Whether or not Matt Damon and Ben Affleck actually wrote the screenplay for Good Will Hunting without the assistance of a ghost writer is highly debatable. Nevertheless, it's a good flick as Damon and Affleck won an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay. The soundtrack is equally good due in part to Elliott Smith's contributions.
Director Gus Van Sant asked fellow Portland resident Elliott Smith to supply several songs to the film's soundtrack. Smith recorded an orchestral version of "Between the Bars" with composer Danny Elfman, offered three previously-released tracks ("No Name #3", from Roman Candle, and "Angeles" and "Say Yes," from Either/Or, and a new song, "Miss Misery," that was eventually nominated for an Academy Award.
Smith reluctantly agreed to perform "Miss Misery" at the 1998 Academy Awards Ceremony. For me, the musical segment of the show that honors the nominees for Best Song is when I usually take a bathroom break. I mean how many times can you watch Randy Newman perform?
Wearing a white suit and looking completely out of place, Smith strummed an acoustic guitar, while accompanied by the house orchestra. He sang quietly; his performance was understated; and there was no way in hell that his song would win. James Horner and Will Jennings would eventually win for "My Heart Will Go On" (from Titanic) which was performed by Celine Dion. But for two glorious minutes the Academy Awards were musically relevant.
Elliott Smith commented on the experience: "...I enjoy performing almost as much as I enjoy making up songs in the first place. But the Oscars was a very strange show, where the set was only one song cut down to less than two minutes, and the audience was a lot of people who didn't come to hear me play. I wouldn't want to live in that world, but it was fun to walk around on the moon for a day."
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