The Pursuit of Happyness

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The Pursuit of Happyness

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The Pursuit of Happyness

Brian Howe, Dan Castellaneta, David Fine, Jaden Smith, James Karen, Thandie Newton, Will Smith, Zuhair Haddad

Chris Gardner 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 ...( read more  read more... )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 better life for the two of them.

Id: 3955409

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The Pursuit of Happyness Recent Reviews
  • SirPant
    September 18, 2009
    SirPant
    Will Smith is an actor who goes from strength to strength in every film he does (Apart from Hitch). I found his son quite annoying though and I can't stand Thandie Newton.
  • thmtsang
    September 4, 2009
    thmtsang
    Based on a true story of a salesman down on his luck, who's wife leaves him because they are broke and out on the street. He does everything he can to provide for his son, even taking anunpaid interinship to create a better life for them. It is sweet as Will is really Jayden's da...( read more)d. The scene in the men's room is heartbreaking. Be ready for teary eyes.
  • Darksome
    June 9, 2009
    Darksome
    Such a great movie, it is truly inspirational.
  • EarthlyAlien
    March 19, 2009
    EarthlyAlien
    "It was right then that I started thinking about Thomas Jefferson on the Declaration of Independence and the part about our right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. And I remember thinking how did he know to put the pursuit part in there? That maybe happiness is s...( read more)omething that we can only pursue and maybe we can actually never have it. No matter what. How did he know that?"

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    I admit it, I already hated The Pursuit of Happyness before I even watched it. How could I not? A literal rags-to-riches story wrapped in "America, the Land of Opportunity" propaganda about a guy who, despite all odds, with great perseverance and dedication to his son, goes from being strapped to being broke to being homeless to being a very rich stockbroker? Ick. The guy is played by funny, super-adorable Will Smith and the son is played by Will Smith's extra-super-adorable son? Double and triple ick. Stop me if I'm making you nauseous, but going into it, there is absolutely no reason to believe that this will be anything but a syrupy feel-good flick as cute and simple-minded as its misspelled title. Somehow it is and it isn't.

    Expertly paced, intimately shot (courtesy of its Italian director, Gabriele Muccino), cunningly scored and competently acted, The Pursuit of Happyness benefits as much from the inspiring true story it was based on as it suffers from it; the series of hard-luck events that put Chris Gardner and his son on the streets are comical in their relentlessness, while the two's struggles are quite unfunny in their reality. Smith and, er, Smith, not surprisingly, have a solid rapport and embrace their roles believably, but it's Thandie Newton - as the shrewish and slightly unhinged bitch of a wife who instigates their downward spiral - who provides the most animated spark.

    Smith's take on Gardner is numbly stoic: We only see him cry twice; once when happy, once when at a true low point. While the mischievous (and somewhat annoying) glint the actor brings to many of his roles is toned down here, the master-class bullshitting skills that he displays as Gardner are the extent of his "personality." Still, The Pursuit of Happyness - as over-the-top as it seems conceptually - actually deals out its heartstring cards subtly and never comes off as too cloying. It's the sort of feel-good film that doesn't make your teeth hurt.
  • JakeMN
    February 10, 2009
    JakeMN
    A down yet inspiring story. Great performance by the Smiths.
  • nabori2006
    December 3, 2009
    nabori2006
    how can anyone not want to watch this movie more than twice?
  • LadyNorth7
    November 29, 2009
    LadyNorth7
    Aww Will Smith and his son...it's nice...
  • faeza2
    November 27, 2009
    faeza2
    hah..aku suggest kan org ramai tgk cite ni..besh..based on a true story..=)
  • SpunkyJamez
    November 27, 2009
    SpunkyJamez
    The Pursuit of Happyness is one of Will Smith's greatest. He is very good with serious roles and I think he was definitely the right choice for the lead role. This is based on the true story of Chris Gardner - and it's a powerful film.

    Chris Gardner (Will Smith) is living wit...( read more)h his wife (Thandie Newton) and son Christopher (Jaden Smith) in San Francisco. He sells X-Ray machines to doctors for a living, but he is behind on bills due to the lack of profit he makes. He soon becomes interested in being a Stock Broker. He is able to land an internship at a prestigious stock brokerage firm. But when his wife leaves him, Chris is left to take care of his son alone. He is evicted from his apartment, and he and his son must endure hardships like being homeless and looking for shelter. This is a very sad story with some fantastic moments. The characters feel very realistic. The main thing that I loved about the plot was it's theme of happiness. The reason why Chris wanted to become a Stock Broker is becasue when he saw all those Stock Brokers leaving work - they looked happy, and he wanted to BE happy. There's a scene where Chris tells his son that if he was happy, Chris would also be happy. This passes down to his son, as in another scene at a resteraunt, we see Christopher looking at a happy family and then we see him smile. He was happy that they were happy, and then the camera shows Chris with a proud look on his face that his son was such a good kid. I loved the way they conveyed these themes. Another part of the film that I liked was the father/son relationship between Chris and Christopher. They showed the bond in scenes so very well.

    Will Smith never ceases to amaze you with his performance. It was very good. Jaden Smith was so cute as christopher, and he really is Will Smith's son. that's probably why this film felt so real. Because there really was a father and son acting in it. Thandie Newton was terrible as the wife. The way she screams is horrifying. She was very BAD.

    I loved the direction here. Gabriele Muccino has done a great job with the film. The drama and humour is directed very well. I liked some of the music. The theme song was really catchy.

    This is sad, funny and it's also a feel-good film. There's so much happiness with this film. Loved the acting from Will and Jaden Smith. They work really well together. The script works and so does the dialogue. Highly Reccomended.
  • jaimiee1
    November 26, 2009
    jaimiee1
    This movie is very touching. WillSmith is awsome very memorable movie based on true story.
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