Born Matthew Paige Damon in 1970, Matt Damon made his first appearance on screen with one-line in the 1989 film "Mystic Pizza." Playing a Gulf War vet-turned-heroin-addict in the 1996 film "Courage Under Fire" got him noticed by Hollywood, and he was well known by 1998 thanks to a little movie called "Good Will Hunting." Named the "Sexiest Man Alive" by People magazine in 2007, there's a lot to appreciate about Matt Damon and what better way to do so then by having a movie marathon in his honor. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
1. Start out by watching "The Rainmaker." This 1997 film was Matt Damon's first lead role as Rudy Baylor, a young attorney fresh out of law school trying to keep it honest. He takes on the case of an elderly couple whose insurance company will not pay for an operation that could save their son's life from leukemia. Other well-known co-stars in this movie include Danny DeVito, Jon Voight and Claire Danes.
2. Watch "Good Will Hunting," the 1997 film that made Matt Damon a well-known name. Co-written with Ben Affleck, this movie showcases Damon as a gifted MIT janitor, and a psychologist (played by Robin Wililams) tries to help him cope with this gift. Ben Affleck, as well as Minnie Driver, co-star. This role won Damon the Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role, as well as the Oscar for Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen (an award he shares with Affleck).
3. Watch "Saving Private Ryan" next. This 1998 war drama puts Damon in the title role of paratrooper Private James Frances Ryan who is stationed behind enemy lines. Captain John H. Miller, played by Tom Hanks, leads his squad from on a mission to find and bring home Private Ryan after the death of his brothers. This 5-time Oscar winner includes an all-star cast of Tom Sizemore, Edward Burns, Barry Pepper, Vin Diesel and Giovanni Ribisi.
4. Move on next to "Rounders." This often overlooked Matt Damon film from 1998 has Damon starring as Mike McDermott, a reformed gambler who must return to playing poker to help a friend pay off loan sharks. Damon's co-star is Edward Norton, who won a SEFCA Award for his role as "Worm."
5. Watch "The Talented Mr. Ripley," a 1999 film starring Matt Damon as Tom Ripley. In late 1950's New York, Ripley is sent to Europe to bring back the wealthy and spoiled Dickie Greenleaf (played by Jude Law). But when his task fails, Ripley kills Dickie and begins to assume his life. Gwenyth Paltrow co-stars as Dickie's fiance Marge, with Cate Blanchett and Philip Seymour Hoffman in minor roles.
6. Watch all three "Ocean's" movies: "Ocean's Eleven" (2001), "Ocean's Twelve" (2004) and "Ocean's Thirteen" (2007). The first tells of 11 friends who know each other from World War II service planning to rob five of the biggest casinos in Las Vegas all in one night. The Twelve sequel has one more team member helping the gang pull off three major European heists, and the final Thirteen rounds up the boys for a third heist after a casino double-crosses one of the original eleven. Damon stars in all three films opposite George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Elliot Gould, Casey Affleck and the late Bernie Mac.
7. Watch "The Departed." Revolving around a rivalry between the Massachusetts State Police and an Irish-American gang, this film from 2006 tells the story of a gangster who is chosen to infiltrate the state police while a young police officer is chosen to infiltrate the gang. Learn whether Matt Damon's character Colin is a good guy or a bad guy as he stars opposite Leonardo DiCaprio, Jack Nicholson and Mark Whalberg.
8. End your marathon with all three "Bourne" movies: The Bourne Identity (2002), The Bourne Supremacy (2004) and The Bourne Ultimatum (2007). This trilogy stars Matt Damon as Jason Bourne, who is introduced in Bourne Identity as a man being picked up by a fishing boat bullet-riddled and without memory. When deposited back on land, he must regain his memory while avoiding assassins simultaneously. In the Supremacy sequel, Bourne is framed for a botched CIA operation and in the third Ultimatum, Bourne must dodge a new class of assassins with a government agent trying to track him down. Julia Stiles co-stars in all three, with other names such as Clive Owen, Brian Cox and Albert Finney making appearances throughout the trilogy.
Tags: Matt Damon, 1997 film, Bourne Identity, chosen infiltrate, film from