Never give up on your dreams

Rating: 8/10 (6 June 2017)

Will Smith's sympathetic performance drives this emotional drama inspired by true events. It's an examination of life at its hardest, not succumbing to the hardships we're faced with, and that persevering can unlock that door which only had a glimmer of light behind it to begin with.
Oscar-nominated Will Smith plays Chris Gardner, a talented, marginally employed salesman who struggles financially to keep his family together. Early on in the film his wife leaves him, but Chris is vigilant in caring for his son - played by real life son Jaden - no matter what. He persists every day to make ends meet, getting an internship at a stock brokerage firm, and putting every ounce of strength into shielding his son from the dire circumstances he's forced into. It's that distant, unlikely dream, driving him forward every day, and the result is an emotionally resonant drama with some serious moments, and a few light-hearted ones comedic scenes, with many unlucky moments befalling our protagonist.
Strongly acted and well written, the film is entertaining from beginning to end... to a fault. It can feel a bit tonally uneven given the events taking place, with the comedy defusing an otherwise depressing scene and slightly undermining the films attempt to emotionally engage fully, because it could have been a masterpiece of raw emotion had it chose a harsher path without detraction of humour. But The Pursuit of Happiness, by the end, earns your happy tears whilst sending a clear and deliberate message about aiming for life's ever elusive dream of a happiness, and the ability to succeed, something that should resonate amongst us all; those who are currently in a plight, and those who've risen against it, fought it, and won. 8/10