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Chris Gardner (Will Smith) was a math whiz in high school but never had further education. Now married and with a young son Christopher (Jaden Christopher Syre Smith, Will’s real-life son), Chris makes a living selling bone-density scanning machines but even with his wife Linda (Thandie Newton) working at two jobs, they can hardly make both ends meet. Finally his frustrated wife leaves home, leaving Christ and his son to fend for themselves. With such heavy financial burdens and having only each other they are evicted from their home and left with no choice but to sleep in welfare institutions and on the streets. But the persevering Chris gets a break when he impresses a high-ranking corporate man by solving the Rubrik Cube puzzle.
Based on a true story, The Pursuit of Happyness is half comedy and half drama that makes use of but a handful of actors. Outside of the father and the son roles that form the essence of the story, the rest of the actors, however, are given limited screen time. There is obviously good chemistry between the two Smiths--it seems they did not need to act to perform--although delving deeper into their characters could have improved the movie and turned it from good to great. Director Gabriele Muccino captures and highlights in a dramatic context the nuances of the father-son relationship.
The Pursuit of Happyness is definitely not Oscar material but it is worthy of the viewer’s time and it merits our support for its message: persevering in faith against all odds, fighting for your passions and principles despite the personal hardships encountered. The movie’s main achievement is bringing the real-life story of Chris Gardner to the theaters and voicing its message to the whole world. The whole family will find an uplifting story in the movie though it would be especially good for fathers and sons to see the film together.
(Date Reviewed: 23 March 2007)
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