Dir.
Gabriele Muccino, US, 2006, 117 mins
Cast: Will Smith, Jaden Christopher Syre Smith, Thandie
Newton, Brian Howe, James Karen, Dan Castellaneta
Review by Matthew Rodgers
Will Smith is a bonafide
box office phenomenon, Fact. So much so that for a period
of time the coveted 4th of July weekend was given the moniker “Big Willie Weekend” in
the US. The former Fresh Prince hasn't just been elevated
to the top of the earnings list by busting intergalactic
bugs, being a bad boy, and “getting jiggy wit it”.
Will Smith can act, fact. Performances in Six Degrees of
Separation, the much maligned The Legend of Bagger Vance,
and an Oscar-nominated turn in Michael Mann's Ali have proven
this. You can now add The Pursuit of Happyness to the list.
Telling the “true” story
of Chris Gardner (Smith) and his excruciating battle to
be a committed father despite the insurmountable obstacles
that life is throwing his way; His wife Linda, a suitably
bitchy Thandie Newton (Crash) has abandoned him as she
is constantly disappointed by his failure to live up to
the dreams they once shared, coupled with this he has been
evicted from his apartment and forced to sleep in shelters,
bus stations, and all with his young son Christopher (Jaden
Christopher Syre Smith) in tow. How does a father find
the strength to chase the American dream and keep his fractured
family afloat?
It sounds like “movie of the week” scripting
and in the wrong hands it could have fallen straight into
a large vat of sickly sweet Hollywood self indulgence, but
with the Spanish director of The Last Kiss (which was recently
given the remake treatment starring Zach Braff), Muccino
on hand it avoids veering into that territory too often.
Muccino's direction is extremely subtle. The film is given
an 80s context to exaggerate the aforementioned American
dream which would have been lost had the film been set in
a disillusioned modern society and this is done subtly using
the odd film poster scattered on bus stops or an 80s song
on the radio.
Muccino's main strength though is to keep the camera still
and let it focus on the combined talents of his major players.
Newton is immensely dislikeable and extremely convincing
in her brief role, all restrained anger and pent up hostility
towards a man that despite his shortcomings is doing everything
he possibly can for the family he loves. That man is Will
Smith in perhaps his most restrained role to date as the
deteriorating father. There isn't the physical presence of
his impeccable Ali role here, or the cocksure nature of all
his quip firing roles in the summer blockbusters. He is even
given an unnecessary grey tint in his hair so that we take
him more serious.
However, the filmmakers needn’t have done that because
it is a performance that elevates the film above its humble
ambitions. It is almost impossible not to feel the bottom
lip tremble as Chris has to take shelter in a public toilet
with his five-year old son because he has nowhere else to
go, foot against the door to prevent anybody coming in, it
is one of the most uncomfortably effective scenes in a long
time – no words, just a powerhouse performance from
a fantastic actor.
The relationship between father and son must also be believable
because that is who Chris is doing this for, and it is, so
it's no surprise to find that Smith's real life son is playing
his onscreen counterpart. He is never as annoying as your
standard Hollywood rent-a-sprog and the chemistry shared
by the two is extremely effective.
The Pursuit of Happyness (spelt that
way for the purpose of the story) isn’t going to
win awards for scriptwriting or originality but it is a
superbly predictable, emotional wallop of a movie that
is worth seeing for Will Smith's performance alone.
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