Although the story wobbles at times, Seven Pounds stays the course thanks to Muccino's skilled direction.
Comment
01/08/09
Seven Pounds (2008)
27
%
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work 
Reviews Counted:172
Fresh:47
Rotten:125
Average Rating:4.6/10
Consensus: Grim and morose, Seven Pounds is also undone by an illogical plot.
Australian Rating: TBC
Genre: Dramas
Australian Theatrical Release:
Jan 8, 2009 Wide
US Box Office: $69,951,824
Synopsis: Academy Award® nominee Will Smith reunites with the directors and producers of The Pursuit of Happyness for the emotional drama Seven Pounds. In the film, Smith plays Ben Thomas, an IRS agent with... [More]
Starring: Will Smith, Rosario Dawson, Woody Harrelson, Barry Pepper
Director: Gabriele Muccino
Reviews for Seven Pounds
1 - 20 (sorted by fresh rating; Australian critics are listed first)
Top CriticIt's the kind of premise that a writer will lovingly nurture and probe, but it fails the truth test. As a love story it's unsatisfactory and as a redemption story it's slightly ridiculous
12/22/08
Top CriticEven by the standards of gotcha flicks, Seven Pounds seems especially somnolent and pretentious.
01/08/09
Top CriticNeither literal poetry nor the reliable charm of Will Smith can save his character from the folly of screenwriter Grant Nieporte’s deeply flawed premise.
01/08/09
Top CriticMorality has never seemed as arduous as in this morbidly drawn, intense drama filled with questions and pretension - even the charismatic Smith cannot save this absurd tale
12/22/08
Top CriticThere is indeed a secret, but it is not overly challenging to work out what's going on in this annoying film.
01/09/09
Top CriticThe film's most abiding mystery lies in the question of why it ever got made.
01/08/09
Top CriticSeven Pounds feels like having Love Story and Beaches burnt onto your retinas in the style of A Clockwork Orange. But hang on for the finale...
01/16/09
Top CriticSure, there are parts that are overly sappy and the ending is a little bit outlandish, but at least the film makes you think while sitting on the edge of your seat, which is a rare theater-going experience these days.
12/19/08
I think it’s just kind of average but Rosario Dawson is great and worthy of some type of recognition throughout this award show season.
12/22/08
That big twist at the end... if you go back and analyze it -- I’m not sure it holds up, but I don’t think it really matters all that much.
12/22/08
For all its ambitions, however, Seven Pounds ultimately fails in the one arena where it should be a cinematic slam dunk - the production of tears.
12/19/08
It's only Smith's performance that makes the tears worth crying.
12/17/08
Equal parts bizarre and conventional, Seven Pounds is -- if not good -- an intriguing film.
12/19/08
The day I stop being emotionally affected by films or become so cynical that I find displays of emotion something to sneer at, is the day I stop doing this job.
12/18/08
Long after I'd stopped thinking about the movie's central gimmick, Smith's performance still stuck with me.
12/19/08
Will Smith's status as Hollywood's box office champ will be sorely tested with Seven Pounds
12/20/08
While it doesn't break any new ground or provide any revelations, Seven Pounds is unabashedly emotional and cautiously hopeful. It's the feel-good movie for these feel-bad times.
12/18/08
Top CriticSeven Pounds is a difficult story, multilayered, spare and full of detail, thoughtfully told.
12/19/08
...packs one hell of an emotional punch as it approaches its affecting and flat-out devastating conclusion.
02/25/09
Latest News for Seven Pounds
January 16, 2009:
UK Critics Consensus: The Wrestler Pile-drives The Critics, But Don’t Waste any £s on Seven Pounds
With critical success for Slumdog Millionaire last week (94%), we have more award-friendly fare in the UK cinemas this Friday in Darren Aronofsky's spandex-tastic The Wrestler.... More...
December 28, 2008:
Box Office Guru Wrapup: Marley Takes #1, The Spirit Tanks
This weekend people were in the mood for movies over Christmas weekend as multiplexes were jam-packed with customers that powered four different new releases to more than $30M... More...
December 22, 2008:
Will Smith as widower wracked with guilt. 
More...
December 21, 2008:
Smith, in his typical impressive pressure cooker character fashion, is a nervous wreck suicidal IRS agent who raises pet jellyfish, and seems to enjoy harassing when not stalking his clients. Paging Dr. Kevorkian.
More...
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