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Movie Review | 'The Pursuit of Happyness'

Climbing Out of the Gutter With a 5-Year-Old in Tow

By Manohla Dargis

Dec. 15, 2006

A fairy tale in realist drag, “The Pursuit of Happyness” is the kind of entertainment that goes down smoothly until it gets stuck in your craw. Inspired by a true story, as they like to say in Hollywood, the film traces the fleeting ups and frightening downs of Chris Gardner, whose efforts to keep his family from sinking into poverty evolve into a life-and-death struggle of social Darwinian proportions. It’s the early 1980s, and while Ronald Reagan is delivering the bad economic news on television, Chris is about to prove you don’t need an army to fight the war on poverty, just big smiles and smarts, and really sturdy shoes. (It also helps that the star playing him is as innately sympathetic as Will Smith.)

Given how often Chris breaks into a run on the streets of San Francisco, it’s a good thing his shoes are well built; his lungs, too. Written by Steven Conrad and directed by Gabriele Muccino, “The Pursuit of Happyness” recounts how Chris, plagued by some bad luck, a few stupid moves and a shrew for a wife, Linda (Thandie Newton), loses his apartment and, with his 5-year-old, Christopher (Jaden Christopher Syre Smith, Mr. Smith’s own beautiful son), joins the ranks of the homeless, if not the hopeless. Evicted from the mainstream and bounced from shelter to shelter, Chris holds firm to his dignity, resolve, faith, love and independence. His optimism sweeps through the film like a searchlight, scattering clouds and dark thoughts to the wind.

It’s the same old bootstraps story, an American dream artfully told, skillfully sold. To that calculated end, the filmmaking is seamless, unadorned, transparent, the better to serve Mr. Smith’s warm expressiveness. That warmth feels truthful, as does the walk-up apartment Chris’s family lives in at the start of the film, which looks like the real paycheck-to-paycheck deal. As does the day care center, which is so crummy it can’t even get happiness right (hence the title).

This is no small thing, considering the film industry’s usual skewed sense of economic class, a perspective encapsulated by the insider who described the middle-class family in “Little Miss Sunshine” to me as working class, perhaps because the mother drives a gently distressed Miata rather than next year’s Mercedes.

Money matters in “The Pursuit of Happyness,” as it does in life. But it matters more openly in this film than it does in most Hollywood stories that set their sights on the poor, largely because Chris’s pursuit of happiness eventually becomes interchangeable with his pursuit of money. He doesn’t want just a better, more secure life for himself and his child; either by scripted design or by the example of the real Chris Gardner, he seems to yearn for a life of luxury, stadium box seats and the kind of sports car he stops to admire in one scene. His desires aren’t just upwardly mobile; they’re materialistically unbound. Instead of a nice starter home, he (and the filmmakers) ogles mansions. It’s no wonder he hopes to become a stockbroker.

That may sound like a punch line, at least to some ears, but it’s the holy grail in “The Pursuit of Happyness.” A self-starter, Chris has sunk all of the family’s money into costly medical scanners that he tries to sell to doctors and hospitals. But the machines are overpriced, and the sure thing he banked on has landed them in debt. Forced to work two shifts at a dead-end job, Linda angrily smolders and then rages at Chris, which seems reasonable since he has gambled all of their savings on an exceptionally foolish enterprise. (And, unlike her, he hasn’t signed up for overtime.) But this is a film about father love, not mother love, and Linda soon leaves the picture in a cloud of cigarette smoke and a storm of tears.

Chris and the filmmakers seem happy to see her go, but life only gets tougher once she and her paychecks disappear. Much of the film involves Chris’s subsequent efforts to keep himself and his child housed and fed while he is enrolled in an unpaid internship program at a powerful stock brokerage firm. Bright and ferociously determined, Chris easily slides into this fantastical world of shouting men, ringing phones, gleaming surfaces and benevolent bosses. He goes along to get along, and when one of his bosses asks for money to pay for a cab, he quickly opens his wallet. Chris himself stiffs another working man for some money because that wallet is so light. But this is a film about him, not the other guy.

How you respond to this man’s moving story may depend on whether you find Mr. Smith’s and his son’s performances so overwhelmingly winning that you buy the idea that poverty is a function of bad luck and bad choices, and success the result of heroic toil and dreams. Both performances are certainly likable in the extreme, though Mr. Smith shined brighter and was given much more to do when he played the title character in Michael Mann’s underrated “Ali.” That film proves an interesting comparison with this one, not in filmmaking terms, but in its vision of what it means to be a black man struggling in America. In one, a black man fights his way to the top with his fists; in the other, he gets there with a smile.

“The Pursuit of Happyness” is rated PG-13 (Parents strongly cautioned). It includes mild adult language and some parental fighting.

THE PURSUIT OF HAPPYNESS

Opens today nationwide.

Directed by Gabriele Muccino; written by Steven Conrad; director of photography, Phedon Papamichael; edited by Hughes Winborne; music by Andrea Guerra; production designer, J. Michael Riva; produced by Todd Black, Jason Blumenthal, Steve Tisch James Lassiter and Will Smith; released by Columbia Pictures. Running time: 117 minutes.

WITH: Will Smith (Chris Gardner), Thandie Newton (Linda) and Jaden Christopher Syre Smith (Christopher).

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The pursuit of happyness, common sense media reviewers.

Inspirational but often emotionally wrenching story.

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Strong messages about the importance of persistenc

Noble father dotes on son and is dedicated to taki

Parents' loud argument worries their son; Chris is

Mother appears briefly in her bra and panties whil

"F--k" written as graffiti on wall, noted and spok

Most products are used to mark the year (1981): A

Mom smokes cigarettes several times.

Positive Messages

Strong messages about the importance of persistence, hard work, believing in yourself, and being there for each other. The heart of the movie is the strong father-son bond between the two main characters.

Positive Role Models

Noble father dotes on son and is dedicated to taking care of him through thick and thin. He takes his son along on job-related excursions and lies in front of him (the kid looks appropriately skeptical when he hears it). Chris also briefly discourages and yells at his son, after which he is immediately apologetic. Perpetually irritated mom abandons her son early in the movie.

Violence & Scariness

Parents' loud argument worries their son; Chris is hit by a car, leaving his face bruised and clothes bedraggled; father yells at son for crying, frightening him into obedience; Chris starts to fight a man in line at a shelter, frightening his son, who cries.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

Sex, Romance & Nudity

Mother appears briefly in her bra and panties while changing into her work uniform.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.

"F--k" written as graffiti on wall, noted and spoken by father and son; several uses of "damn," "hell," "s--t," "ass," and "a--hole." "You suck" written on wall.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

Products & Purchases

Most products are used to mark the year (1981): A Rubik's cube figures prominently in the plot; Members Only jacket; Raging Bull movie poster; Magic Johnson poster, Captain America action figure. Chris goes to work for the Dean Witter brokerage.

Drinking, Drugs & Smoking

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Will Smith will draw kids to this movie. But it's not an action flick or slapstick comedy -- it's an inspirational and often emotionally wrenching story. It includes some very sad scenes between family members, as well as a couple of emotionally scary ones. The mother becomes so frustrated with her husband's inability to make a living that she leaves him and their son. Later, the father yells at his son for a trivial reason and gets in a fight, scaring the boy and making him cry. If your child is in a clingy period with you, this might upset him or her. There's a very brief allusion to the mixed effects of classism and racism on the son. The father's frustration sometimes leads to tears and sometimes to angry language (mostly damn and "s--t"). A graffitied "f--k" leads to a brief discussion of the word, and the son says it out loud. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

Where to Watch

Videos and photos.

Community Reviews

Parents say (16)
Kids say (50)

Based on 16 parent reviews

that kid'll getcha

Real life issues - refreshing break from anthromorphism and fantasy, what's the story.

Based on a true story and set in 1981 San Francisco, Pursuit begins as Chris Gardner ( Will Smith ) and his wife, Linda ( Thandiwe Newton ), are having troubles. She works double shifts doing hotel laundry; he's trying to sell bone density scanners (i.e., specialty medical machines that, as Chris admits in voiceover, are too expensive for most doctors to buy). When Linda abandons the family, Chris remains determined. He spends six months working in an unpaid internship at Dean Witter, dead set on becoming a stock broker. He's smart enough and good with numbers, he figures, having proved that much by solving a Rubik's cube in front of a Dean Witter broker. As he studies and scrapes by, barely earning enough each week to pay for meals, Chris is sure he's going to make it.

Is It Any Good?

Jaden Smith is adorable; he delivers an endearing performance as Gardner's son, Christopher, in what turns out to be a simple, sentimental, but ultimately inspiring movie. The film deals with the American Dream from a particular perspective, focusing, as the title implies, on the constitutional right to "pursue" happiness, rather than the right to be happy. In this manner, the movie is able to avoid focusing much on institutional racism and how that factors into achieving the Dream. Instead, the relationship between father and son, through all the ups and downs of family strife and economic instability, take center stage, with lovely results.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about the appeal of stories like Chris'. Why do people like rags-to-riches tales? Why are they considered good material for movies? How close do you think the movie version is to the true story?

Families can also talk about the risks that Chris takes to provide a "better life" for his son. How does the movie show that little Christopher is both scared of having no place to sleep, but also utterly trusting of his dad? Is it OK that Chris tells a white lie in front of his son to get a job?

How does the film portray the decision by Christopher's mother to leave him? From whose point of view do you see this choice?

Movie Details

In theaters : December 14, 2006
On DVD or streaming : March 27, 2007
Cast : Jaden Smith , Thandiwe Newton , Will Smith
Director : Gabriele Muccino
Inclusion Information : Female actors, Black actors
Studio : Columbia Tristar
Genre : Drama
Run time : 117 minutes
MPAA rating : PG-13
MPAA explanation : some language.
Award : Common Sense Media Award
Last updated : January 21, 2024

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The Pursuit of Happyness Reviews

It is Will Smith's lead performance in this that really stole the show and won me over. It really elevated this movie.

Full Review | Original Score: 7.5/10 | Sep 4, 2021

The Pursuit of Happyness reveals the soul-wasting nature of poverty and the lack of prospects for those condemned to economic oblivion.

Full Review | Sep 2, 2020

Will Smith can carry a film. And carry it he does, because without him, Happyness would founder in its own schmaltz.

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/4 | Jun 6, 2019

Director Gabriele Muccino has so overloaded the story with glib anecdotes that it's often depressing and, worse, monotonous. Everything that is admirable, and there is much, is down to Smith's verve.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | Nov 3, 2018

Save some of those Kleenex for The Pursuit of Happyness.

Full Review | Jan 5, 2018

The Pursuit of Happyness is a very Hollywood film, which could be good or bad depending on your point of view. It tries very hard to be profound and inspirational, but ultimately it's not up to the task.

Full Review | Original Score: 6/10 | Apr 25, 2011

Counterfeit emotion and submerged racism

Full Review | Aug 28, 2009

Sap, sentiment, and hokey plot devices bog down an otherwise down to earth story.

Full Review | Apr 29, 2009

Smith turns in a career-capping performance, and director Gabriele Muccino ingeniously turns the material inward, cautioning us all to be grateful for what we have, for we're closer to the edge than we think.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/4 | Apr 23, 2009

Will Smith is getting all the awards buzz, but it's his real-life son, Jaden, who transcends all expectations in Happyness.

Full Review | Original Score: 3.5/5 | Nov 20, 2008

Full Review | Original Score: C | Oct 18, 2008

Even the glossiest of surfaces can't extinguish the genuine emotions running beneath them here.

Full Review | Original Score: B- | Apr 6, 2008

Few films so convincingly portray the titanic struggle that some people face day in and day out just to survive.

Full Review | Original Score: 7/10 | Feb 28, 2008

This is Will Smith's movie from start to finish and he carries it wonderfully.

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/4 | Jul 14, 2007

[A] calculatedly emotional, sterilizingly cleancut drama.

Full Review | Original Score: 2/5 | Jun 23, 2007

Hokey title, but sometimes movie is good.

Full Review | Original Score: B- | May 10, 2007

In an effort to make a crowd-pleasing film, the horrors that Gardner must have experienced on the streets feel glossed over by the Hollywood machine.

Full Review | Mar 24, 2007

The American Dream as white, rich and all male.

Full Review | Mar 21, 2007

Will Smith gives the performance of his career in a movie for which phrases like "heart-warming" and "life-affirming" were made.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | Feb 19, 2007

Sem jamais tratar o papel como uma simples oportunidade de mostrar seu alcance dramático, Will Smith comove justamente por demonstrar o esforço de seu personagem para se conter em momentos de grande emoção.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/5 | Feb 3, 2007

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DVD & Streaming

The Pursuit of Happyness

Content caution.

In Theaters

Will Smith as Chris Gardner; Jaden Christopher Syre Smith as Christopher; Thandie Newton as Linda; Brian Howe as Jay Twistle; Dan Castellaneta as Alan Frakesh; Kurt Fuller as Walter Ribbon

Home Release Date

Gabriele Muccino

Distributor

Sony Pictures

Movie Review

“I met my father for the first time when I was 28 years old. When I had children, my children were going to know who their father was.” So vows Chris Gardner, an earnest salesman and father desperately struggling to make ends meet on the hard streets of San Francisco in the early 1980s. But his chosen vocation, peddling expensive bone-density scanners that most physicians don’t want, has left him and those he loves hovering on the brink of disaster.

Day after unsuccessful day, Chris comes home to his dispirited girlfriend, Linda, and their 5-year-old son, Christopher. Linda pulls double shifts to stay within striking distance of solvency, all the while chastising Chris for his failure to provide. Predictably, she doesn’t think much of his latest brainstorm: securing an internship at the stock brokerage firm Dean Witter. Linda’s bitterness and negativity may wear on Chris, but they can’t dampen the weary salesman’s delight in his son. Christopher is the apple of Daddy’s eye.

Then Linda leaves Chris (and their son) for a job in New York. She’s barely out the door when Chris learns he’s been offered the coveted internship. The catch? It’s unpaid. Despite the financial risk, Chris decides to go for it, frantically juggling his schedule to get Christopher to and from day care each day. But dwindling savings quickly result in an eviction from their apartment. And then another from a motel. Soon, father and son are homeless, staying in city shelters on good nights and in public restrooms on the worst.

As his desperation mounts, Chris clings tenaciously to the hope that his hard work will eventually pay off. And his dogged pursuit of a better life forges a powerful father-son bond that no misfortune can destroy.

Positive Elements

“You’re a good papa.” Those tenderhearted words from Christopher to his father as they spend the night in a homeless shelter poignantly capture the essence of The Pursuit of Happyness . Chris isn’t perfect, but one emotional scene after another clearly demonstrate his drive to protect and provide for his son.

Physical affection (hugs and kisses) and heartfelt moments mark their relationship. Chris repeatedly asks Christopher to trust him, and Dad proves that he’s worthy of that trust. When Linda threatens to leave, Chris demands that their son stay with him. He knows he’ll be a better parent than she would be—a reality to which Linda grudgingly acquiesces. Later, Christopher asks his dad, “Did mom leave because of me?” Chris responds, “Mom left because of mom. And you didn’t have anything to do with that.”

Actively concerned about his son’s education and mental development, Chris gets upset when he learns that Christopher’s day care provider, Mrs. Chew, lets the kids watch Bonanza and Love Boat . Chris teaches his son word meanings, such as the difference between probably and possibly , and the fact that happiness is misspelled on his day care’s sign. (It’s mistakenly spelled with a “y”; the film’s title intentionally follows suit.)

Chris encourages his boy to make a birthday wish-list, then gets him a basketball as a present. And one of the film’s most powerful scenes comes when Christopher is trying to shoot hoops with his new ball. After a strong-but-errant shot, Dad critically informs him, “You’ll excel at a lot of things, but not [basketball],” perhaps projecting his own experience onto his son. Christopher immediately lives down to Dad’s low expectations and takes a weak shot. Noticing his son’s downcast countenance, Chris realizes his error and rectifies the situation, saying, “Don’t ever let somebody tell you you can’t do something. Not even me. All right? You got a dream? You gotta protect it. People can’t do something themselves, they want to tell you you can’t do it. You want something, go get it. Period.”

A harrowing night of homelessness finds the pair killing time at a deserted Bay Area Rapid Transit stop. Father and son imagine that Dad’s bone-density machine is actually a time-travel device that takes them back to the time of the dinosaurs. Christopher gleefully joins in the make-believe game as they flee from a T-Rex into a “cave”—a public restroom where they spend the night. Dad holds the door shut with his foot, and tears stream down his face as he watches his innocent son sleep on his lap.

In addition to such a strong father-son relationship, The Pursuit of Happyness also presents the American Dream as an achievable reality. It begins when Chris asks a Dean Witter broker (who he sees getting out of a bright-red Ferrari) what’s needed to do the job. The answer he gets back is this: “You’ve got to be good with numbers and good with people.” Chris believes he has those skills and aggressively pursues executives at Dean Witter once he discovers internships are available.

He hounds his first contact, Jay Twistle, until the man pays attention to him. Several other people at Dean Witter give Chris chances to prove himself, though they aren’t really duty-bound to do so. And even though he’s virtually broke, Chris gives $5 to one of his rich superiors so he can pay for cab fare. Later, Chris misses an appointment with an executive (for reasons beyond his control), and goes to the man’s house to apologize. The exec, Walter Ribbon, in turn, kindly invites Chris and Christopher to share his skybox at a 49ers game.

A “live” TV clip of President Ronald Reagan includes the exhortation, “We’ve got to face the truth, and we’ve got to work to turn things around.” Chris does that, and much, much more.

Spiritual Elements

Chris and his son stay at a shelter that offers a gospel-oriented church service. A choir sings, “You promised you’d meet me at the altar of prayer/… Lord, please move that mountain.” Other lyrics insist, “I won’t give up,” and include the line, “Hello, Jesus.”

Christopher tells his dad a joke about a drowning man who kept praying for God to save him. The man refuses the help of two boats that come by, insisting that God will answer his prayer. After he dies and asks God why He didn’t save him, God tells him, “I sent you two big boats, you dummy.”

Sexual Content

We see Linda in a bra and slip as she gets dressed for work. She’s also seen in a camisole. Two scenes show Chris and Linda (who are unmarried but living together) in bed (without any sexual activity). A brief shower shot shows Chris’ shoulders.

Violent Content

Sprinting across a busy San Francisco street, Chris gets hit by a car. He breaks the windshield then is thrown roughly to the concrete (yet avoids major injury). Linda hits Chris several times in anger; he in turn grabs her arm firmly. Twice, Chris shakes his son in moments of extreme frustration, but manages to exercise enough restraint not to hurt Christopher. Chris gets into a scuffle with another homeless guy who cut in front of him at the shelter. (Their conflict is broken up before it can turn into a full-on fight.)

Crude or Profane Language

A spray-painted f-word mars the slogan of Christopher’s day care (“Joy. Fun. Happyness”). As Chris explains the misspelling of happiness , Christopher asks, “Is f— spelled right?” Chris tells his son that’s not a word he’s supposed to learn, and that it’s not part of the school’s motto. Other profanity includes two-and-a-half s-words and a handful each of the words “h—,” “d–n,” “a–” and “b–ch.”

Drug and Alcohol Content

Linda smokes cigarettes.

Other Negative Elements

Chris is not by nature a deceptive person. But several times he lies in front of his son (who recognizes the deception) to keep others from realizing how desperate his situation really is. And when he’s unfairly left to pay a cab fare he doesn’t have the money for, he flees. (The infuriated cabby chases him, swearing and yelling threats.)

Chris’ lack of funds means he’s perpetually evading angry landlords who want back-rent from him. He always tells them he’ll get the money, but is never able to make good on that promise. Someone paints “Dear Chris, U suck” on the wall of his apartment. An internship administrator treats him like an on-call servant, asking him to do all kinds of favors (such as getting doughnuts, moving his car, etc.). After the IRS garnishes $600 in back taxes from his bank account, Chris loses his cool and angrily demands that a friend pay back $14 that he owes him (as his son looks on).

Christopher dances around in his underwear in two scenes.

Inspirational isn’t a word I would normally choose to describe a great movie, as it conjures up connotations of something sappy or overly sentimental. Nevertheless, I think that’s the word that best captures Will Smith’s powerful portrayal of real-life father and pull-yourself-up-by-your-bootstraps worker Chris Gardner.

As a new father myself, I’m hard put to think of any movie I’ve ever seen that inspires me more to be a good dad than this one does. Days after seeing it, memories of certain scenes continue to challenge me in my own occasional moments of laziness or self-absorption. Suffice it to say that self-pity and lack of initiative are two character traits Mr. Gardner simply does not exhibit, no matter how bleak things get for him and his son. Instead, he elevates Christopher’s needs above his own over and over again. He can’t always change their awful circumstances, but Chris does everything within his power to meet his son’s physical and emotional needs, and to protect him. Nothing can deter this loving papa from lavishing affection and tenderness upon his son.

Director Gabriele Muccino says of this precious father-son relationship, “The movie plays like a love story. But in this case we don’t have a woman and a man meeting each other. Instead, we have a father and son walking together through life. Their relationship is very strong, very powerful. … Chris endures the unimaginable and still makes sure that not even the worst moments will have a bad effect on his son’s life.” The chemistry between the pair onscreen is no doubt enhanced by the fact that Will Smith’s son, Jaden, portrays Christopher.

Only a few negative elements (noted above) and the film’s occasional use of realistic, street-level vulgarities let it down. I’ve certainly seen PG-13 films with more language problems, but there’s still enough here (20-plus) to give discerning moviegoers pause. What won’t trip them up—and might even breathe new life into their own relationships—is Chris Gardner’s powerful, passionate pursuit of the best life possible for his little boy.

Adam R. Holz

After serving as an associate editor at NavPress’ Discipleship Journal and consulting editor for Current Thoughts and Trends, Adam now oversees the editing and publishing of Plugged In’s reviews as the site’s director. He and his wife, Jennifer, have three children. In their free time, the Holzes enjoy playing games, a variety of musical instruments, swimming and … watching movies.

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The Pursuit of Happyness

W ill Smith's new film is an old-fashioned Hollywood heartwarmer: a Horatio Alger-type tale based on the true story of US multi-millionaire Chris Gardner, who experienced hardship and homelessness before he found success. For all the film's occasional cheesiness, it's entertaining, good-natured and decently acted - and interesting in that it talks about the unglamorous subject of poverty.

This was a man who managed to grow very rich, that most politically incorrect of things, by founding his own stockbroking firm. For some, the fact that this is about poverty overcome and defeated will render the movie inauthentic or even mendacious. I wonder. Will Smith plays Gardner, a blue-collar guy who cares about standards: he complains about the misspelling of "happiness" on the mural near his son's playschool. His wife (Thandie Newton) leaves him and he and his boy are in desperate straits. Then Gardner, with his smart head for figures, manages to get an unpaid internship at a top brokerage firm: fate has given him a kind of bridging loan between a grindingly poor present and a possible comfortable future. But as he studies, Gardner is thrown out of his apartment for non-payment of rent, and he and his boy have to spend the night at homeless hostels, and even in a subway men's room. Frantically, Gardner keeps up appearances in front of the wealthy Ivy Leaguers who study alongside him.

This is an aspirational movie. But, unlike Billy Elliot, Gardner wants not to dance but make some serious bucks. That may cause a little squeamishness and nose-wrinkling in some quarters. The genial and likable Will Smith might be a very idealised version of what the fiercely driven Gardner was actually like - and the exact circumstances of his marital breakup are probably not rendered with absolute realism. But what is interesting is the taboo subject of how close the middle classes can get to poverty. Even in an admirable film like Nick Broomfield's Ghosts, the immigrant Chinese are the poor ones and the indigenous Brits are the wealthy ones, and ne'er the twain shall meet. In this film, they meet in the person of the hero himself. Maybe it would have been more statistically truthful to show someone trying and failing. The opposite, however, is not necessarily dishonest. It's certainly entertaining.

Drama films

The Pursuit Of Happyness Review

12 Jan 2007

117 minutes

Pursuit Of Happyness, The

Everybody reacts to disappointment in different ways. Some go out and get shit-faced. Others buy a pram, fill it with toys and start throwing. Will Smith, however, makes a series of empty, visually appealing action movies.

We should explain: the disappointment in this case is losing out on Oscar back in 2002. He’d been hotly tipped to scoop the little gold geezer for his turn in Ali, but then along came Denzel Washington’s Training Day and that was that. This glaring oversight on the Academy’s part seemed to crush his spirit — hence the autopilot likes of Bad Boys II; I, Robot; Hitch and Shark Tale. All charming in their own way, but as tests of his capabilities as an actor, a Fresh Prince movie might have been more of a stretch.

Now, though, he’s back on the ‘serious-actor’ horse in The Pursuit Of Happyness, a film that does allow him to grow. In fact, Smith’s Pursuit Of Oscar is a muted affair. There are no grandstanding moments of high emotion, no obvious award-show clips. Smith’s Chris Gardner gets angry, yes. He cries, yes. But the emphasis here is on restraint and interesting choices — in the movie’s climactic moments, when most other actors would holler and bawl for all they’re worth, Smith opts for an understated and virtually wordless reaction, tears tickling his eyes. It works beautifully.

Although the movie Gardner is a man almost entirely without flaws (Thandie Newton, in contrast, labours with a thin ‘bitch-wife’ role), it’s a dream of a part and a heck of a tale — and, albeit with the usual Hollywood liberties, it’s all true. Gardner and his son did sleep in a locked railway station toilet. They did line up at homeless shelters with down-and-outs, scrabbling for a bed for the night — and all while Gardner was working at his internship, with no income and little chance of a job at the end of it.

And all, it seems, because of a line in the Declaration Of Independence that grants every American the inalienable right to the pursuit of happiness (don’t worry, pedants, the misspelling of the title is explained early on). Today, Gardner is a multi-millionaire with a best-selling book, but, as the title indicates, this is about the pursuit, and there’s real drama as Gardner pushes himself to breaking point, trying never to let his son (played with no little charm by Smith’s own kid, Jaden) realise the dire extent of their situation.

It’s clear from the off that we’re in rags-to-riches, wish fulfilment territory here, but this doesn’t quite stir like a Capra, or even a modern-day equivalent like Jerry Maguire or Shawshank. That’s partly because director Gabriele Muccino — the Italian helmer of L’Ultimo Bacio (the original version of The Last Kiss) — lends the film a muted autumnal palette which, sadly, dampens emotional engagement, while too much emphasis is placed on an unnecessary voiceover.

Yet, despite its flaws, the movie still warms the heart thanks to Smith, whose natural, irrepressible likeability carries the movie through its more formulaic moments. And if he should wind up on the podium at the Kodak Theatre next year, well… how’s that for an American Dream?

Movies | 09 01 2007

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Movie Review: The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)

General Disdain
Movie Reviews
4 responses
--> December 24, 2006

Come Christmas time, or should I say Holiday time (for all the politically correct douchebags out there), Hollywood without question drops the old rags-to-riches, feel good movies into our laps. So it is no surprise that The Pursuit of Happyness shows up just in time for the gift exchange.

Even though most folks who know me (and many who don’t) call me a cynical asshole, and in a general sense I agree with them, I am still a sucker for these cream-puff movies. Perhaps it is my own misgivings or inner demons that cause me to be transfixed by these melodramatic offerings. Or perhaps it is because I can always expect to see a roomful of girls with tears in their eyes — easing pickings for a predator. I prefer the latter explanation.

Now on to the movie — Will Smith plays Chris Gardner a man down on his luck (fucked up job, fucked up wife, etc.), who decides he needs to make a life altering change to raise himself and his child above the chaos and poverty that is their current existence. To do this he decides to become a stock broker at one of the largest firms in the country — without knowing a damn thing about stocks or bonds. Quite a feat, and one that proves the axiom “you can do anything if you put your mind to it”. Why? Because, The Pursuit of Happyness is a true story.

But beyond the typical take a look in the mirror and decide if you like what you see plot, the movie offers insights into the homeless and society as whole. The underlying racism is used as a backdrop, but given enough light for the viewers to take notice of it. This movie also shows how truly fucked up things are, when a man and his 5 year-old child have to sleep in a subway bathroom or on a bus. All the while people around them pay little to no attention to them and continue on with their own petty lives. Other movies have had similar themes, but it really strikes home when a small child is involved. Never, ever should a child be homeless.

And even though, I’m not the biggest fan of Will Smith, I must say, he carried the role well. The cockiness that he normally oozes out of his skin is nowhere to be found and I found myself actually feeling sorry for his character’s situation and applauding him for trying like hell to make something better. If only every man in the world had this mans’ convictions. A more pleasant surprise is the acting of Jaden Smith. Jaden portrays the son, and from what I can tell this is his first real acting experience. The sky is the limit with this kid, as he does an excellent job of capturing the hope and fear that this boy feels. As for the rest of the supporting cast — they do their job well enough, not really adding much, mostly ensuring they aren’t fucking anything up.

So it comes a shock to me, as much as to you, that I actually think this is an Oscar winner for Will Smith. The Pursuit of Happyness has all the needed elements in place to make this a reasonable guess. Great acting, good theme, well received — and the biggest reason — it’s all about a black guy. What more could you fucking want?

If The Pursuit of Happyness can’t get you off of your fat, sweaty ass, you’re hopeless. And do the rest of us a favor and shut the fuck up.

Tagged: son , stock broker , true story

I'm an old, miserable fart set in his ways. Some of the things that bring a smile to my face are (in no particular order): Teenage back acne, the rain on my face, long walks on the beach and redneck women named Francis. Oh yeah, I like to watch and criticize movies.

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'Movie Review: The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)' have 4 comments

March 23, 2007 @ 3:36 pm JerseyMike

You’ve got to be kidding me right? One dog pile? I’d give this a four big steamy piles.

This movie was the worst pile of garbage I’ve seen in quite some time. The movie had no real “meat” to the plot. Sure it tries to tug at your heart, but fails in a real big way. The editing and film shots were horrible, I think a High School student could have done better.

With all the hype to this movie, I want money back.

August 9, 2007 @ 1:55 pm Martha

This was a really heartwarming story. Will Smith was marvelous in it.

November 24, 2007 @ 9:52 am MrBlueCN

I was utterly disgusted with Will Smith’s character. The choices he made regarding his son were made completely selfishly, with no regard for the child’s best interest. Just as the most glaring one, the fact that if he had let his wife take the child, the child would not have had to sleep in a subway bathroom/homeless shelter, etc. Just because it all turned out in the end is not a reason a child should have to go through suffering of this sort to satisfy his father’s self-serving motions.

December 8, 2007 @ 1:56 pm General Disdain

MrBlueCN — I agree no child should ever have to go through something like this, but what do you think would have happened to the boy if his mother did get custody. As I recall she didn’t even want him with her when she left, so I suspect he may have ended up in a worse position.

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Black History In Film: ‘The Pursuit of Happyness’ Review – “It All Feels Real”

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Throughout the month of February, Full Circle Cinema celebrates Black History Month by revisiting films made for and told by prominent Black men and women. We will reflect on an extraordinary history filled with moments both triumphant and tragic in the still ongoing fight for equality and justice for all. Through the sharing of stories, we pay tribute to the storytellers. Check out our first and second installments of Black History In Film here and here .

“Don’t ever let somebody tell you that you can’t do something… not even me. Alright?”

From Vittorio De Sica’s Bicycle Thieves to Sam Mendes’ Road to Perdition , movies have a long history of depicting the complicated dynamic of father and son. However, few of these films center on the relationship between a Black father and his Black child. Ugly stereotypes often depict Black fathers as lesser than their white counterparts. However, in reality, anyone with a Black father will undoubtedly recount nothing but admiration for the man who raised them. In fact, it’s especially hard not to admire someone for having hope when they are in a dire situation. Raising a child without the immediate means to do so is definitely one of those such occurrences. A perfect example of this rarely explored notion is also one of the most heartwrenching films this writer has ever seen, The Pursuit of Happyness.

To start things off, The Pursuit of Happyness is based on Chris Gardner’s 2006 best-selling memoir of the same name. Gardner is a highly successful American businessman and motivational speaker. However, Gardner’s story is drenched in tragedy. From a very young age, Gardner was deprived of a positive father figure. With his dad absent, his stepfather was abusive to Gardner, his mother, and many siblings. Unfortunately, his mother was convicted of trying to kill his stepfather by burning down the house while he was inside.

READ: ‘Minari’ Review: “Finding What Really Matters”

This led to Gardner growing up in the foster care system while seeking relationships with his uncles. Following a short stint in the Navy, Gardner began his career as a research assistant at the University of California Medical Center. However, following a bevy of poor decisions, a stay in jail, and a few failed relationships, Gardner is left homeless and the sole caretaker for his young son, Christopher Jr.

The Pursuit of Happyness benefits hugely from the chemistry between a real-life father and son. Casting Will Smith as Chris Gardner and a young Jaden Smith in the role of Christopher Jr. is a stroke of genius. This raises the stakes for the viewer. The story kicks off with Smith’s Gardner taking a pretty big risk. Investing his life savings in portable bone-density scanners, he seeks to demonstrate the tool to doctors. To his credit, he sells most of them. However, his inability to turn a profit takes a toll on his relationship with his wife (Thandie Newton). While they continuously exhibit behavior seen in doomed marriages, they both continue to shower their son with the love and attention he deserves.

Gardner’s luck seemingly takes a twist of fate after he meets Jay Twistle, a manager for Dean Witter Reynolds, an American stock brokerage and securities firm. This chance meeting offers Gardner the chance to impress Twistle with his impressive display of completing a Rubik’s Cube during a taxi ride. However, while impressed, Twistle exits the cab, leaving Gardner with the fare. Not having enough to cover the fee, Gardner flees the taxi driver, losing one of his scanners in the process. The sequence of events poignantly depicts the fleeting moments of hope. Right after taking the chance to show off his intelligence, he is forced to face his financial situation. As he dives deeper into poverty, the glimmer of hope continues to gleam in the eyes of this man simply seeking a chance to prove himself.

READ: ‘Music’ Review: “A Tone-Deaf Drama Without Borders”

Another fine example of hope vanishing is when Gardner strikes a deal to paint his apartment to avoid eviction. This comes the day before an interview he obtains to become an intern at Jay Twistle’s firm. However, two policemen greet him at his doorstep and haul him to jail for unpaid parking tickets. Nevertheless, Gardner does not allow the world’s incessant ability to hold him down to change his mind. He is going to succeed. He has to for his son.

Fortunately, after spending a night in jail, he impresses the interviewers and lands an unpaid internship. He would be amongst 20 interns competing for a paid position as a stockbroker. More hope. However, unimpressed by the unpaid status of his new gig, Gardner’s wife leaves for New York. A bitter scene sees Gardner exert his frustration and claims his wife is unfit to be a single mother. After an eviction, Garnder finds himself as a single father with $22 to his name. Hope begins to diminish while never truly extinguishing.

It is difficult to take the rags-to-riches story of Chris Gardner, a story audiences know has a happy ending, and imbue it with suspense. However, seeing the real emotion Will Smith manages to capture from taking his son to homeless shelters or sleeping in the bathroom of a subway station with one foot firmly on the door, is heartwrenching. The pain Gardner feels is felt through the screen thanks to a performance Smith will never get enough credit for. Furthermore, the pure elation the Oscar nominee expresses when the happy ending is reached is one that will be regarded as one of his best career performances.

READ: Sundance 2021: ‘Try Harder!’ Movie Review

The film manages to steer away from feeling inauthentic in its execution. Gardner is struggling to make a go of it by any means possible. The film never feels corny nor does the narrative of angst and disappointment ever overstay its welcome. Instead, The Pursuit of Happyness tells the story of an extraordinary man with the weight of the world on his shoulders. More importantly, the story is about a father’s desire to give his son what he never had. The motivation for Gardner’s success appears to be his hope to live up to his unending potential. However, when viewing the story as a Black father fighting his way through countless obstacles, the true motivation is to get a child out of a situation in which they have no control over. It all feels real. – Christian Hubbard

In honor of the unconscionable murders of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and countless other Black lives, please take a moment to visit the Black Lives Matter homepage and see how you can help. Spread awareness!

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Christian Hubbard

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The Pursuit of Happyness review | An emotional rollercoaster

Movies have the power to make you laugh, become emotional, and even profoundly move you at the same time. the pursuit of happyness is an inspiring story for the audience. read on for the pursuit of happyness review ., table of contents, the journey of pursuit, the pursuit of happyness review, thoughts about the movie, key takeaways.

Many of us can relate to the struggle of deciding which movie to watch. The Pursuit of Happyness, unlike other films, emotionally moves the audience because it is based on a true story. It will give you the right inspiration to go forward and catch your dreams. If you are interested in a career in filmmaking, reading movie and book reviews can help you shape your ideas for your projects and give you an understanding of the viewer’s mindset, all the while keeping in mind what you should and shouldn’t do.

Keep reading to see what The Pursuit of Happyness review has to offer.

‘The Pursuit of Happyness,’ written by Steven Conrad and directed by Gabriele Muccino, is a moving story about fatherhood, poverty, and preserving childhood innocence. The film was moving and executed so that it inspires genuine emotion in its viewers throughout its nearly two-hour runtime. The film is a high-quality drama with a powerful message about society and the American dream .

The film’s strength stems from its expert portrayal of a man who finds hope at rock bottom and succeeds in keeping his son safe even when circumstances force them to live on the streets. Chris Gardener, played fabulously by Will Smith, barricades himself and his son Christopher inside a subway station bathroom so that his son can sleep throughout the night with some feeling of security and safety. It is the film’s most powerful scene.

The genius of the scene and the film is that Chris keeps his son’s innocence intact by telling him they went back in time. He says that the subway bathroom is a cave and that they’re hiding from imaginative dinosaurs while hiding his tears and grief.

Another strong point is the film’s message, portrayed in an emotional monologue on a rooftop basketball court. “Don’t ever let somebody tell you you can’t do something,” Chris tells his son and, by extension, the audience. “You’ve got a dream. You’ve got to protect it,” he says after inadvertently dampening Christopher’s dreams of becoming a professional basketball player. “You want something, go and get it.”

It’s a message we’ve all heard before, but the conviction with which Smith delivers those lines, and the story, demonstrates the point so well breathes new life into the somewhat generic ‘follow your dreams’ speech.

The film reminds us how short life is not to be as happy and cheerful. We forget to be grateful in this fast-paced world, and this film reminds us of that. Reality can break you, but how you deal with it is entirely up to you. It reminds us to be grateful for the opportunity to spend time with the people we care about and spend time with them.

There are minor faults in the face of such incredible acting and beautifully emotional events. ‘The Pursuit of Happyness’ remains an excellent film that uses emotion and childhood innocence to challenge viewers to respect and admire what they have while striving to achieve their dreams.

From The Pursuit of Happyness review, we learn that we often try to pursue happiness when we miss the smaller ‘happiness’ in our lives. This message in the film was exactly what everyone needed to hear.

The Pursuit of Happyness takes us through an emotional ride and teaches valuable life lessons.
The father-son bond is something you cannot give a miss.
The movie tells its viewers to find real happiness and enjoy what they have while still chasing their dreams.

Explore the world of movies and the work that goes on behind the scenes. If you would like to know more or have any queries regarding filmmaking and pursuing it as a career, then please get in touch with us .

Liked this blog? Read next: Harry Potter book series | A magical adventure.

1. What is the main theme of “The Pursuit of Happyness” movie?

Answer: The main theme of “The Pursuit of Happyness” revolves around family, determination, and never giving up on one’s dreams despite facing extreme adversity. The film portrays the journey of a father, played by Will Smith, who finds hope and success even when living on the streets with his son, all while preserving his child’s innocence.

2. How does “The Pursuit of Happyness” inspire its viewers?

Answer: “The Pursuit of Happyness” inspires its viewers through the portrayal of a man who overcomes challenging circumstances and manages to keep his son’s innocence intact. The film delivers a powerful message about pursuing one’s dreams and not letting anyone deter you. It encourages the audience to protect their dreams and take action to achieve them, with an emotional monologue from Will Smith’s character serving as a memorable moment in the film.

3. What is the key takeaway from the movie, as mentioned in the blog?

Answer: The key takeaway is to appreciate the smaller moments of happiness in life, remain grateful, and pursue dreams with determination

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The Pursuit of Happyness Parent Guide

Based on a true story, Chris Gardner (Will Smith) is a salesman who is literally on his last dollar. After his wife (Thandie Newton) leaves him, he and his son (Jaden Smith -- Will's real-life boy) are left to live on the streets of San Francisco while he determines to get his life in order. Facing countless obstacles, this powerful story reaffirms the importance of hard work and the will to survive.

Release date December 14, 2006

Why is The Pursuit of Happyness rated PG-13? The MPAA rated The Pursuit of Happyness PG-13 for some language.

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The guide to our grades, parent movie review by kerry bennett.

Aristotle defined happiness as contemplation. But for people stuck on the street, it can be as simple as a warm meal and a place to sleep. In Chris Gardner’s (Will Smith) case, it means a decent income and an adequate place to live with his 5-year-old son, Christopher (Jaden Christopher Syre Smith—real life son of Will Smith).

Yet things so basic seem entirely out of reach for the medical equipment salesman. Buyers for his expensive bone density machines are scarce and double-shifts at the laundry leave his wife Linda (Thandie Newton) exhausted and frustrated. The landlord is pounding at the door for outstanding rent money and even the daycare where he leaves his son is rundown and crowded. Getting a toehold on the upwardly mobile ladder looks impossible.

However, a chance to turn things around finally seems within grasp when he applies for an internship at the city’s prestigious Dean Witter Reynolds brokerage house. Possible at least, until he discovers the grueling six-month application process comes without pay or an assured position at the end of training. Competing with 19 other interns, who apparently find themselves in better circumstances, he fights to juggle his work schedule, parenting responsibilities and sleeping accommodations.

Meanwhile, Chris tries to maintain the exterior of a qualified, capable employee during office hours while being homeless himself. Suddenly the worth of a five-dollar bill and a clean cot is monumental. But after a while, the facade takes its toll, even on a man as determined and persistent as Chris Gardner.

Refusing to follow the normal pacing of a film, The Pursuit of Happyness (based on a true story and best suited for adults and teens) takes a hard look at the plight of the homeless who for various causes find themselves without shelter. For Chris, it’s a combination of choices, bad luck and a cruel turn of events. Yet despite his dire situation, he looks after his family’s dignity by encouraging his son’s dreams and refusing to let him repeat the sexual expletive scrawled on the wall outside the daycare. In a society that is often quick to blame its ills on another, he is a man that deserves respect. While each of us may believe in our inalienable right to the pursuit of happiness, Chris’s example of passionately chasing that privilege is commendable and worth the price of admission.

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Kerry Bennett

The pursuit of happyness rating & content info.

Why is The Pursuit of Happyness rated PG-13? The Pursuit of Happyness is rated PG-13 by the MPAA for some language.

Caught in a vicious cycle of overdue bills and a lack of funds, Chris Gardner finds himself coping with irate landlords, an exasperated spouse, and growing financial demands. His money issues cause him to stiff a taxi driver who in turn threatens to kill him. He also argues with a property-owner and gets into a scuffle in the line-up at a shelter. His wife is seen in her bra while dressing for work. Later she is shown smoking. A sexual expletive is written on a storefront wall and his young son repeats the word, but his dad tells him not to say it again. Other infrequent profanities are also included.

Page last updated June 13, 2019

The Pursuit of Happyness Parents' Guide

Many times Chris and his son are shown riding on public transit. What types of commuters were likely on the train or bus with them? What conditions may people be living in that are not readily evident?

Why does Chris try to maintain a certain public image even when he is struggling? How does his perseverance pay off? How might things have gone differently if he had whined at the office about his situation? Instead, what qualities do you think made him stand out from the other interns?

What circumstances may lead a person to end up on the street? What kind of programs or social aid do you think should be given? Do all homeless people need the same kind of help? What contributions can an individual make to improve the lives of people living in shelters?

For more information on the real Chris Gardner’s story, check out this link: http://www.chrisgardnermedia.com/

The most recent home video release of The Pursuit of Happyness movie is March 26, 2007. Here are some details…

DVD Release Date: 27 March 2007

The Pursuit of Happyness releases on DVD with some in-depth, behind-the-scenes bonus extras, sure to make fans smile. These include a commentary by director Gabriele Muccino, an onscreen and off look at actor Will Smith and his co-star son Christopher Syre Smith, a conversation with Chris Gardner— The Man Behind the Movie, a featurette titled Making Pursuit: An Italian Take on the American Dream, a peek Inside the Rubik’s Cube, and an audio only track of the song I Can. The movie’s audio tracks are available in English (5.1 Dolby Digital) and French (5.1 Dolby Digital), with subtitles in English, French and Spanish.

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Tv/streaming, collections, great movies, chaz's journal, contributors, happiness is a good father.

Are they plagued by those uncertainties of youth? Are they wondering if they will find a career, love, or meaning? Are they terrified by the threats of terrorist attacks, financial collapse, climate change and, well, the Apocalypse? Or, have they decided that the " American Dream " was not Thomas Jefferson's vision, but is instead a sappy Hollywood fantasy? Or, maybe they just hate my class? Sure.

In answering this question, Gabriele Muccino's "The Pursuit of Happyness," takes many usual directions that Hollywood movies take. At first, he seems to answer the question the way we would expect a Hollywood filmmaker to answer:

First and foremost, happiness is wealth. All the wealthy people in the movie are happy. All the other happy people are drugged; considering that they are in San Francisco, they are probably wealthy drug addicts. The only happy person that is neither wealthy, nor drugged, is a cute child (played by Jaden Smith , whose cuteness masks his precise acting).

Second, the film takes place in the 1980s, so happiness is a friendly White Male with bad hair and foreign car. There are a few happy White women; most of these women have fixed smiles, blank eyes and permed hair. People of Color are angry, depressed, or broken. The one exception is Will Smith , who effortlessly carries almost every scene with charm and delicate strength. His Chris Gardner is trying his best to become happy, while everyone in his environment is breaking him down.

Third, happiness is a based-on-a-true-story underdog, who defeats all the odds, overcoming all obstacles. Every time his life gets hopeful, a piano starts its simple melody.

On the surface, this filim is a standard Hollywood tale. On the other hand, it is a movie about an American dream, directed by an Italian, starring an African American. Meaning, it is not a normal Hollywood movie. This American film by this Italian Director is somehow a mixture of Vittorio De Sica and Frank Capra . Somehow, we are handed an Italian Neorealist film in the body of a Jimmy Stewart classic. It is Neorealist in that everything that can be wrong happens to this man. It is Capra-esque in that, through the force of his determination, he reaches a happy ending.

Further, it is a rare, rare, rare story of a sympathetic, caring, intelligent, dignified father. How many examples of positive fathers in major Hollywood movies are there? You have sixty seconds to mention five. Until then, I should remind you that Hollywood fathers are often dimwitted, defeated, absent, and usually evil. The worst culprit is Disney. Look at all the Disney fathers of all those Disney Princesses. When my little daughter was very little, I started reading Disney Princess bedtime stories to her, only to discover that all the fathers were horrible. The fathers, true to Joseph Campbell's mythologies, were tyrannical obstacles that had to be fooled, faced or defeated. Thankfully, my daughter could not read. Thankfully, I had a good imagination. Nevertheless, the fatherhood in this film is so outstanding that it almost compensates for all the rest of the Darth Vaders in all the rest of Hollywood.

Now, I should caution my praise. This film's world is a world almost without women. Unfortunately, all the women that carry any substance are hopeless. Thandie Newton , in a razor sharp performance, is jaded, exhausted, and angry, and abandons her child. The lazy Day Care Center owner busies her children with old television shows. The trusted hippy betrays her trust. The Homeless Shelter manager, though polite, is a gatekeeper who keeps the gate closed. It seems that Hollywood's way to praise a father is to attack the mothers.

Further, I should mention that biopics always reveal their source material by presenting specific characters as heroes and specific characters as hyperbolic wretches. In " Notorious " (2009) (the story of rapper Biggie Smalls), Sean Puffy Combs - the film's producer - is a savior while Tupac Shakur is crazy. In " The Social Network " (2010), Eduardo Saverin (the author of the source text) is the most human, compassionate character in Mark Zuckerberg's world of socially inept nerds. In "The Pursuit of Happyness," Chris Gardner is full of depth and sympathies, while his wife is shallow, unpleasant, and always furious. Translation: Chris Gardner is telling us his version of his story.

Still, moving beyond all the specifics, this film is simply wonderful because it is simply wonderful. It is loaded with wonderful moments, especially those moments between father and son. If happiness is a good movie, then I am very happy. Perhaps my students should watch this movie.

Omer M. Mozaffar

Omer M. Mozaffar teaches at Loyola University Chicago, where he is the Muslim Chaplain, teaching courses in Theology and Literature. He has given thousands of talks on Islam since 9/11. He is also a Hollywood Technical Consultant for productions on matters related to Islam, Arabs, South Asians.

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The Pursuit of Happyness

A struggling salesman takes custody of his son as he's poised to begin a life-changing professional career
Based on a true story about a man named Christopher Gardner. Gardner has invested heavily in a device known as a "bone density scanner". He feels like he has it made selling these devices. However, they do not sell well as they are marginally better than x-ray at a much higher price. As Gardner works to make ends meet, his wife leaves him and he loses his apartment. Forced to live out in the streets with his son, Gardner continues to sell bone density scanners while concurrently taking on an unpaid internship as a stockbroker, with slim chances for advancement to a paid position. Before he can receive pay, he needs to outshine the competition through 6 months of training, and to sell his devices to stay afloat. — John Wiggins, Alf Fonz
1981, San Francisco. In what limited academic opportunities he has had in his life, Chris Gardner has demonstrated that he is a smart man. Yet he is struggling financially in his life. He has invested all his money on portable bone density scanners, which he personally sells to physicians. Despite being a better product than x-rays machines, they are also far more expensive, meaning that they are an unnecessary luxury for most physicians. He needs to sell three scanners per month just to meet the basic necessities to support his family, his wife, Linda, and their five year old son, Christopher, on who he dotes since he didn't know his own father when he was a child. But lately, that has been three per month more than he has sold, resulting in an increasing embittered Linda continually needing to work double shifts doing manual work at a laundry, which still isn't enough to cover those basic costs, they being currently behind three months rent. Chris can't afford to pay his parking ticket, meaning that he has to take the bus everywhere now as the clamp remains on the tire of his car. Feeling like the scanner is not the answer to their financial problems, Chris, with or without Linda's blessing, decides to take a chance by switching careers when he sees that brokerage and securities firm Dean Witter has a six month internship program, which only admits twenty applicants, leading to only one intern being hired at the end of the process. It isn't until he is well immersed into the process that he learns that the internships are non-paying. Based largely on his chutzpah, Chris, against the odds, gets one of the twenty positions. With some changes in their lives resulting in fewer expenses, Chris figures he needs to sell his remaining six scanners just to scrape by for those six months. But some unexpected issues arise which leads to the Gardners possibly not making it through this phase of their lives financially, something he has to hide from his superiors at Dean Witter if he has any chance at all of making it through the internship and getting that paying job with them. — Huggo
Already struggling to eke out an existence, against the backdrop of early-1980s San Francisco, the earnest and hard-working bone-density-scanner salesman, Chris Gardner, finds himself with the back to the wall. Left with nothing when his wife abandons the family, the financially hard-pressed father will have to take care of his five-year-old son, Christopher, all by himself when, unexpectedly, the prestigious stock brokerage firm of Dean Witter offers Gardner an unpaid six-month internship. Now, bent on becoming a stockbroker, Chris is willing to go to great lengths to succeed; however, life can be challenging and cruel. Will Chris' efforts pay off? Can the determined parent make his dream come true? — Nick Riganas
In 1981, in San Francisco, the smart salesman and family man Chris Gardner ( Will Smith ) invests the family savings in Osteo National bone-density scanners, an apparatus twice as expensive as an x-ray machine but with a slightly clearer image. This white elephant financially breaks the family, bringing troubles to his relationship with his wife Linda ( Thandiwe Newton ), who leaves him and moves to New York where she has taken a job in a pizza parlor. Their son Christopher ( Jaden Smith ) stays with Chris because he and his wife both know that he will be able to take better care of him. Without any money or a wife, but committed to his son, Chris sees a chance to fight for a stockbroker internship position at Dean Witter, offering a more promising career at the end of a six-month unpaid training period. During that period, Chris goes through a lot of hardship personally and professionally. When he thinks he is "stable," he finds that he has lost $600 when the government takes the last bit of money in his bank account for taxes. He is rendered homeless because he can't pay his rent. He is forced at one point to stay in a bathroom at a train station, and must scramble from work every day to the Glide Memorial United Methodist Church, which offers shelter to the homeless. He must leave work early every day so that he is there by 5:00 in the evening along with his son so that he may be assured of a place to sleep. He is seen carrying his suitcase to work because he doesn't have a home. At work, there are nineteen other candidates for the one position. One day, he is called into an office and in it were the heads of Dean Witter. Chris thinks that he is about to be told the job will not be his as he says that he wore a shirt and tie for his final day. Then they tell him that he has been an excellent trainee and that tomorrow he will have to wear his shirt and tie again as it will be his first day as a broker. Chris struggles to hold back tears. Outside he begins to cry as the busy people of San Francisco walk past him. He rushes to his son's daycare, hugging him and knowing that after everything him and his son had been through things would be all right. The final scene shows Chris walking with his son down a street. His son is telling him a joke, when a wealthy business man in a suit walks past. Chris looks back as the man continues on. The man in the suit is none other than the real Chris Gardner.

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The Pursuit of Happyness: Movie Review and Analysis

Categories: In Pursuit of Happiness Movie Review

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Published: Apr 8, 2022

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Works Cited:

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Gaffney, J. (2019). How Coca-Cola Became the King of Advertising. HousingWire.
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Off-Broadway play about Thomas Jefferson shows the former president in a different light

He was a larger-than-life antagonist in "Hamilton."

And a lover who "plays the violin," and writes the Declaration of Independence, in "1776."

But in off-Broadway's "Sally & Tom" by Suzan-Lori Parks, we see Thomas Jefferson as a slaveholder.

The show, through May 26 at The Public Theater, is not always easy to watch, and often perplexing. Act I drags on, and Act II struggles to reach its surprising and moving conclusion. There are a few passionate speeches, some comedy, and disturbing scenes and conversations.

The "Sally" in the title refers to Sally Hemmings, one of 600 people enslaved by Jefferson on Monticello, his 5,000-acre Virginia plantation. Hemmings, according to Monticello.org, had six children with our nation's third president.

"Sally & Tom" is actually a play within a play. Good Company, a radical downtown theater troupe, is rehearsing "The Pursuit of Happiness," which takes place in 1790 on Monticello. Various scenes begin, and then the action stops so the cast and crew can talk about what works, what doesn't, what changes they want to make, what their producer wants.

Adding another layer is that Mike and Luce, the actors portraying Tom and Sally, are in a relationship. Mike (Gabriel Ebert) is also the director of "The Pursuit of Happiness," which is written by Luce (Sheria Irving).

As a couple, Ebert and Irving never seem believable. Whether they are all lovey-dovey or angry or annoyed, it falls flat.

Ebert does well when Jefferson gives his big "I am the Man. Love me. Hate me" speech. We have to wait until the end of the night for Irving's solo, when Sally talks about her life with Jefferson. The first time she was with him, he was 41. She was 14.

A few standouts in the cast are Sun Mee Chomet as Good Company's stage manager Scout — and Polly, one of Jefferson's daughters. Chomet is also dance captain for "Sally & Tom."

The best actor on stage is Alano Miller as Kwame, who plays James Hemmings, Sally's brother. His fiery monologue when he stands up to Jefferson is easily the best moment of the show. Kwame is calm, cool and collected, but inside there is a fire brewing. It's exciting to watch.

Drector Steve H. BroadNax III hits and misses, but there's only so much he can do with the script. Parks, the first Black woman to receive the Pulitzer Prize in Drama ("Topdog/Underdog"), has moments that sing — but she could have used an editor. The constant interruptions, the minor character plot twists too often get in the way.

Parks and Dan Moses Schreier create the music used in "Sally & Tom." Scenic design by Riccardo Hernández makes good use of the Martinson Hall space, and beautifully brings to life an idea, a monument, suggested by a character. The 18th-century costumes by Rodrigo Muñoz are excellent. Choreographer Edgar Godineaux creates lovely dance sequences.

It is critically important to know this history. The man on Mount Rushmore was great and brilliant and horrible. And the voices of the enslaved need to be heard and respected. Parks reminds us of that.

In notes in the Playbill, she also makes it clear "this is not a love story."

No it is not.

What is it? A way to examine ourselves? That in our world, and in our hearts, good and evil is always with us?

Maybe it's about freedom, and a message to America.

Her own declaration, if you will, about truth and understanding.

Go : "Sally & Tom," through May 26, The Public Theater, 425 Lafayette St., New York, $75 to $160; 212-967-7555, publictheater.org .

Bill Canacci can be reached at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Off-Broadway play about Thomas Jefferson shows the former president in a different light

Sheria Irving and Gabriel Ebert (foreground) and the company of "Sally & Tom," now playing at The Public Theater.

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The Pursuit of Happyness
Directed by Gabriele Muccino. Biography, Drama. PG-13. 1h 57m. By Manohla Dargis. Dec. 15, 2006. A fairy tale in realist drag, "The Pursuit of Happyness" is the kind of entertainment that goes ...
The Pursuit of Happyness
Sep 2, 2020. Rated: 2.5/4 • Jun 6, 2019. Life is a struggle for single father Chris Gardner (Will Smith). Evicted from their apartment, he and his young son (Jaden Christopher Syre Smith) find ...
The Pursuit of Happyness Movie Review
Parents need to know that Will Smith will draw kids to this movie. But it's not an action flick or slapstick comedy -- it's an inspirational and often emotionally wrenching story. It includes some very sad scenes between family members, as well as a couple of emotionally scary ones. The mother becomes so frustrated….
The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)
blanche-2 22 June 2009. A father and salesman is in "The Pursuit of Happiness" in this 2006 film starring Will Smith, Thandie Newton, and Jaden Smith. This is the real-life story of Chris Gardner, who was eking out a living selling bone density scanners while his wife (Newton) worked double shifts at a hospital.
The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)
The Pursuit of Happyness: Directed by Gabriele Muccino. With Will Smith, Jaden Smith, Thandiwe Newton, Brian Howe. A struggling salesman takes custody of his son as he's poised to begin a life-changing professional career
The Pursuit of Happyness
It really elevated this movie. Full Review | Original Score: 7.5/10 | Sep 4, 2021. The Pursuit of Happyness reveals the soul-wasting nature of poverty and the lack of prospects for those condemned ...
The Pursuit of Happyness
Movie Review "I met my father for the first time when I was 28 years old. When I had children, my children were going to know who their father was." ... The Pursuit of Happyness also presents the American Dream as an achievable reality. It begins when Chris asks a Dean Witter broker (who he sees getting out of a bright-red Ferrari) what's ...
The Pursuit of Happyness
The Pursuit of Happyness. Cert 12A. Peter Bradshaw. Fri 12 Jan 2007 18.58 EST. W ill Smith's new film is an old-fashioned Hollywood heartwarmer: a Horatio Alger-type tale based on the true story ...
The Pursuit Of Happyness Review
Pursuit Of Happyness, The. Everybody reacts to disappointment in different ways. Some go out and get shit-faced. Others buy a pram, fill it with toys and start throwing. Will Smith, however, makes ...
The Pursuit of Happyness
Chris Gardner (Smith) is a bright and talented, but marginally employed salesman. Struggling to make ends meet, Gardner finds himself and his five-year-old son evicted from their San Francisco apartment with nowhere to go. When Gardner lands an internship at a prestigious stock brokerage firm, he and his son endure many hardships, including living in shelters, in pursuit of his dream of a ...
The Pursuit of Happyness critic reviews
Apart from that, The Pursuit of Happyness is emotionally manipulative and way too glossy to really hit home. Metacritic aggregates music, game, tv, and movie reviews from the leading critics. Only Metacritic.com uses METASCORES, which let you know at a glance how each item was reviewed.
The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)
blanche-2 22 June 2009. A father and salesman is in "The Pursuit of Happiness" in this 2006 film starring Will Smith, Thandie Newton, and Jaden Smith. This is the real-life story of Chris Gardner, who was eking out a living selling bone density scanners while his wife (Newton) worked double shifts at a hospital.
BBC
The Pursuit Of Happyness (2007) Reviewed by Paul Arendt. Updated 11 January 2007. Contains two uses of strong language. Based a on a true story, this tear-jerking tale of a single father's ...
The Pursuit of Happyness
The Pursuit of Happyness is a 2006 American biographical drama film directed by Gabriele Muccino and starring Will Smith as Chris ... The movie is set in San Francisco in 1981. The film was released on December 15, 2006, by Columbia Pictures, and received positive reviews, with Smith's performance and the emotional weight of the story garnering ...
Review: The Pursuit of Happyness
Gabriele Muccino's The Pursuit of Happyness is a working-class horror story in which every support beam upon which Chris Gardner's (Will Smith) life is built is systematically torn away until what's left is a penniless man and his young son (Smith progeny Jaden) sleeping in a subway station bathroom, paper towels covering the floor like a blanket, and Chris's foot propped against the ...
Movie Review: The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)
If The Pursuit of Happyness can't get you off of your fat, sweaty ass, you're hopeless. And do the rest of us a favor and shut the fuck up. Critical Movie Critic Rating: 5. Movie Review: Rocky Balboa (2006) Movie Review: Van Wilder 2: The Rise of Taj (2006) Tagged: son, stock broker, true story.
The Pursuit of Happyness
The Pursuit of Happyness is propelled by Will Smith's energetic performance and the intimacy with young Chris comes naturally since he is played by his own real-life son. Try a Spiritual Practice on Joy. Special DVD features include a commentary by director Gabriele Muccino; Father and Son: Onscreen and Off; The Man Behind the Movie: A ...
Black History In Film: 'The Pursuit of Happyness' Review
The Pursuit of Happyness benefits hugely from the chemistry between a real-life father and son. Casting Will Smith as Chris Gardner and a young Jaden Smith in the role of Christopher Jr. is a stroke of genius. This raises the stakes for the viewer. The story kicks off with Smith's Gardner taking a pretty big risk.
The Pursuit of Happyness review
The Pursuit of Happyness review. "Pursuit of Happiness" is a very warm and above all, a very inspiring story about family, determination, and never letting go of one's dream. 'The Pursuit of Happyness,' written by Steven Conrad and directed by Gabriele Muccino, is a moving story about fatherhood, poverty, and preserving childhood ...
The Pursuit of Happyness Movie Review for Parents
The Pursuit of Happyness Rating & Content Info . Why is The Pursuit of Happyness rated PG-13? The Pursuit of Happyness is rated PG-13 by the MPAA for some language.. Caught in a vicious cycle of overdue bills and a lack of funds, Chris Gardner finds himself coping with irate landlords, an exasperated spouse, and growing financial demands.
Happiness is a good father
Third, happiness is a based-on-a-true-story underdog, who defeats all the odds, overcoming all obstacles. Every time his life gets hopeful, a piano starts its simple melody. On the surface, this filim is a standard Hollywood tale. On the other hand, it is a movie about an American dream, directed by an Italian, starring an African American.
The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)
Synopsis. In 1981, in San Francisco, the smart salesman and family man Chris Gardner ( Will Smith) invests the family savings in Osteo National bone-density scanners, an apparatus twice as expensive as an x-ray machine but with a slightly clearer image. This white elephant financially breaks the family, bringing troubles to his relationship ...
The Pursuit of Happyness: Movie Review and Analysis
Published: Apr 8, 2022. In 'The Pursuit of Happyness' I believe Will Smith did an exceptional performance in his performing abilities. The movie exceeded the action and romantic films Will Smith is known for. He illustrated the position of Chris Gardner, trouble, struck down man dealing with the most upsetting time of his life.
Review: 'Sally & Tom,' an off-Broadway show about a former ...
Mike (Gabriel Ebert) is also the director of "The Pursuit of Happiness," which is written by Luce (Sheria Irving). As a couple, Ebert and Irving never seem believable. Whether they are all lovey ...

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