Over-long and under-interesting

Rating: 5/10 (22 January 2007)

This isn't a bad film but it sure is a long one - or at least it feels that way. While the story of Chris Gardner is admirable and inspirational to a point (see below!), the film crawls along at a snail's pace, with the score only underlining the rather repetitive nature of Chris's trials and tribulations. The movie could have done with some serious cutting back to increase the pace a little, and would still have had nice characterisation and strong performances at its heart. So much angst is piled upon this poor guy that it almost becomes comical, and I had to remember my own sense of decency not to snort out loud in the cinema. Will Smith is always very watchable and delivers a really great performance as the dad trying to make a better life for himself and his son. HOWEVER - although I know it is 'inspired by a true story' - for me the character lost some sympathy because when his wife left him with a five-year-old to take care of, he still took a six-month UNPAID internship in the hope of getting a great job, thus putting his son through some real hardship and trauma. With a child involved then, frankly, he should've been getting a job as a waiter or something, not trying to be a stockbroker. I mean, if he hadn't succeeded in the end, then the movie would be about an evil, selfish dad who wouldn't knuckle down and accept the responsibility of caring for his child properly. I know this is not strictly a criticism of the movie, but it bugged me throughout, and probably affected my opinion of the film itself, because it's like glorifying a fantasist who spends money in expectation of winning the lottery. Anyway, I'm obviously in the minority, judging by the IMDb score, but for me this movie wouldn't have been worth paying to see without Will Smith.