Vacuous and misguided

Rating: 3/10 (9 May 2008)

This film has left a bad taste in my mouth. Not so much the direction, photography or acting, but the story and screenplay. This is meant to be the story of a man who struggles against adversity to find happiness. What it transpires to be is the story of an irrational human putting himself and his family at risk in search of money - not happiness per se. Peppered along the way is some terrible, clichéd sound-bites for his son - "if you see something you want, take it!". In the end his gamble pays off and he lands a well-paid job, the end! The assumption that his procuring a well-paid job is intrinsically leads to a happy life for the protagonist and his son is naive and shallow in the extreme and makes the time spent watching the film feel like a brain-washing session for the corporate American 'dream'.
On the plus side there is some nice photography in this film, and it's always fun to see eras from the recent past portrayed on film. But don't expect a feel-good film if your moral centre lies nearer your brain than your wallet.