As Good As It Gets

As Good As It Gets

1997 by TriStar Pictures

Starring Jack Nicholson as Melvin Udall

and Helen Hunt as Carol Connelly

(Jack won an Oscar that year for best Actor for this film

and Helen Hunt won the Oscar for best Actress)

*This is not a family movie nor a movie that I recommend for anyone but adults. None of the characters give any evidence of any genuine spirituality or strong moral character. You must view it with discernment. It does have the possibility of inspiring compassion in the viewer and can give the Christian viewer insight into and understanding of lives that seem to be completely without Christ.

OCD        Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

Melvin Udall is a fictional character playing a fiction writer who has a very real mental disorder. An affliction (he calls it an "ailment") called Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, or OCD.

Obsessives feel compelled, driven, or forced to observe or enact and/or repeat small, mundane actions or verbal phrases with great detail and emphasis.

View this clip from As Good As It Gets to see an example of the kind of behavior that might be characteristic of someone suffering from OCD.

Locking and unlocking doors repeatedly to make sure that the door is locked. Turning a light on and off and on again to emphasize it's on-ness or off-ness in the obsessive's consciousness.

One common symptom of OCD is obsessive cleanliness. Lots of hand-washing and an inordinate attention to germs and the microscopic world of disease lurking on every object.

I have a touch of this affliction . . . I use a lot of Purell Hand Sanitizer, I straighten picture frames that don't even belong to me, I place pens and brochures and cards at the bank teller's station all in neat and orderly fashion while I make my deposit.

I've always been a perfectionist (not perfect, mind you. There is a difference) and I am never satisfied with any project until it has been fiddled with to near distraction.

I don't mean to. I don't intend to. I don't even really want to. But I must. I have to. I'm never completely at peace becasue I always believe that anything that I'm working on will be absolutely perfect if I adjust it, turn it, tune it or twist it just a little bit more! Just one more tweak.

And . . . I probably often offend others by changing their work. Making adjustments to their efforts. I'm sure that it seems like a criticism of them or their work when it is really just me bowing to compulsion.

ON THE OTHER HAND . . . do you know why I serve God and His People?

Because I want to.

The Bible does have a lot of commandments . . . but I believe that there is a joyous place for the Christian where he can live without feeling under duress . . . from within . . . or from above.

That part of my life is like an island of sanity. I hope that you have it, too. That you know it and experience it. If you don't . . . ask God for it. I believe that it is a prayer that He is waiting to answer for anyone and everyone.

What if . . . .    What if this is as good as it gets?

This is the scene in the movie from which the title is taken.

Melvin storms into his Psychiatrist's office in a panic. He obviously hasn't been there in a long time. He has neglected his professional care and medication.

His doctor refuses to meet him on his terms, so Melvin storms back out again. When he bursts into the waiting room on the way out he addresses this line to the strangers in the room. He assumes that the reason that they are there is the same as his reason.

He asks them the question that is on his heart. He doesn't expect them to answer . . . or to even have an answer. But it pours out of him anyway.

"What if this is as good as it gets?"

What if we will never get better? What if we will never be cured? What if what we want most in life will never be ours? What if there is no hope?

You might miss the most important line in the scene if you're not careful. It is a simple "Oh" that escapes from the mouth of one of the patients in the waiting room. We can't tell who uttered it. But they probably expressed the feelings of everyone in the room. It is an "Oh" of despair.

"Oh," I've wondered that myself. I've had that thought. I've thought that question.

The genuine believer in Christ never has to face the possibility of utter hopelessness.

There is more to the story. There are facts that we do not presently know. God is accomplishing things --- the whole of which we are not fully aware.

Believe with me the promises of scripture and in the nature and character of God. THIS is not all that there is.

It gets better than this . . . . whatever this is for you. Trust me.

Better yet . . . trust Him.

The Compliment        The Best Compliment of My Life

This scene starts out with Melvin saying, "I have a great compliment for you." This frightens Carol but she braces herself because she knows there's no stopping what's to follow.

And what follows is one of the greatest compliments I have ever heard.

It's a little complicated (like Melvin himself) and requires some setup and explanation. But it's worth it.

"You make me want to be a better man."

Nicholson's delivery and acting is superb as he fidgets and fumbles to say the lines as Melvin would. But what is priceless . . . perfection . . . and unforgettable . . . is the speechless changing expressions on Helen Hunt's face as Melvin's meaning dawns on her.

Watch her face. The camera zooms ever so slightly. There are actually about 5 different phases to her expression. Her eyes glisten with tears and ungraspable emotion.

I can watch it (and I have) over and over again. It always touches me.

"And the winner of the award for best female actress in a leading role is: Helen Hunt!"

She has my vote.

When Melvin says, "You make me . . ." Carol knows that he is describing something that is coming from a different place than all of the other voices and demons that he is a slave to every moment of his life.

He's not talking about a compulsion . . . he's not obsessed with her . . . he loves her. And what is coming from him now is something that he genuinely wants to give to Carol.

He's saying, "You inspire me," "You stir me," "You lift me up," "You empower me."

Is there anyone or anything in your life that makes you want to be a better man, a better woman?

This is what puts every thing that I "hate" (I'm using the word "hate" here) or every thing that I don't like or every thing that I wish was different in my life or in the the world in general a proper perspective.

I can do it, I can bear it, I can withstand it, I can surpass it. Because those very things -- my troubles, trials, and tribulations . . . have the greatest possibility of making me a better man.

And I want that.

OK. Here I go . . . . Lord, I want to offer you praise. You make me want to be a better man.

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