGaze: Melvin and Carol hold each other's gazes at least twice and for a moment all conversation dies away (during the second held gaze.)
58	* InformedDeformity: Going by Frank's extreme reaction of horror, it seems like Simon's face had been put in a blender instead of looking like he got beaten up with fairly regular stitches, swelling and bruises.
59	** To be sure, Jackie (Simon's assistant) starts crying as soon as she sees Simon's face, so it's not just Frank.
60	* {{Irony}}: Melvin, a bigoted curmudgeon who's so antisocial he can barely engage in human talk and is horrible at relationships, is a prolific and successful ''romance novelist.''
61	* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: ''Melvin'', and "jerk" may be too light a term. Once they get back from Maryland, we notice the changes for the better. The entire movie is basically him becoming much nicer, with Carol ultimately managing to reform Melvin through kindness.
62	** Also counts as CharacterDevelopment, since for the previous two hours of movie, he excelled at {{Jerkass}}ery whenever possible.
63	* LickedByTheDog: It's Verdell that first gets to soften Melvin.
64	* LivingEmotionalCrutch: Carol serves as this for Melvin and, eventually, Simon.
65	* MayDecemberRomance: Despite her insistence that she'll never sleep with him, Carol does end up falling for the much older and more cynical Melvin. [[note]](Jack Nicholson was 60 and Helen Hunt was 34.)[[/note]]
66	* MeaningfulBackgroundEvent: When Melvin and Simon return from Maryland, an attentive viewer will notice that Melvin [[spoiler: does not go through his lock routine when he closes the door]]. Melvin doesn't realize this until a couple of scenes later and it counts as his EurekaMoment, realizing he's changed for good.
67	* MoodWhiplash: Played for laughs in the first scene; Melvin's elderly neighbor is all smiles about tulip season but immediately spots Melvin, mutters "Son of a bitch", and slams the door.
68	** At least twice during the conversation between Melvin and Carol in the restaurant in Baltimore. Carol goes from neutral to angry to completely besotted to ''furious''.
69	* MsFanservice: There really is no reason for Carol to get a SexySoakedShirt scene or prepare to bathe in front of Simon other than it appeals to the audience.
70	* NiceJobBreakingItHero: Melvin often undoes his good deeds immediately because he can't keep his snarky comments in check (and doesn't know how to be tactful in social situations). While taking Carol out to dinner, he complains offhandedly that he had to buy a dinner jacket while they let her wear a "housedress", which pisses her off. Then when he gives her the "best compliment of her life" moments later (see NoMedicationForMe) and getting a BigDamnKiss, he again negates it by suggesting that Carol should have sex with Simon.
71	* NippleAndDimed: One of the rare examples of this happening in a non-R rated film; just as Carol knocks on Melvin's door she realizes in rapid order that A, her shirt is soaking wet; B, she isn't wearing a bra; and C, she's very cold (if you take our meaning). The only option she can come up with is to grab her shirt and hold it away from her breasts for the duration of their talk. Interestingly enough, while leaving Melvin's later in the scene, Carol is clearly wearing a bra (the shots of her back plainly show a bra outline).
72	* NoAntagonist: Though there are brief instances of villainous characters in Simon's story (the robbers and his unseen cold-hearted father), the story ultimately focuses on Melvin overcoming his struggles and getting with Carol.
73	* NoMedicationForMe: A rare and awesome {{subver\|tedTrope}}sion in Melvin's speech complimenting Carol.
74	-->'''Melvin:''' I've got this, what--ailment? My doctor, a shrink that I used to go to all the time, he says that in fifty or sixty percent of the cases, a pill really helps. I '''hate''' pills, very dangerous thing, pills. Hate. I'm using the word "hate" here, about pills. Hate. My compliment is, that night when you came over and told me that you would never... well, you were there, you know what you said. Well, my compliment to you is, the next morning, I started taking the pills.
75	-->'''Carol:''' I don't quite get how that's a compliment for me.
76	-->'''Melvin:''' You make me want to be a better man.
77	* OhCrap: When Melvin's setting himself out at his table and doing his little ramble about how everyone's going to die and he gets to how Carol's son is likely to soon, almost as soon as it's out of his mouth he stops and his eyes widen and his lips go slack, realizing he's gone too far.
78	* OnSecondThought: In Carol's first scene, when Melvin is badgering her to get his table free, she says he can sit at another table, at which point all of her co-workers immediately gasp in fear. She then says, "Or, you could wait."
79	* PetHomosexual: Simon is a {{Deconstruction}} of this character type. [[spoiler:Essentially what happens when the PetHomosexual has a HeroicBSOD and [[TheDogBitesBack starts biting back]].]]
80	* PrecisionFStrike: Three times (bucking the usual PG-13 rule), but especially [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cGbhI11K6TU this]]:
81	--> '''Carol:''' Fucking HMO bastard pieces of shit!
82	--> '''Carol's Mom:''' Carol!
83	--> '''Carol:''' Sorry.
84	-->'''Doctor:''' It's okay. Actually, I think that's their technical name.
85	* SexForServices: Carol thinks Melvin is only supplying a house-call doctor for her son because of this and even point-blank tells him it won't work ("I will never have sex with you, NEVER!"), but it's just because Melvin needs her back at his restaurant. And that underneath it all, there may be a heart of gold that actually does care for her.
86	* SexySoakedShirt: Carol gets one after running in the rain to get to Melvin's apartment.
87	* ShownTheirWork: Yes, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, though it manifests differently in each case, is presented fairly spot-on here.
88	** Notice Melvin usually makes one of his harsh comments [[FridgeBrilliance when someone interrupts his routine or gets in his space]].
89	* SilverFox: Jack Nicholson aka Melvin, still charismatic in his old age.
90	-->'''Carol''': ''When you first came into the restaurant, I thought you were handsome. [[DeadpanSnarker And then you spoke.]]''
91	* StrugglingSingleMother: Carol.
92	* TitleDrop: Melvin says "What if this is as good as it gets?" in a psychiatrist's waiting room.
93	* TookALevelInKindness: Frank lampshades this to Melvin, laughing about all the nice things he's doing despite the gruff demeanor.
94	* TheTriple: After Simon tells Carol about his DarkAndTroubledPast, while Melvin sulks in the back seat:
95	-->'''Carol:''' We all have these terrible stories to get over, and you-\
96	'''Melvin:''' That's not true. Some of us have great stories, pretty stories, that take place at lakes, with '''boats and friends and ''noodle salad''''', just no one in this car.
97	* UnderdressedForTheOccasion: Melvin on his dinner date with Carol.
98	* VillainousValor: Well, more "{{Jerkass}}" than "villainous", but Melvin, despite his repulsive demeanor, is still a successful novelist who can work from home, implying he has a degree of grit and determination.
99	* YouNeedToGetLaid: Carol says this about herself during the conversation with her mother when she breaks down crying, and is talking about seeing a couple, while on the bus, being "adorable" with one another:
100	-->''Which is probably why I hug Spence more than he needs me to. Poor kid doesn't have enough problems in his life, he has to make up for his mom not getting any.''

Context Film / AsGoodAsItGets