Just watched this one and thought it was disappointing.
I thought the performances were good. Will Smith was excellent, as was the kid. But the plot sucked. I just didn’t buy into it. His so called pursuit of happyness involved him breaking up his family, running after buses, literally dragging his poor kid after him, and having him sleeping in homeless shelters (and at one point a stinking subway bathroom) with a bunch of nutters. Nice. All that and the ending was that he got a job as a stockbroker. And we are supposed to feel good?
[quote]AdamC wrote:
Just watched this one and thought it was disappointing.
I thought the performances were good. Will Smith was excellent, as was the kid. But the plot sucked. I just didn’t buy into it. His so called pursuit of happyness involved him breaking up his family, running after buses, literally dragging his poor kid after him, and having him sleeping in homeless shelters (and at one point a stinking subway bathroom) with a bunch of nutters. Nice. All that and the ending was that he got a job as a stockbroker. And we are supposed to feel good?[/quote]
I’ve been down his road. I thought it was a great film.
It’s hard for kids and people that have never been through excruciating hard times to even comprehend the reality of the situation Smith’s character was in.
For me, and my wife, the hopelessness he faced was like a trip down memory lane.
The movie twisted the story around quite a bit like Hollywood often does with true stories, actually a really good story, but you’ll have to get the book for the real one.
I don’t get it. I’ve no problem with the hard times aspect of it, but I just don’t get why he put himself and his family through it all. I guess i think he was selfish. He traumatized his kid and broke up his family. He could have just gone out and got a proper job instead of an unpaid internship and selling stupid x-ray machines. It just didn’t make sense.
It was billed as a feel good movie but i didn’t really feel good. I just felt sorry that his idea of happiness was to get rich at all costs.
[quote]AdamC wrote:
I don’t get it. I’ve no problem with the hard times aspect of it, but I just don’t get why he put himself and his family through it all. I guess i think he was selfish. He traumatized his kid and broke up his family. He could have just gone out and got a proper job instead of an unpaid internship and selling stupid x-ray machines. It just didn’t make sense.
It was billed as a feel good movie but i didn’t really feel good. I just felt sorry that his idea of happiness was to get rich at all costs.[/quote]
Instead of going through an unpaid internship - I went back to school to get my masters, which was just as unpaid.
You do what you have to do. Sometimes it may not make sense to bystanders. I would not do it any different if there was a chance to do it over.
I am a single father of a teenage boy and took him to see the movie when it was playing at the cinema. I for one have experienced many of the hardships in the movie although not all while having custody of my son…
I have slept in bathrooms… stayed at homeless shelters… had my bank account emptied by a creditor… ect… could go on but those are the ones that immediately come to mind that occurred to the character in the movie … and while my son has been with me I put myself through school… became a paramedic…
established myself financially… bought a home… sending my son through private school… and completed 25 weeks of firefighter recruit training to become a paid career fighter… the movie sent myself down memory lane as well and I felt myself as the character and fought back tears… after the movie the small audience of the daytime showing began to clap at the ending and everyone seemed to enjoy. Excellent movie
If anyone is a single father or father period very inspiring movie
A must see