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Movies / Upcoming / The Pursuit of Happyness
The Pursuit of Happyness

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The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)

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Reviews Counted:165

Fresh:109

Rotten:56

Average Rating:6.4/10

Consensus: Will Smith’s heartfelt performance elevates The Pursuit of Happyness above mere melodrama.

Runtime: 1 hr 57 mins

Genre: Dramas

US Box Office: $162,586,036

Synopsis: In The Pursuit of Happyness, Chris Gardner (Will Smith) is a family man struggling to make ends meet. Despite his valiant attempts to help keep the family afloat, the mother (Thandie Newton) of his... In The Pursuit of Happyness, Chris Gardner (Will Smith) is a family man struggling to make ends meet. Despite his valiant attempts to help keep the family afloat, the mother (Thandie Newton) of his five-year-old son Christopher (Jaden Christopher Syre Smith) is buckling under the constant strain of financial pressure. No longer able to cope, she reluctantly decides to leave. Chris, now a single father, continues doggedly to pursue a better-paying job using every sales skill he knows. He lands an internship at a prestigious stock brokerage firm, and although there is no salary, he accepts, hopeful he will end the program with a job and a promising future. Without a financial cushion, Chris and his son are soon evicted from their apartment and forced to sleep in shelters, bus stations, bathrooms, or wherever they can find refuge for the night. Despite his troubles, Chris continues to honor his commitment as a loving and caring father, using the affection and trust his son has placed in him as an impetus to overcome the obstacles he faces. Columbia Pictures presents in association with Relativity Media an Overbrook Entertainment/Escape Artists Production The Pursuit of Happyness starring Will Smith, Thandie Newton and introducing Jaden Christopher Syre Smith. The film is directed by Gabriele Muccino and written by Steven Conrad. The producers are Todd Black, Jason Blumenthal, Steve Tisch, James Lassiter and Will Smith. The executive producers are Louis D’Esposito, Mark Clayman, David Alper and Teddy Zee. The director of photography is Phedon Papamichael, ASC. The production designer is J. Michael Riva. The film editor is Hughes Winborne, A.C.E. The costume designer is Sharen Davis. The music is by Andrea Guerra. The Pursuit of Happyness has been rated PG-13 by the Motion Picture Association of America for Some Language. The Pursuit of Happyness will be released by Columbia Pictures on December 15, 2006. -- © Columbia Pictures [More]

Starring: Will Smith, Jaden Smith, Dan Castellaneta, Thandie Newton

Starring: Will Smith, Jaden Smith, Dan Castellaneta, Thandie Newton, Brian Howe

Director: Gabriele Muccino

Director: Gabriele Muccino
Screenwriter: Steve Conrad
Producer: Todd Black, Jason Blumenthal, Steve Tisch, James Lassiter
Studio: Columbia Pictures

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Reviews for The Pursuit of Happyness

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1 - 20 (sorted by fresh rating; Australian critics are listed first)
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Full Review Source: In Film Australia | comment Comment
02/02/07
Luke Buckmaster
Luke Buckmaster
In Film Australia
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Directed by talented young Gabriele Muccino, the film benefits from his outsider's observations, and he is far too smart a filmmaker to let schmaltz creep into the tone.

Full Review Source: Urban Cinefile | comment Comment
01/05/07
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile Critics
Urban Cinefile
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Sydney Morning Herald | comment Comment
01/13/07
Sydney Morning Herald
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The whole thing works. This earnest, modest, sweet little ode to paternal love is meant to warm the cockles of our hearts in a season overrun with cockle-warming, and even a recalcitrant Scrooge may sniff back a few salty droplets.

Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | comment Comment
12/15/06
Amy Biancolli
Amy Biancolli
Houston Chronicle

perfectly respectable, if simplistic

Full Review Source: Filmcritic.com | comment Comment
12/15/06
Anne Gilbert
Anne Gilbert
Filmcritic.com

There's nothing new here, just a whole lot of the old dependable. The difference is that the old dependable is above average.

Full Review Source: FromTheBalcony | comment Comment
12/14/06
Bill Clark
Bill Clark
FromTheBalcony

This is Smith as you've never seen him -- an unsure, struggling, frustrated guy trying to hold together his family and failing.

Full Review Source: Arizona Republic | comment Comment
12/30/06
Bill Muller
Bill Muller
Arizona Republic

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

Full Review Source: BrandonFibbs.com | comment Comment
02/28/08
Brandon Fibbs
Brandon Fibbs
BrandonFibbs.com

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Hollywood.com | comment Comment
11/20/08
Brian Marder
Brian Marder
Hollywood.com

This is Will Smith's triumph, and it's worth a look alone to see this tiresome actor in a role that requires a rare amount of patience from him.

Full Review Source: OhmyNews.com | comment Comment
12/15/06
Brian Orndorf
Brian Orndorf
OhmyNews.com

Gardner's fight is everyman's fight... to remain true to his material objectives without sacrificing that which really matters to him-- his trusting little shadow.

Full Review Source: Spectrum (St. George, Utah) | comment Comment
01/06/07
Bruce Bennett
Bruce Bennett
Spectrum (St. George, Utah)

It's the picture's lifelike approach, from the immediacy of Italian director Gabriele Muccino's use of a handheld camera to screenwriter Steven Conrad's keen sense of the little things that make or break a day, that renders it truly moving.

Full Review Source: Sacramento Bee | comment Comment
12/15/06
Carla Meyer
Carla Meyer
Sacramento Bee

... there's something so slick, so neat and tidy about the production ... that it clashes with the desperate anguish of the down-and-out main character.

Full Review Source: Las Vegas Review-Journal | comment Comment
12/15/06
Carol Cling
Carol Cling
Las Vegas Review-Journal

As one bad thing is piled on another, it starts to feel like a test of Job proportions. This movie could drift over into melodrama were it not for the performance from Will Smith.

Full Review Source: TheMovieChicks.com | comment Comment
12/23/06
Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone
Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone
TheMovieChicks.com

It's more interested in the concrete details of Chris Gardner's life: finding a place to sleep, trying to stay upbeat, trying to keep his co-workers from finding out how close he is to living in a box. Which is why it's so powerful at the end.

Full Review Source: St. Paul Pioneer Press | comment Comment
12/14/06
Chris Hewitt (St. Paul)
Chris Hewitt (St. Paul)
St. Paul Pioneer Press

An admirably unsentimental biopic with an excellent central performance, but it doesn’t impact as strongly as it could.

Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment Comment
01/04/07
Chris Hewitt (UK)
Chris Hewitt (UK)
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Hokey title, but sometimes movie is good.

Full Review Source: Bangor Daily News (Maine) | comment Comment
05/10/07
Christopher Smith
Christopher Smith
Bangor Daily News (Maine)

Thankfully, humor leavens the dark journey, and little Jaden and his jokes go a long way to warm our hearts.

Full Review Source: USA Today | comment Comment
12/14/06
Claudia Puig
Claudia Puig
USA Today
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Smith hasn't delivered this kind of earnest, emotionally raw performance since Ali, and his Chris Gardner is every bit as complex.

Full Review Source: Minneapolis Star Tribune | comment Comment
12/14/06
Colin Covert
Colin Covert
Minneapolis Star Tribune

The movie is an economic cliff-hanger.

Full Review Source: New York Magazine | comment Comment
12/11/06
David Edelstein
David Edelstein
New York Magazine
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by fresh rating; Australian critics are listed first)
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