movie review essay the pursuit of happyness

• Share full article

Advertisement

Supported by

Movie Review | 'The Pursuit of Happyness'

Climbing Out of the Gutter With a 5-Year-Old in Tow

By Manohla Dargis

• Dec. 15, 2006

A fairy tale in realist drag, “The Pursuit of Happyness” is the kind of entertainment that goes down smoothly until it gets stuck in your craw. Inspired by a true story, as they like to say in Hollywood, the film traces the fleeting ups and frightening downs of Chris Gardner, whose efforts to keep his family from sinking into poverty evolve into a life-and-death struggle of social Darwinian proportions. It’s the early 1980s, and while Ronald Reagan is delivering the bad economic news on television, Chris is about to prove you don’t need an army to fight the war on poverty, just big smiles and smarts, and really sturdy shoes. (It also helps that the star playing him is as innately sympathetic as Will Smith.)

Given how often Chris breaks into a run on the streets of San Francisco, it’s a good thing his shoes are well built; his lungs, too. Written by Steven Conrad and directed by Gabriele Muccino, “The Pursuit of Happyness” recounts how Chris, plagued by some bad luck, a few stupid moves and a shrew for a wife, Linda (Thandie Newton), loses his apartment and, with his 5-year-old, Christopher (Jaden Christopher Syre Smith, Mr. Smith’s own beautiful son), joins the ranks of the homeless, if not the hopeless. Evicted from the mainstream and bounced from shelter to shelter, Chris holds firm to his dignity, resolve, faith, love and independence. His optimism sweeps through the film like a searchlight, scattering clouds and dark thoughts to the wind.

It’s the same old bootstraps story, an American dream artfully told, skillfully sold. To that calculated end, the filmmaking is seamless, unadorned, transparent, the better to serve Mr. Smith’s warm expressiveness. That warmth feels truthful, as does the walk-up apartment Chris’s family lives in at the start of the film, which looks like the real paycheck-to-paycheck deal. As does the day care center, which is so crummy it can’t even get happiness right (hence the title).

This is no small thing, considering the film industry’s usual skewed sense of economic class, a perspective encapsulated by the insider who described the middle-class family in “Little Miss Sunshine” to me as working class, perhaps because the mother drives a gently distressed Miata rather than next year’s Mercedes.

Money matters in “The Pursuit of Happyness,” as it does in life. But it matters more openly in this film than it does in most Hollywood stories that set their sights on the poor, largely because Chris’s pursuit of happiness eventually becomes interchangeable with his pursuit of money. He doesn’t want just a better, more secure life for himself and his child; either by scripted design or by the example of the real Chris Gardner, he seems to yearn for a life of luxury, stadium box seats and the kind of sports car he stops to admire in one scene. His desires aren’t just upwardly mobile; they’re materialistically unbound. Instead of a nice starter home, he (and the filmmakers) ogles mansions. It’s no wonder he hopes to become a stockbroker.

That may sound like a punch line, at least to some ears, but it’s the holy grail in “The Pursuit of Happyness.” A self-starter, Chris has sunk all of the family’s money into costly medical scanners that he tries to sell to doctors and hospitals. But the machines are overpriced, and the sure thing he banked on has landed them in debt. Forced to work two shifts at a dead-end job, Linda angrily smolders and then rages at Chris, which seems reasonable since he has gambled all of their savings on an exceptionally foolish enterprise. (And, unlike her, he hasn’t signed up for overtime.) But this is a film about father love, not mother love, and Linda soon leaves the picture in a cloud of cigarette smoke and a storm of tears.

Chris and the filmmakers seem happy to see her go, but life only gets tougher once she and her paychecks disappear. Much of the film involves Chris’s subsequent efforts to keep himself and his child housed and fed while he is enrolled in an unpaid internship program at a powerful stock brokerage firm. Bright and ferociously determined, Chris easily slides into this fantastical world of shouting men, ringing phones, gleaming surfaces and benevolent bosses. He goes along to get along, and when one of his bosses asks for money to pay for a cab, he quickly opens his wallet. Chris himself stiffs another working man for some money because that wallet is so light. But this is a film about him, not the other guy.

How you respond to this man’s moving story may depend on whether you find Mr. Smith’s and his son’s performances so overwhelmingly winning that you buy the idea that poverty is a function of bad luck and bad choices, and success the result of heroic toil and dreams. Both performances are certainly likable in the extreme, though Mr. Smith shined brighter and was given much more to do when he played the title character in Michael Mann’s underrated “Ali.” That film proves an interesting comparison with this one, not in filmmaking terms, but in its vision of what it means to be a black man struggling in America. In one, a black man fights his way to the top with his fists; in the other, he gets there with a smile.

“The Pursuit of Happyness” is rated PG-13 (Parents strongly cautioned). It includes mild adult language and some parental fighting.

THE PURSUIT OF HAPPYNESS

Opens today nationwide.

Directed by Gabriele Muccino; written by Steven Conrad; director of photography, Phedon Papamichael; edited by Hughes Winborne; music by Andrea Guerra; production designer, J. Michael Riva; produced by Todd Black, Jason Blumenthal, Steve Tisch James Lassiter and Will Smith; released by Columbia Pictures. Running time: 117 minutes.

WITH: Will Smith (Chris Gardner), Thandie Newton (Linda) and Jaden Christopher Syre Smith (Christopher).

The Pursuit of Happyness Movie Review: Overcoming Adversity and Striving

How it works

The Pursuit of Happyness outlined several social issues that the starring actors faced; Will Smith playing Chris Gardner, and Jaden Smith playing Garden’s son Christopher. Pursuit of Happyness was based on the real-life experiences of Christopher Gardner, who was once a homeless single father who struggled hard to become a successful stockbroker. The movie shows the audience the close relationship between the father and the son; they underline the fact that parents need to provide the proper care and attention to children so that they can maintain psychological development.

The film allows the audience to make a connection to their personal lives, and it also helps most people make sense of the world in which they live. The film resembles a number of social messages in the film for society.

The Pursuit of Happyness shows the different movements a person can take on the social ladder. Throughout the movie, we witness how Chris overcomes being homeless and without a job. By the end, we are shown how he became a millionaire owner of a stock firm. This is a great example of social mobility, with Chris being able to experience both downward and upward mobility. The film starts off with Chris’s story; we are shown that he is living in the lower class population. During his internship, he drops below the poverty line, and in one of the main scenes, we are shown where he and Christopher return back to the motel room to find their belongings removed, so they are left with no money or place to go. A validation of his downward social mobility is when Chris gets so desperate to the point that he sells his blood to raise money just so he can survive another day. Chris remains this way until the end of the film, where he finally lands and secures the dream position with the company. Here we are shown where he made an upward social mobility progress, as he secured the dream job earning a middle-class income and lifestyle, and he ended up becoming a millionaire stockbroker, motivational speaker, and author. After becoming a millionaire, a speaker, and an author, he settled down into the upper-class lifestyle.

Due to the symbols of social stratification, people in this film interact mostly with people who share the same social class, causing Chris to stand out more among the upper-class society. Suits, luxury cars, and expensive luncheons are regular and standard in the world Chris is trying to pursue, and this puts a strain on his insufficient financial lifestyle. When trying to keep up with the representation of what a successful businessman looks like, Chris alternate between two suits. He has pretended to own certain cars and bailed on a taxi after pretending he has enough money to pay for all the broker’s rides. When Chris offers to pay the taxi fee, he wants to be seen as the image of a successful businessman, even though he has inadequate funds. If he refused or showed that he didn’t have enough funds, then he would have been represented as a lower-class man, therefore losing his chances of getting the job he really wanted. In spite of all his sufferings and challenges, Chris still succeeds, and the high-status job that allows him pleasure and security in his and his son’s life is a symbol of what happiness is in Chris’s eyes.

By looking at class division as a basic part of the American culture, functional analysis is “a theoretical framework in which society is viewed as composed of various parts, each with a function that, when fulfilled, contributes to society’s equilibrium.” (Henslin, 2012, p. 26). This theory maintains the idea that class stratification is essential and key for society to function properly. In the Pursuit of Happyness, Chris realizes his role as a lower class by doing the groundwork for successful businessmen. He was tricked into selling the scanners since his job provided hardly any room for growth, and the commissions he was receiving were very little compared to what the manufacturer of the product was making. Even working that job, he still plays an effective role in the corporate plan. Functional experts want to see class division in the employed world as an essential part, as society would not function properly if all classes were equal. The functionalist theory side of this film showed that the most qualified and skilled people usually fill the high and most important positions in a company. Chris is a good example of how he has to start at the bottom as an intern since his lack of education. Without proper education, he cannot compete against others who are pursuing to be a stock broker.

This movie goes in depth when discovering conflicting issues within classes in society. The conflict theory is “a theoretical framework in which society is viewed as composed of groups that are competing for scarce resources.” (Henslin, 2012, p. 8). Since Chris was born into a different social class, his family passed on social disadvantages and privileges that many of his fellow interns didn’t have to face. Him coming from a different social class, he starts his journey as a broker from an underprivileged standpoint. From having financial strain, stress from being a single parent, lack of transportation and housing, and lack of professional attire were all reasons that made Chris disadvantaged in his social class. In society, we are shown that the upper class usually controls the lower class by keeping them from being any type of competition. When coming from an upper-class family, you have more time to pursue and achieve any goals or competitive jobs since they come from a family who has a generous out of money and is able to hire people to help out their family. Since Chris don’t have adequate fund and stability, he is forced to spend his time working dead-end jobs just to get by through the days. This does not give their class a reasonable chance to strive, so they continue the pattern of their lives, starting at the bottom. This is an example of how the conflict theory shows the control of the higher class over the lower class.

The following theories show how social stratification and division can be harmful to society. Chris’s place was at first in the proletariat society, which is made up of mass workers exploited by the bourgeoisie society, which consists of capitalists who own the means to produce wealth (Henslin, 2012, p. 28). His talent allowed him to move upward on the social ladder, which allowed him to start his family in a new social class. On the other hand, this is not a benefit that comes with living in poverty for the lower classes. Even though his success was founded in the end, Chris still had to falsely take on the characteristics of an upper-class man when he was working with his future employers in the company. The conflict between the two groups was so countless that Chris had no other choice but to hide his lower-class characteristics so he could be considered for a position. Regardless of the difficulties and obstacles that he had to face, Chris still was able to achieve his goal and making into the higher class.

What is happiness, and how do we successfully achieve this goal? Chris Gardner not only answered those questions, but he backed them up with the real-life consequences he had to face to reach his goal. I watched Chris’s strain and journey on the social ladder. I also gained an understanding of the social functions of class and status and just how much they affect a person’s success. Chris was able to rise above the average for his social group as he challenged certain stereotypes and class. We are shown that social standing is not set in stone. They are always the way to move up in down in social standings. The Pursuit of Happyness is a very inspiring film as it represents the struggles that many faces, especially those who live in poverty or in a third-world country. In the end, we are shown that we can accomplish anything as long we put our minds to it.

Cite this page

The Pursuit of Happyness Movie Review: Overcoming Adversity and Striving. (2023, Jun 21). Retrieved from https://papersowl.com/examples/the-pursuit-of-happyness-movie-review-overcoming-adversity-and-striving/

"The Pursuit of Happyness Movie Review: Overcoming Adversity and Striving." PapersOwl.com , 21 Jun 2023, https://papersowl.com/examples/the-pursuit-of-happyness-movie-review-overcoming-adversity-and-striving/

PapersOwl.com. (2023). The Pursuit of Happyness Movie Review: Overcoming Adversity and Striving . [Online]. Available at: https://papersowl.com/examples/the-pursuit-of-happyness-movie-review-overcoming-adversity-and-striving/ [Accessed: 24 Sep. 2024]

"The Pursuit of Happyness Movie Review: Overcoming Adversity and Striving." PapersOwl.com, Jun 21, 2023. Accessed September 24, 2024. https://papersowl.com/examples/the-pursuit-of-happyness-movie-review-overcoming-adversity-and-striving/

"The Pursuit of Happyness Movie Review: Overcoming Adversity and Striving," PapersOwl.com , 21-Jun-2023. [Online]. Available: https://papersowl.com/examples/the-pursuit-of-happyness-movie-review-overcoming-adversity-and-striving/. [Accessed: 24-Sep-2024]

PapersOwl.com. (2023). The Pursuit of Happyness Movie Review: Overcoming Adversity and Striving . [Online]. Available at: https://papersowl.com/examples/the-pursuit-of-happyness-movie-review-overcoming-adversity-and-striving/ [Accessed: 24-Sep-2024]

Don't let plagiarism ruin your grade

Hire a writer to get a unique paper crafted to your needs.

Our writers will help you fix any mistakes and get an A+!

Please check your inbox.

You can order an original essay written according to your instructions.

Trusted by over 1 million students worldwide

1. Tell Us Your Requirements

2. Pick your perfect writer

3. Get Your Paper and Pay

Hi! I'm Amy, your personal assistant!

Don't know where to start? Give me your paper requirements and I connect you to an academic expert.

short deadlines

100% Plagiarism-Free

Certified writers

• Undergraduate
• High School
• Architecture
• American History
• Asian History
• Antique Literature
• American Literature
• Asian Literature
• Classic English Literature
• World Literature
• Creative Writing
• Linguistics
• Criminal Justice
• Legal Issues
• Anthropology
• Archaeology
• Political Science
• World Affairs
• African-American Studies
• East European Studies
• Latin-American Studies
• Native-American Studies
• West European Studies
• Family and Consumer Science
• Social Issues
• Women and Gender Studies
• Social Work
• Natural Sciences
• Pharmacology
• Earth science
• Agriculture
• Agricultural Studies
• Computer Science
• IT Management
• Mathematics
• Investments
• Engineering and Technology
• Engineering
• Aeronautics
• Medicine and Health
• Alternative Medicine
• Communications and Media
• Advertising
• Communication Strategies
• Public Relations
• Educational Theories
• Teacher's Career
• Chicago/Turabian
• Company Analysis
• Education Theories
• Shakespeare
• Canadian Studies
• Food Safety
• Relation of Global Warming and Extreme Weather Condition

Movie Review

• Admission Essay
• Annotated Bibliography
• Application Essay
• Article Critique
• Article Review
• Article Writing
• Book Review
• Business Plan
• Business Proposal
• Capstone Project
• Cover Letter
• Creative Essay
• Dissertation
• Dissertation - Abstract
• Dissertation - Conclusion
• Dissertation - Discussion
• Dissertation - Hypothesis
• Dissertation - Introduction
• Dissertation - Literature
• Dissertation - Methodology
• Dissertation - Results
• GCSE Coursework
• Grant Proposal
• Marketing Plan
• Multiple Choice Quiz
• Personal Statement
• Power Point Presentation
• Power Point Presentation With Speaker Notes
• Questionnaire
• Reaction Paper

Research Paper

• Research Proposal
• SWOT analysis
• Thesis Paper
• Online Quiz
• Literature Review
• Movie Analysis
• Statistics problem
• Math Problem
• All papers examples
• How It Works
• Money Back Policy
• Terms of Use
• Privacy Policy
• We Are Hiring

Interpersonal Communication in “The Pursuit of Happyness”, Movie Review Example

Pages: 5

Words: 1276

Hire a Writer for Custom Movie Review

Use 10% Off Discount: "custom10" in 1 Click 👇

You are free to use it as an inspiration or a source for your own work.

“The Pursuit of Happyness” is a touching film about a man who overcomes great odds to going from being a salesman of bone density scanners to become an stock broker. Various means of interpersonal communication are shown throughout this movie: they underline Chris’s relationship with himself, with his wife, and with their son.

Interpersonal Communication: Chris’s Relationship With Himself

The voice-over gives the viewer an insight into Chris’s character and his self concept – or the way that he sees himself – from the beginning of the movie: he says that he did not know his father until he himself was an adult, and wanted his own son to know him. It is clear that Chris’s view of himself relies heavily on his role as a father. More is revealed about Chris’s relationship with himself through the Rubik’s cube: this is a symbol , a thing which represents something else in the story, and it symbolizes Chris’s struggle to overcome the odds and to make his life better. Chris’s field of experience – or the person’s background which affects how that person sees the world – is also part of this struggle, and it is well-demonstrated in the movie when he talks about the lines on the resume for education, saying “I didn’t need that many lines”. This is also shown in the way in which Chris learns to navigate his way through the culture of wealthy and largely white stockbrokers: the scene at the house of the CEO and Chris’s conversation there shows the intercultural communication , for the ways in which people of different groups communication with one another. At the end of the movie, the cost of his struggle is shown in his face in the scene where he is given the job: it is obvious that he is trying hard not to break down and cry in front of his bosses, following a rule of display , or a rule which says how much emotion it is acceptable to show in public.

Indirect show of Chris’s Struggle . Chris’s struggle is also shown through the means of power distance, or the distance between those who have power and those who do not in a given society: this is shown when Chris is watching the stock brokers coming down the steps, wanting to be part of that world. It is also shown through the communication channel – or the means by which communication is performed, such as the radio or television – of the telephone which Chris is tied to during his internship as he tries to get ahead; it is also shown by the communication setting – or the place in which communication takes place – for his talk with the stockbroker at the beginning of the movie on the steps of the stock exchange: this is what changes his life and leads him to become a stockbroker.

Break-Down in Communication: Chris’s Relationship With His Wife

Interpersonal communication also shows the viewer the breakdown in the marriage between Chris and his wife Linda. One way in which they do this is through nonverbal communication, or ways of communicating that do not involved direct words: the scene where he and his wife are in bed together, and he pulls away when she tries to touch him, then she rolls over and yanks the blankets onto her side, is a great way of showing the breakdown in their relationship. It is also shown through feedback , or the response that one person gives another while they are communicating: his wife’s unbelieving and angry response to his suggestion that he go and apply to be a stockbroker is a good example of feedback. His relationship with his wife is a complementary relationship – that is, it is a relationship where one person reacts to what the other person is doing and their differences are highlighted: this is shown in the scene where Chris follows Linda angrily down the street, and they get into a shouting match about their son and her leaving them. This relationship is also shown through sending and receiving of messages to each other: in another words, of the things Chris says to Linda and the things she says in return. On the balcony, Chris is trying to send a message to Linda that things are going to be all right, but Linda receives the message angrily and does not believe him. This scene is a good example, too, of over-attribution : or the placing of too much importance on one part of who someone is: Linda seems to be blaming all their problems on Chris as he struggles to be a provider. This also shows the communication barrier – anything which prevents one party from sending a message to another – which is the feelings of anger they have for one another and which prevent them from really talking to each other.

Indirect Show of the Conflict between Linda and Chris . The movie does not only show the breakdown in the marriage between Linda and Chris directly. It also shows it indirectly. One example of this is the scene in the liquor store, where Chris is frantically seek information about his wife who has just left him and his neighbor is babbling on about the game. This is an example of noise, or anything in the outside environment that distracts from communication. .

The Tie That Binds: Chris’s Relationship With His Son

The strongest and healthiest relationship in this movie is Chris’s relationship with his son Christopher, and this is shown through many methods of interpersonal communication throughout the course of this movie. Their discussion about the connotation – or the exact meaning – of words is shown wonderfully in his discussion with Christopher on the difference between “probably” and “possibly” when they are talking about going to the gain; this is in contrast to the discussion on the “f-word” in the beginning of the movie: Chris gives his son the connotative meaning – or the emotional importance of the word; he tells Christopher that it is an “adult word” and is “shows anger”. The encoding – or the process of putting ideas into a message – and decoding —the process of taking in the message and trying to understand it – are shown in the scene at the basketball court, where Chris tells his son not to believe people when they tell him he can’t do something, and Christopher takes this message in. This scene is also a good example of enculturation , or the way that one generation passes on its beliefs to another generation, and, too, of active listening : Chris really seems to be taking in what his father has told him.

Displays of Affection between Chris and his Son. Throughout the movie, even when they are frustrated or angry at each other, there is an affection between father and son, an other-orientation , or a state in which one person is very attuned to and attentive to the other. This is best shown in the scene in the church where Chris takes his son’s hand and kisses it. This is also underscored in their relationship dimension – which is communication that speaks of the relationship between the two people communicating and not on any outside factor. A scene to demonstrate this is where Chris scoops up his son in daycare and holds him as the movie ends. It also demonstrates affirmation , or a show of support, even if non-verbally.

Throughout this movie, interpersonal communication is evident in the ways the characters interact with each other and with themselves. Together, these various methods of communication show us Chris’s relationships with himself, his wife, and his son. It is primarily these relationships which drive the movie.

Stuck with your Movie Review?

Get in touch with one of our experts for instant help!

Four Documentaries on Middle East Political History, Movie Review Example

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs and Its Application to Healthcare, Research Paper Example

Time is precious

don’t waste it!

Plagiarism-free guarantee

Privacy guarantee

Secure checkout

Money back guarantee

Related Movie Review Samples & Examples

The globalized world, quiz example.

Pages: 11

Words: 2954

Economic Sanctions, Research Paper Example

Pages: 10

Words: 2872

The Descendants, Movie Review Example

Pages: 2

Words: 416

Catheter- Associated Urinary Tract Infection Prevention, Term Paper Example

Pages: 7

Words: 1819

Children of Men, Movie Review Example

Words: 558

Deviance and Social Control in Stand and Deliver, Movie Review Example

Words: 1351

Common Sense Media

Movie & TV reviews for parents

• For Parents
• For Educators
• Our Work and Impact

Or browse by category:

• Movie Reviews
• Best Movie Lists
• Best Movies on Netflix, Disney+, and More

Common Sense Selections for Movies

50 Modern Movies All Kids Should Watch Before They're 12

• Best TV Lists
• Best TV Shows on Netflix, Disney+, and More
• Common Sense Selections for TV
• Video Reviews of TV Shows

Best Kids' Shows on Disney+

Best Kids' TV Shows on Netflix

• Book Reviews
• Best Book Lists
• Common Sense Selections for Books

8 Tips for Getting Kids Hooked on Books

50 Books All Kids Should Read Before They're 12

• Game Reviews
• Best Game Lists

Common Sense Selections for Games

• Video Reviews of Games

Nintendo Switch Games for Family Fun

• Podcast Reviews
• Best Podcast Lists

Common Sense Selections for Podcasts

Parents' Guide to Podcasts

• App Reviews
• Best App Lists

Social Networking for Teens

Gun-Free Action Game Apps

Reviews for AI Apps and Tools

• YouTube Channel Reviews
• YouTube Kids Channels by Topic

Parents' Ultimate Guide to YouTube Kids

YouTube Kids Channels for Gamers

• Preschoolers (2-4)
• Little Kids (5-7)
• Big Kids (8-9)
• Pre-Teens (10-12)
• Teens (13+)
• Screen Time
• Social Media
• Online Safety
• Identity and Community

Parents' Ultimate Guide to Generative AI

• Family Tech Planners
• Digital Skills
• All Articles
• Latino Culture
• Black Voices
• Asian Stories
• Native Narratives
• LGBTQ+ Pride
• Best of Diverse Representation List

Multicultural Books

YouTube Channels with Diverse Representations

Podcasts with Diverse Characters and Stories

The pursuit of happyness.

• Common Sense Says
• Parents Say 16 Reviews
• Kids Say 50 Reviews

Common Sense Media Review

By Cynthia Fuchs , based on child development research. How do we rate?

Inspirational but often emotionally wrenching story.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Will Smith will draw kids to this movie. But it's not an action flick or slapstick comedy -- it's an inspirational and often emotionally wrenching story. It includes some very sad scenes between family members, as well as a couple of emotionally scary ones. The mother becomes so frustrated…

Why Age 12+?

"F--k" written as graffiti on wall, noted and spoken by father and son; several

Mom smokes cigarettes several times.

Parents' loud argument worries their son; Chris is hit by a car, leaving his fac

Most products are used to mark the year (1981): A Rubik's cube figures prominent

Mother appears briefly in her bra and panties while changing into her work unifo

Any Positive Content?

Strong messages about the importance of persistence, hard work, believing in you

Noble father dotes on son and is dedicated to taking care of him through thick a

"F--k" written as graffiti on wall, noted and spoken by father and son; several uses of "damn," "hell," "s--t," "ass," and "a--hole." "You suck" written on wall.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

Drinking, Drugs & Smoking

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide.

Violence & Scariness

Parents' loud argument worries their son; Chris is hit by a car, leaving his face bruised and clothes bedraggled; father yells at son for crying, frightening him into obedience; Chris starts to fight a man in line at a shelter, frightening his son, who cries.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

Products & Purchases

Most products are used to mark the year (1981): A Rubik's cube figures prominently in the plot; Members Only jacket; Raging Bull movie poster; Magic Johnson poster, Captain America action figure. Chris goes to work for the Dean Witter brokerage.

Sex, Romance & Nudity

Mother appears briefly in her bra and panties while changing into her work uniform.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.

Positive Messages

Strong messages about the importance of persistence, hard work, believing in yourself, and being there for each other. The heart of the movie is the strong father-son bond between the two main characters.

Positive Role Models

Noble father dotes on son and is dedicated to taking care of him through thick and thin. He takes his son along on job-related excursions and lies in front of him (the kid looks appropriately skeptical when he hears it). Chris also briefly discourages and yells at his son, after which he is immediately apologetic. Perpetually irritated mom abandons her son early in the movie.

Parents need to know that Will Smith will draw kids to this movie. But it's not an action flick or slapstick comedy -- it's an inspirational and often emotionally wrenching story. It includes some very sad scenes between family members, as well as a couple of emotionally scary ones. The mother becomes so frustrated with her husband's inability to make a living that she leaves him and their son. Later, the father yells at his son for a trivial reason and gets in a fight, scaring the boy and making him cry. If your child is in a clingy period with you, this might upset him or her. There's a very brief allusion to the mixed effects of classism and racism on the son. The father's frustration sometimes leads to tears and sometimes to angry language (mostly damn and "s--t"). A graffitied "f--k" leads to a brief discussion of the word, and the son says it out loud. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

Where to Watch

Videos and photos.

Parent and Kid Reviews

• Parents say (16)
• Kids say (50)

Based on 16 parent reviews

that kid'll getcha

Real life issues - refreshing break from anthromorphism and fantasy, what's the story.

Based on a true story and set in 1981 San Francisco, Pursuit begins as Chris Gardner ( Will Smith ) and his wife, Linda ( Thandiwe Newton ), are having troubles. She works double shifts doing hotel laundry; he's trying to sell bone density scanners (i.e., specialty medical machines that, as Chris admits in voiceover, are too expensive for most doctors to buy). When Linda abandons the family, Chris remains determined. He spends six months working in an unpaid internship at Dean Witter, dead set on becoming a stock broker. He's smart enough and good with numbers, he figures, having proved that much by solving a Rubik's cube in front of a Dean Witter broker. As he studies and scrapes by, barely earning enough each week to pay for meals, Chris is sure he's going to make it.

Is It Any Good?

Jaden Smith is adorable; he delivers an endearing performance as Gardner's son, Christopher, in what turns out to be a simple, sentimental, but ultimately inspiring movie. The film deals with the American Dream from a particular perspective, focusing, as the title implies, on the constitutional right to "pursue" happiness, rather than the right to be happy. In this manner, the movie is able to avoid focusing much on institutional racism and how that factors into achieving the Dream. Instead, the relationship between father and son, through all the ups and downs of family strife and economic instability, take center stage, with lovely results.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about the appeal of stories like Chris'. Why do people like rags-to-riches tales? Why are they considered good material for movies? How close do you think the movie version is to the true story?

Families can also talk about the risks that Chris takes to provide a "better life" for his son. How does the movie show that little Christopher is both scared of having no place to sleep, but also utterly trusting of his dad? Is it OK that Chris tells a white lie in front of his son to get a job?

How does the film portray the decision by Christopher's mother to leave him? From whose point of view do you see this choice?

Movie Details

• In theaters : December 14, 2006
• On DVD or streaming : March 27, 2007
• Cast : Jaden Smith , Thandiwe Newton , Will Smith
• Director : Gabriele Muccino
• Inclusion Information : Female actors, Black actors
• Studio : Columbia Tristar
• Genre : Drama
• Run time : 117 minutes
• MPAA rating : PG-13
• MPAA explanation : some language.
• Awards : Common Sense Media Award , NAACP Image Award - NAACP Image Award Winner
• Last updated : August 8, 2024

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

Suggest an Update

What to watch next.

Fly Away Home

Instructions Not Included

Life Is Beautiful

After Earth

Tv dads we love.

Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.

Academia.edu no longer supports Internet Explorer.

To browse Academia.edu and the wider internet faster and more securely, please take a few seconds to  upgrade your browser .

Enter the email address you signed up with and we'll email you a reset link.

• We're Hiring!
• Help Center

"The Importance of 'Happyness'"--A movie review of The Pursuit of Happyness

2007, Liberty

Hollywood hasn't produced many pictures celebrating the American Dream and success in business over the last generation, for a variety of reasons, not least of these being the pervasive hatred of America and capitalism endemic in Hollywood. But occasionally a film sneaks through which does indeed remind us we can win if we work hard enough. The Pursuit of Happyness celebrates this and much more, and is well worth seeing 1. The story is a true one, based upon the autobiography of Chris Gardner, an African-American who made it in the investment business. In the film, which takes place in San Francisco of 1981, follows that period of Gardner's life when he struggled to make his way to success. The story begins with Gardner, played superbly by Will Smith, struggling to earn a living selling medical equipment (portable bone-density scanners, if I recall), while his wife (played well by Thandie Newton) works double shifts at her menial job, as both try to raise their son. In a brilliant piece of casting, their son is played by Jaden Smith, Will Smith's real-life son. This allows a special depth to the scenes of both father and son together.

Related Papers

Mary C Schmitt, PhD

Business History Review

Anne Magnussen

William V Costanzo

This practice-led PhD project consists of two sections: the first examines a breakdown of the components of film genre to be used as practical guideposts for my own creative practice as a screenwriter and (hopefully in the future) for other screenwriters; the second section contains my practical application – first acts of three screenplays that are constructed utilizing my research and subsequent assessments. Using a theoretic construct presented in the area of philosophy in the 1990s by cognitive theorist Gilles Fauconnier called ‘mental space’, a concept exploring a person’s natural inclination to construct a comprehensible idealized cognitive model (ICM) of any given situation in order to understand his or her role in it (Fauconnier 1994:8), I examine how Fauconnier’s concept can be applied to building a film narrative and specifically how it can be applied to a screenwriter’s understanding and breaking down of the components of film genre. I also employ the work of scholars foc...

Radojica Mali

Claire Sisco King

Representations of celebrities operate as politically and culturally significant resources for the construction, regulation, and even contestation of hegemonic discourses about race and gender in the United States. Not simply meaningful or important to fans, star images may also provide resources to critics aiming to interrogate and intervene against potentially oppressive cultural norms. Forwarding an approach called metonymic criticism, this essay argues that the associative logic of metonymy plays a central role in both the articulation of celebrity personae and the operations of hegemonic discourse formations. The analysis develops by considering the case of a star whose public image has unique probative value for studying the intersecting discourses of race and gender in US culture: Will Smith.

Journal of Cold War Studies

Denise J. Youngblood

Films and sports played central roles in Cold War popular culture. Each helped set ideological agendas domestically and internationally while serving as powerful substitutes for direct superpower conflict. This article brings film and sport together by offering the first comparative analysis of how U.S. and Soviet cinema used sport as an instrument of propaganda during the Cold War. The article explores the different propaganda styles that U.S. and Soviet sports films adopted and pinpoints the political functions they performed. It considers what Cold War sports cinema can tell us about political culture in the United States and the Soviet Union after 1945 and about the complex battle for hearts and minds that was so important to the East-West conflict.

Qualitative Sociology Review

Wendy Leo Moore

Through a narrative analysis of movies confronting issues of race and racism in the post-civil rights era, we suggest that the movie To Kill a Mockingbird ushered in a new genre for movies about race which presented an image of a white male hero, or perhaps savior, for the black community. We suggest that this genre outlasted the era of the Civil Rights Movement and continues to impact popular cultural discourses about race in post-civil rights America. Post-civil rights films share the central elements of the anti-racist white male hero genre, but they also provide a plot twist that simultaneously highlights the racial innocence of the central characters and reinforces the ideology of liberal individualism. Reading these films within their broader historical context, we show how the innocence of these characters reflects not only the recent neo-conservative emphasis on “color blindness,” but presents a cinematic analogue to the anti-affirmative action narrative of the innocent whit...

New Zealand Journal of History, 44, 1, pp.1-21

Charlotte Greenhalgh

Young men and women flocked to New Zealand’s interwar cinemas, where they learnt how to understand romantic love and how to win over the one who caught their eye. This article charts how going to the movies was constructed as glamorous and romantic — the perfect setting for love — and explores why and how young people embraced this experience. Film audiences were encouraged to view many Hollywood stars and some local actors as romantic idols who could impart important knowledge about courtship. Such ideals meant that young men did not only aim to emulate staunch soldiers or rugby players and young women’s daydreams were not always restricted to the domestic sphere. Turning the spotlight on the cinema as a site of romance illuminates a space where young people could act outside the narrow gender roles that have dominated many New Zealand histories. It also suggests how men and women acquired a shared language of romance that enabled them to communicate about their feelings, enjoy each other’s company, and build their futures together. Young people experienced intimate moments in the pubic spaces of popular culture and modern entertainments, looking at these sites can indicate how personal experiences were framed by cultural understandings and thus provide a window onto inner experiences.

Lobster magazine

Jonathan Marshall

This article probes hitherto overlooked evidence of CIA connections to underworld-linked private foundations used by the Agency to launder funds to seemingly independent student, labor, religious, publishing, and other organizations involved in international operations. It demonstrates how CIA-protected foundations helped seemingly upstanding business leaders and Wall Street institutions collaborate with shady operators and outright criminals in pursuit of profit and political advantage. Their deals helped drive the wild bull market of the 1960s and produced the largest wave of corporate mergers since the beginning of the 20th century. Although the 1960s merger wave has been the subject of many academic studies, none has identified the role of criminal money in fueling its progress. The stories that follow illustrate that organized crime was an important force in 20th century U.S. business history.

Loading Preview

Sorry, preview is currently unavailable. You can download the paper by clicking the button above.

RELATED PAPERS

Journal of Literature and Art Studies JLAS

Sport in Society

Adriano Edgar

Yvonne Kozlovsky Golan

Bordin Elisa

Carole Lester

Naomi Mezey

Andreea Madalina

Brian Faucette

Denise de Oliveira Freire

Teguh Aryawangsa

Baraka Mndeme

Gareth Hedges

The Myth of Colorblindness: Race and Ethnicity in American Cinema

Leah Aldridge

Allison Palumbo

erim kutsal

Freek L. Bakker

Eithne Quinn

James Baldwin Review

Hayley O'Malley

Ber Kotlerman

Poetic Resurrection: The Bronx in American Popular Culture

Sina A. Nitzsche

International Journal of the History of Sport

Paul Christesen

Jessica Wagner

RELATED TOPICS

•   We're Hiring!
•   Help Center
• Find new research papers in:
• Health Sciences
• Earth Sciences
• Cognitive Science
• Mathematics
• Computer Science
• Academia ©2024

Enjoy this post? Rate it!

The Pursuit of Happyness review | An emotional rollercoaster

Movies have the power to make you laugh, become emotional, and even profoundly move you at the same time. the pursuit of happyness is an inspiring story for the audience. read on for the pursuit of happyness review ., table of contents, the journey of pursuit, the pursuit of happyness review, thoughts about the movie, key takeaways.

Many of us can relate to the struggle of deciding which movie to watch. The Pursuit of Happyness, unlike other films, emotionally moves the audience because it is based on a true story. It will give you the right inspiration to go forward and catch your dreams. If you are interested in a career in filmmaking, reading movie and book reviews can help you shape your ideas for your projects and give you an understanding of the viewer’s mindset, all the while keeping in mind what you should and shouldn’t do.

Keep reading to see what The Pursuit of Happyness review has to offer.

‘The Pursuit of Happyness,’ written by Steven Conrad and directed by Gabriele Muccino, is a moving story about fatherhood, poverty, and preserving childhood innocence. The film was moving and executed so that it inspires genuine emotion in its viewers throughout its nearly two-hour runtime. The film is a high-quality drama with a powerful message about society and the American dream .

The film’s strength stems from its expert portrayal of a man who finds hope at rock bottom and succeeds in keeping his son safe even when circumstances force them to live on the streets. Chris Gardener, played fabulously by Will Smith, barricades himself and his son Christopher inside a subway station bathroom so that his son can sleep throughout the night with some feeling of security and safety. It is the film’s most powerful scene. 

The genius of the scene and the film is that Chris keeps his son’s innocence intact by telling him they went back in time. He says that the subway bathroom is a cave and that they’re hiding from imaginative dinosaurs while hiding his tears and grief.

Another strong point is the film’s message, portrayed in an emotional monologue on a rooftop basketball court. “Don’t ever let somebody tell you you can’t do something,” Chris tells his son and, by extension, the audience. “You’ve got a dream. You’ve got to protect it,” he says after inadvertently dampening Christopher’s dreams of becoming a professional basketball player. “You want something, go and get it.” 

It’s a message we’ve all heard before, but the conviction with which Smith delivers those lines, and the story, demonstrates the point so well breathes new life into the somewhat generic ‘follow your dreams’ speech.

The film reminds us how short life is not to be as happy and cheerful. We forget to be grateful in this fast-paced world, and this film reminds us of that. Reality can break you, but how you deal with it is entirely up to you. It reminds us to be grateful for the opportunity to spend time with the people we care about and spend time with them.

There are minor faults in the face of such incredible acting and beautifully emotional events. ‘The Pursuit of Happyness’ remains an excellent film that uses emotion and childhood innocence to challenge viewers to respect and admire what they have while striving to achieve their dreams.

From The Pursuit of Happyness review, we learn that we often try to pursue happiness when we miss the smaller ‘happiness’ in our lives. This message in the film was exactly what everyone needed to hear.

• The Pursuit of Happyness takes us through an emotional ride and teaches valuable life lessons.
• The father-son bond is something you cannot give a miss.
• The movie tells its viewers to find real happiness and enjoy what they have while still chasing their dreams.

Explore the world of movies and the work that goes on behind the scenes. If you would like to know more or have any queries regarding filmmaking and pursuing it as a career, then please get in touch with us .

Liked this blog? Read next: Harry Potter book series | A magical adventure.

1. What is the main theme of “The Pursuit of Happyness” movie?

Answer: The main theme of “The Pursuit of Happyness” revolves around family, determination, and never giving up on one’s dreams despite facing extreme adversity. The film portrays the journey of a father, played by Will Smith, who finds hope and success even when living on the streets with his son, all while preserving his child’s innocence.

2. How does “The Pursuit of Happyness” inspire its viewers?

Answer: “The Pursuit of Happyness” inspires its viewers through the portrayal of a man who overcomes challenging circumstances and manages to keep his son’s innocence intact. The film delivers a powerful message about pursuing one’s dreams and not letting anyone deter you. It encourages the audience to protect their dreams and take action to achieve them, with an emotional monologue from Will Smith’s character serving as a memorable moment in the film.

3. What is the key takeaway from the movie, as mentioned in the blog?

Answer: The key takeaway is to appreciate the smaller moments of happiness in life, remain grateful, and pursue dreams with determination

How useful was this post?

Click on a star to rate it!

Average rating 4 / 5. Vote count: 21

No votes so far! Be the first to rate this post.

People also liked

Cost of living and studying in the USA | A guide for MS and MBA students

Study in Singapore | A comprehensive guide for Indian students

Top courses in 2024 to study abroad

Student life in Germany | Highest paying part-time jobs and more

Cost of studying in the Netherlands 2024 | A guide

Entrance exams to study abroad | A complete guide

Leave a reply cancel reply.

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Please enter an answer in digits: sixteen − 4 =

Start your journey with iSchoolConnect

Need help with your study abroad applications? Try iSchoolConnect for free!

• Study in USA
• Study in UK
• Study in Canada
• Study in Australia
• Study in France
• Study in Netherlands
• Study in Ireland
• Study in Germany
• Study in New Zealand
• GRE Exam 2024
• GMAT Exam 2024
• IELTS Exam 2024
• TOEFL Exam 2024
• SAT Exam 2024
• PTE Exam 2024
• Study Abroad Consultant in Bangalore
• Study Abroad Consultant in Delhi
• Study Abroad Consultant in Mumbai
• Study Abroad Consultant in Noida
• Study Abroad Consultant in Gurgaon
• Student visa for USA 2024
• Student visa for Canada 2024
• Student visa for UK 2024
• How to choose a university for study abroad
• How to choose a career?
• University interview tips
• How to apply?
• Letter of Recommendation (LOR)
• Essay and Statement of Purpose (SOP)
• Study abroad Document checklist
• Finance documents for study abroad
• Cost of studying abroad
• How to apply for abroad scholarships
• Types of scholarships for study abroad
• Student loan for Study abroad
• Accommodation Abroad
• Part-time jobs in abroad

Where to Study?

Tests and Preparation

Study Abroad Near Me

Visa Process

Programs and Universities

Application Process

Fees and Finances

To install StudyMoose App tap and then “Add to Home Screen”

A Pursuit of Happiness a Movie Review

Save to my list

Remove from my list

A Pursuit of Happiness a Movie Review. (2016, Apr 10). Retrieved from https://studymoose.com/a-pursuit-of-happiness-a-movie-review-essay

"A Pursuit of Happiness a Movie Review." StudyMoose , 10 Apr 2016, https://studymoose.com/a-pursuit-of-happiness-a-movie-review-essay

StudyMoose. (2016). A Pursuit of Happiness a Movie Review . [Online]. Available at: https://studymoose.com/a-pursuit-of-happiness-a-movie-review-essay [Accessed: 18 Sep. 2024]

"A Pursuit of Happiness a Movie Review." StudyMoose, Apr 10, 2016. Accessed September 18, 2024. https://studymoose.com/a-pursuit-of-happiness-a-movie-review-essay

"A Pursuit of Happiness a Movie Review," StudyMoose , 10-Apr-2016. [Online]. Available: https://studymoose.com/a-pursuit-of-happiness-a-movie-review-essay. [Accessed: 18-Sep-2024]

StudyMoose. (2016). A Pursuit of Happiness a Movie Review . [Online]. Available at: https://studymoose.com/a-pursuit-of-happiness-a-movie-review-essay [Accessed: 18-Sep-2024]

• Movie "The Pursuit of Happiness" Pages: 5 (1348 words)
• Drama Analysis of The Pursuit of Happiness Movie Pages: 4 (944 words)
• Jon Gertner's The Futile Pursuit of Happiness Pages: 3 (630 words)
• Representation of Modern Man's Pursuit Of Happiness Pages: 7 (1809 words)
• Anna Karenina in Pursuit of Happiness Pages: 6 (1603 words)
• Social Norms and The Pursuit of Happiness in "The Awakening" Pages: 5 (1437 words)
• The Pursuit of Happiness in Fahrenheit 451 Pages: 3 (624 words)
• Chris Gardner's Pursuit of Happiness: A Journey of Resilience and Inspiration Pages: 3 (649 words)
• Analysis Of The Pursuit Of Happiness Through A Sociological Lens Pages: 3 (775 words)
• The Pursuit of Happiness: "Great Expectations" and "The Great Gatsby" Pages: 4 (1034 words)

👋 Hi! I’m your smart assistant Amy!

Don’t know where to start? Type your requirements and I’ll connect you to an academic expert within 3 minutes.

“The Pursuit of Happyness” Essay

• To find inspiration for your paper and overcome writer’s block
• As a source of information (ensure proper referencing)
• As a template for you assignment

Introduction

Lessons to be learned, peculiarities of the professional sales sphere, goal setting, positive attitude, discipline, determination, and visualization, works cited.

The significance of motivation, positive attitude, determination, and discipline cannot be overestimated in every working environment and professional sales in particular. All these factors are crucial for the efficient organizational performance and positive outcomes. A professional sale is an extremely competitive sphere, and it requires time and efforts to achieve success. In the following paper, the lessons of success from the movie The Pursuit of Happyness will be characterized and evaluated.

Numerous movies depict ways of becoming successful and accomplishing one’s goals. Although there are different methods of getting what one wants, the primary principles remain the same — one has to be eager to achieve something and never give up. The Pursuit of Happyness is one of the best films that presents a strong will, self-determination, motivation, and discipline as essential constituents of success. It is significant to have insight into the idea of the film for the further evaluation.

The Pursuit of Happyness is a 2006 biographical drama that describes the life of Chris Gardner. The main character is a salesperson who has to take care his five-year-old son. Gardner has nothing, and his aim is to receive necessary financial resources for the upbringing of his child (“The Pursuit of Happyness” par. 1). The story depicts the way Gardner fights for his dream.

It is a challenge to become successful in the sphere of professional sales. Here is a list of the most significant constituents of success according to the story:

• Goal setting;
• Positive attitude;
• Motivation;
• Discipline;
• Self-determination;
• Visualization.

As it has been already mentioned, professional sales form an extremely competitive sphere. Sales comprise an integral part of everyday life of all people. The fact is that there are many participants in the field, but only a few of them are winners. Being a professional salesperson requires time and energy. One should always remember that being a salesperson and a sales professional is not the same thing (Jamail 5). According to Jamail, everyone who has a pleasant voice and a beautiful smile can become a salesperson. Nevertheless, the professional development in the domain presupposes constant learning and improvement of skills.

There is a variety of opinions concerning the nature of sales. Some people consider it to be the art of speaking and persuasion. Others believe that a salesmanship is based on the ability to build rapport with people. All these statements are too broad to be useful in practice. As Jamail writes, “Sales is about understanding who we are calling, what are we asking the customer, what energy we are giving, and, most importantly, establishing positions of influence with the prospective customer” (6).

A professional salesperson should possess broad knowledge and skills. Thus, one has to create a particular strategy for sales. Also, a successful salesman has to deal with a variety of external factors such as human emotions, behaviors, and unpredictable situations. Even more, a professional in the sphere should be able to read the body language of others and understand the way they think. The ability to control one’s body language and the effective verbal communication belong to other crucial features of the salesperson.

The apparent distinctive feature of this position is that one’s salary is dependent on sales. No one is going to pay a monthly salary for an employee who has not sold anything. It is what makes professional sales unique and challenging. There is a direct connection between one’s abilities, desire to work and earnings. However, there are cases when even doing one’s best does not help. In such cases, the salesperson has to stay motivated and keep trying.

The first significant aspect of professional sales is goal setting. Goals comprise a substantial ground for one’s motivation. Goals define the objectives that have to be achieved. Consequently, the person focuses on the particular goal and moves towards its accomplishment. This fact has been proved by numerous studies. A person who has exact aims is more likely to demonstrate better performance than the person whose goals are not clear.

However, the goal setting is not just about defining what has to be done. A salesperson should have specific objectives and accept them. Also, these goals have to be attainable (Lunenburg 1-3). The specification of targets directs employee’s performance and energy. In the movie under evaluation, the main character has a particular goal — to become a successful stockbroker. Second, goals have to be difficult, but achievable. Otherwise, the person will not receive an adequate level of satisfaction. Too challenging goals may also lead to negative consequences due to the potential demotivation. Chris Gardner’s goal is difficult because he has only one chance to get the position he wants. At the same time, he knows that he can do it, and this fact makes him improve his performance.

The acceptance of goals leads to the increasing self-efficacy. Self-efficacy is another important aspect of the successful performance. Chris sets a particular aim, and his self-efficacy enhances when he starts to work hard. His self-satisfaction increased, and he became more motivated as a result.

The ability to maintain a positive attitude towards the job is essential for a salesperson. Working with sales can be rather stressful. There are bad periods that do not bring many revenues. Also, workers continually meet different people, and their treatment can be various as well. Some clients are pleasant and polite while others are ready to shout that they do not need anything. Finally, the relationships with superiors require a positive attitude too.

A positive attitude is crucial if one wants to reduce stress and avoid burnouts. It comprises of several constituents including hope, optimism, resiliency, and confidence (Woods 2-5). Hope is the ability to wait for something better in stressful situations. Chris Gardner relies on hope in the movie. The situation in his life is terrible as far as he even does not have a place to live. Nevertheless, his faith is strong, and it leads him. Optimism is another part of a positive attitude. Thus, every salesperson should believe in optimistic results. The importance of optimism should not be underestimated. Metropolitan Life case study proves that fact.

Thus, in the 1980s, the company hired approximately five thousand salespeople and trained them. Organization’s CEO asked psychologists to evaluate the level of optimism in employees and its relation to sales. The psychologists found out that positive people were better sellers in comparison to others. As a result, the company began hiring employees only with high levels of optimism. It led to the substantial increasing of sales (“Optimism = Sales Success” par. 4-6).

Resiliency, being the third constituent of a positive attitude, deals with the ability to overcome stress and restore strengths. It also means the willingness to go on and try one more time even if it is difficult. Gardner’s resiliency can serve as an example to follow. He always remains devoted to his initial goals regardless of failures and problems. The last part of the positive attitude, confidence, relates to self-efficacy.

Motivation is crucial for the efficient working performance. Motivation is a power that makes people continue fighting for their dreams and accomplish set goals. Two types of motivation are distinguished: extrinsic and intrinsic. An intrinsic motivation refers to the individual interest and commitment to work while the extrinsic motivation concerns material rewards for the job. Depending on circumstances, one type of motivation may be preferred. In most cases, the combination of both kinds is employed. However, the balance between them may differ among different organizations (Frey and Osterloh 3).

Managers have to create effective strategies for the extrinsic motivation of employees. For instance, the manager of Panasonic, Tali Rose, developed a personalized sales incentive platform for the motivation of retail salespeople in New Zeeland. The company faced high competence in the country. The aim of the program was to motivate employees and enhance their working performance. A particular communication program was introduced. Thus, salespeople received personalized notifications of their accomplishments and rewards. As a result, they became highly motived, and the level of their engagement in work increased drastically (“Panasonic: Personalized Sales Incentive Platform Case Study” par. 1-8).

In the movie, Gardner’s motivation is rather different from the described. His intrinsic motivation refers to his desire to become a stockbroker and his belief that he would be happy to have that position. The extrinsic motivation of Chris concerns his son. He wants to earn money, receive rewards to provide his son with a better life and opportunities. It is also necessary to stay motivated in various circumstances. Chris has a dream, and he keeps moving towards it.

The words from the basketball scene serve as a perfect example of Gardner’s attitude towards life and motivation. He says, “Don’t ever let someone tell you, you can’t do something. Not even me. You got a dream, and you got to protect it. People can’t do something themselves, they want to tell you that you can’t do it. You want something, go get it. Period.” ( The Pursuit of Happyness ).

Many people do not believe in the power of discipline though the practice shows that it is vital for the efficient performance. Self-discipline allows people to monitor their achievements and do not give up. People tend to pity themselves and have breaks because of too many efforts. In many cases, individuals exaggerate their accomplishments. A self-discipline allows one to control achievements and improve efficacy (Rosso par. 1-3). Gardens’ self-discipline is another example to follow. He decides to call at least two hundred people a day. It is tough but it what makes him unique and gives him hope for the better future.

The determination is of particular importance for professional sales as well. Salespeople know that it is crucial to try one more time and never give up. The determination may be defined as “the act of deciding on the desired outcome and taking action to achieve it” (Lannarino par. 6). The determination is an internal power that makes person continue moving towards the particular goal. In sales, a determination is necessary for success. Salespeople often hear “no”. That is the determination that makes them try again. Persistence allows a seller to believe that there is always a chance of success.

Since the very beginning, Chris Gardner decides to succeed regardless of circumstances. During the story, he faces numerous problems but none of them distracts him from his primary intention. Another feature of Gardner’s determination is that he does not blame anything or anyone for his failures. This fact shows that the need to justify oneself should not be prevailing. It is also a sign of a weak will. Finally, Chris has a vision of what he wants. Visualization is useful technique not only in sales but everyday life too. People have to think about and visualize their dreams to achieve them. The power of visualization is immense, and it helps people to retain their determination.

An extreme competence characterizes the domain of professional sales. One has to possess a set of different skills and abilities to become a successful salesperson. Salespeople should be able to work under various circumstances. A setting of goals is the initial stage of success. Then, it is necessary to have a positive attitude towards the work. One should be optimistic and hope for the better. Nothing can be achieved without proper motivation. Motivation is crucial to the success in any sphere. Self-discipline and determination are of particular significance for sales. The success in this field depends on the ability to try one more time and never give up.

Frey, Bruno and Margit Osterloh. Successful Management by Motivation . Boston, Massachusetts: Springer Science & Business Media, 2013. Print.

Jamail, Nathan. The Sales Professionals Playbook . Henderson, Nevada: Scooter Publishing, Inc., 2013. Print.

Lannarino, Anthony. Determination: The Ability to Preserve . 2010. Web.

Lunenburg, Fred. “Goal-Setting Theory of Motivation.” International Journal of Management, Business, and Administration 15.1 (2011): 1-6. Print.

Optimism = Sales Success . n.d. Web.

Panasonic: Personalized Sales Incentive Platform Case Study . n.d. Web.

The Pursuit of Happyness . Dir. Gabrielle Muccino. Sony Pictures, 2006. Film.

The Pursuit of Happyness . n.d. Web.

Woods, Gae-Lynn. Examples of Positive Attitude . 2014. Web.

• Young and Restless in China by Sue Williams
• Film Studies: "Temple Grandin"
• Salespeople's Effective Motivational Strategies
• Expatriate Salespeople Issues
• Salesperson's & Sales Manager's Traits for Success
• Making Moral Decisions in the Film "Right or Wrong"
• "Cold Mountain" Film: Themes and Historical Ideas
• Marriage Life in the Film "The World of Apu"
• "12 Angry Men" by Sidney Lumet Film Analysis
• "As Good as It Gets"
• Chicago (A-D)
• Chicago (N-B)

IvyPanda. (2020, June 26). “The Pursuit of Happyness”. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-pursuit-of-happyness/

"The Pursuit of Happyness." IvyPanda , 26 June 2020, ivypanda.com/essays/the-pursuit-of-happyness/.

IvyPanda . (2020) '“The Pursuit of Happyness”'. 26 June.

IvyPanda . 2020. "The Pursuit of Happyness." June 26, 2020. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-pursuit-of-happyness/.

1. IvyPanda . "The Pursuit of Happyness." June 26, 2020. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-pursuit-of-happyness/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . "The Pursuit of Happyness." June 26, 2020. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-pursuit-of-happyness/.

IvyPanda uses cookies and similar technologies to enhance your experience, enabling functionalities such as:

• Basic site functions
• Ensuring secure, safe transactions
• Secure account login
• Remembering account, browser, and regional preferences
• Remembering privacy and security settings
• Analyzing site traffic and usage
• Personalized search, content, and recommendations
• Displaying relevant, targeted ads on and off IvyPanda

Please refer to IvyPanda's Cookies Policy and Privacy Policy for detailed information.

Certain technologies we use are essential for critical functions such as security and site integrity, account authentication, security and privacy preferences, internal site usage and maintenance data, and ensuring the site operates correctly for browsing and transactions.

Cookies and similar technologies are used to enhance your experience by:

• Remembering general and regional preferences
• Personalizing content, search, recommendations, and offers

Some functions, such as personalized recommendations, account preferences, or localization, may not work correctly without these technologies. For more details, please refer to IvyPanda's Cookies Policy .

To enable personalized advertising (such as interest-based ads), we may share your data with our marketing and advertising partners using cookies and other technologies. These partners may have their own information collected about you. Turning off the personalized advertising setting won't stop you from seeing IvyPanda ads, but it may make the ads you see less relevant or more repetitive.

Personalized advertising may be considered a "sale" or "sharing" of the information under California and other state privacy laws, and you may have the right to opt out. Turning off personalized advertising allows you to exercise your right to opt out. Learn more in IvyPanda's Cookies Policy and Privacy Policy .

We use cookies to enhance our website for you. Proceed if you agree to this policy or learn more about it.

• Essay Database >
• Essay Examples >
• Essays Topics >
• Essay on Cinema

Movie Review On The Analysis Of The Pursuit Of Happyness

Type of paper: Movie Review

Topic: Cinema , Family , Life , Parents , Movies , Unemployment , Happiness , Father

Words: 2500

Published: 02/07/2020

ORDER PAPER LIKE THIS

Introduction

Set in the timeframe of 1981, ‘The Pursuit of Happyness’ is based on the real life story of Chris Gardner who ascended from a destitute to a stock market magnate. Cast in the role of Gardner, Will Smith did an astounding job in essaying the character to perfection. The movie bagged many accolades and awards upon its release in 2006. The most notable one was the Academy Award rewarded to Will Smith for best male actor. The opening scene gives a glimpse of the phrase ‘Pursuit of Happiness’ as mentioned by Thomas Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence that the Americans are entitled to the right of "Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness." The word happiness is very elusive, meaning different to different people. According to Aristotle, "Happiness is the meaning and the purpose of life, the whole aim and end of human existence" and Tryon Edwards on the other hand states that "Happiness is like manna; it is to be gathered in grains, and enjoyed every day" (Nick Bostrom & Milan M. Cirkovic). Chris Gardner reflects upon the meaning of pursuit of happiness as enumerated in the Declaration of Independence that all men are created equal by God and among certain rights blessed upon them by their Creator are the right to 'Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.' He realizes that happiness is elusive and despite pursuing it with unyielding zeal, happiness might skip his grip. The essence of the movie is brought forth by an ingenious application of different mediums; the time period of the story, close-up wide shots and deliberate misspelling of the word happiness, the father-son relationship, 5 definitive chapters and the significance of Rubik’s cube and scanner.

The Time Period

The movie is set in a period when the US was going through a severe recession. Following the increase of business bankruptcies by 50% in 1981, the US and many developed countries around the world encountered one of the worst recessions in 1980s with unemployment rate going above 10% in the US. The condition of unemployment didn't improve in United States until 1985. The economic policy of tax cuts employed by the then US President Reagan to improve the condition compounded the recession further and therefore the recession is termed as 'Reagan recession' by many intellectuals. Paul Volcker, Federal Reserve Chairman deployed a restrictive monetary policy to control the high inflation rate by increasing the interest rates which contributed to the increase of unemployment rates, highest since Great Depression. The effects of the recession were felt all over the US. Many important industries including automobile, steel manufacturing and housing suffered a steep plummet in the business. The worst sufferers were the financial houses, mainly banks and savings and loan industry. Due to high inflation rate and job cuts throughout the recession period, people in the US were struggling for mere survival by making both ends meet. They pursued happiness by putting up a fight to get through the trying time as we see in the movie how Gardner was trying to survive his ordeal. The dashed dreams and lost hopes might have knocked many people into momentary depression and anxiety but since the effect of recession reached people of all climes, they were bound by a common purpose of overcoming their hardship.

Close-up shots and Misspelling

Throughout the film, various close-up wide shots have been used to capture the expressions on the face of the characters throughout the movie. For instance, in the scene in which both Gardner and son would spend the night locked inside a public restroom, the child would sleep peacefully with his head on his father's lap and someone would bang on the door. The close angle shot would not capture any movement, just the turn of the head of Will Smith to capture his reaction to the banging. The uncommon spelling of 'happyness' used in the title of the movie is borrowed from a graffiti drawn on the outside wall of the daycare facility attended by Gardner's son Christopher. The misspelling of the word happiness has hidden connotations. First, the 'y' in the word makes it conspicuous for us to notice and the underlying meaning is not to take happiness lightly. Gardner was irritated when he caught sight of the misspelt word on the outside wall of the daycare his son visited in Chinatown. He even pinpointed the misspelling to the caregiver of the daycare in order to ensure that his son received proper education. The misspelling showed his pursuit of perfecting his role of fatherhood so that no modicum of heedlessness remains in the upbringing of his son.

Father-son Relationship

The driving force of the movie was the relationship shared by the father and son. The role of Christopher portrayed by Will Smith's own son Jaden Smith made Will blaze the screen with an earnest representation of a passionate and persistent father. The journey of rags to riches put up on screen throughout the movie would touch the cords of every viewer's heart for the father and son agonized by their struggles. While Gardener’s wife tired of the dire financial state left her husband and son behind and flew to New York, Gardener couldn't shrug off his responsibility as a father. Having grown up himself without a father, he didn't want his son to suffer the same fate as was evident when he said, "I met my father for the first time when I was 28 years old. I made up my mind that when I had children, my children were going to know who their father was."

Gardener while fighting with his untoward situation found a ray of sunshine when he got

a non-paying internship at an investment firm. Throughout the internship for 6 months, Gardener and his son struggled together to make better out of their hard times. They were thrown out of the apartment for not paying rents and started living in a motel. They spent a harrowing night sleeping in the restroom of a subway station and finally took refuge in a homeless shelter. Around this time of struggle, the love and faith shared by the father-son duo strengthened and sweetened their relationship. It was their unwavering support for each other that would ultimately get them through the hard time. There was a particular scene in which Christopher would relate the well-known joke about a drowning man refusing the help of rescuers in motorboats again and again saying that God would help him. After the man drowned and went to heaven, he confronted the God asking why God had not saved him to which God answered "I sent three boats for you. What were you waiting for?” (The Pursuit of Happyness Quotes). So poignantly a little child Christopher with his innocent story sent such a big message to his father who realized thereupon that despite things looking bleak, their rescue boat had arrived in the guise of internship. The basketball scene in the movie captures Gardner giving an important message to his son, which brings out the supportive side of his fatherhood. While playing basketball with Christopher, Gardner would tell him that there was no use practicing the basketball as he himself didn't turn out to be good in it and it would be same for Christopher also. The son feeling discouraged by his father's statement would drop the ball and pack it in a plastic bag when Gardner would firmly tell him, "Don’t ever let somebody tell you you can’t do something, not even me. Alright? You got a dream, you gotta protect it. People can’t do something themselves, they wanna tell you you can’t do it. If you want something, go get it, period" (The Pursuit of Happyness Quotes)

Definitive Chapters of Gardner’s Life

Gardner defined his life by 5 chapters - riding the bus, being stupid, running, internship and happiness. Riding the bus refers to the episode when Gardner would travel round the town in bus. Its significance lies in the fact that the bus is a mode of conveyance for common man which boxes in his ambitions, and after getting down from the bus one day Gardner would spot a big-ticket luxury car which, he came to know upon enquiry, belonged to a stockbroker. Outside the stock firm, he would only see happy faces which bred an aspiration in him to do something out of the box by being a stockbroker. Being Stupid refers to that chapter of his life when in quest for a job as a stockbroker, he arrived at Dean Witter Reynolds, a well-reputed stock enterprise and outside the building he made the mistake of trusting a hippie girl for guarding his scanner. The hippie girl ran off with the scanner and by the time Gardner chased her down the street, it was too late. Running is that chapter of his life marked by his running all the time for something or the other. First he would spot the hippie girl again and would run after her to retrieve the stolen scanner. Then after his wife Linda due to being unable to put up the stress of poor financial condition left him, he would be in sole charge of his son when alongside working double shifts, he had to take care of his son. Internship is the beginning of change in Gardner 's life for the better. In this part of life, he would appear for an interview at Dean Witter Reynolds in complete disheveled state due to spending the preceding night in jail and despite that he would get selected for internship without payment for 6 months because of his wit and tenacity. Though the internship was highly competitive with 20 interns fighting for one job, he wanted to give it a shot. 20 interns fighting for one job is a manifestation of joblessness in 1980's USA. Happiness is the final part of the movie when after months of going through strenuous hardship of backbreaking double shifts, homelessness and insecurity, Gardner would be offered the job of a broker at Dean Witter Reynolds.

Rubik’s Cube and the Scanner

The Rubik's Cube plays a significant role in the life of Gardner. While selling a scanner, Gardner came across a man called Jay Twistle who was a manager at Dean Witter Reynolds and during a short ride in cab he impressed him by solving the puzzle of the cube which was no less than a feat because solving the puzzle required dexterity not everyone's cup of tea. The man was speechless in awe and surprise. It helped Gardner make an impression while getting the job later at Dean Witter. The Rubik's cube is a symbol of the pursuit of happiness. Rubik's cube consists of multiple colored squares which need to be arranged in the same row to solve the puzzle, one color each side. Gardner's life is an unsolved Rubik's cube where the squares of his life are laid in haphazard order. He was trying to put the squares in perfect semblance against all odds. Just as the pursuit of happiness is a perpetual struggle the end result of which is elusive to many, same way solving the Rubik puzzle is a continuous effort the end result of which eludes many. The bone density scanner that is heavy and weighs about 40 pounds is a reflection of Gardner's mounting responsibility on his shoulder. The scanner also represents the burden of problems in his life. His state of homelessness, his wife's leaving him and his son on their own, the difficulty in selling the scanners, his inability to pay parking tickets or taxi fare, his joining of an unpaid training program are all reflected by his continuous burden of carrying the scanner. While running away from a cab driver because he couldn't pay the taxi fare, he lost one of his scanners in the subway station which he would later retrieve from a demented man, but the scanner would be in damaged state just like his ragged life. Since he was unable to sell the damaged scanner, he would sell his blood to fix the broken bulb of the scanner and same way in order to hide the ravaged condition of his life, he would wash and iron clothes to appear normal in the street and in the business so that people didn't get to know about his spending nights in a shelter.

Based on the real life story of Chris Gardner, the film by Gabriele Muccino showcases the inspiring journey of a man from rags to riches. The role of Gardner played by Will Smith was executed to perfection by Smith's commendable performance. The opening scene provides a glimpse of the phrase ‘Pursuit of Happiness’ and later on we see Gardner realizing that happiness is elusive involving constant act of pursuit. Based in the background of 1981 when the US was going through one of its worst recession and economic downfall with employment rate going above 10%, the movie captures the real suffering of American people at that time, their poor financial condition, homelessness and lack of jobs. Throughput the struggling period of Gardner's life, Gardner got support from his 5 years old son who with his innocent stories ultimately made him realize that the savior was around the corner under the cover of internship. Through categorizing the struggling period of his life into five different chapters, Gardner brought forth the significance each chapter held in his life. The Rubik's Cube that helped him make an impression on the manager of Dean Witter Reynolds was symbolic of Gardner's disarrayed life. The bone density scanner that he carried on his shoulder all along was the representation of the onus of problems. His unwavering fortitude and perseverance in the face of struggles and his persistent pursuit of happiness ultimately brought him closer to his goal when upon bagging the job of a broker he summed up, "This part of my life this little part is called 'Happiness" (The Pursuit of Happyness Quotes).

Analysis of the Pursuit of Happyness, Scribd, Retrieved on 4th June 2013 from <http://www.scribd.com/doc/96505548/The-Pursuit-of-Happyness-Analysis> Bostrom, Nick. and Cirkovic, Milan M. Big Troubles, Imagined and Real, Retrieved on 4th June 2013 from <http://www.paradise-engineering.com/quotation/> Hamilton, Carol V. The Surprising Origins and Meaning of the “Pursuit of Happiness,” History News Network, Retrieved on 4th June 2013 from <http://hnn.us/articles/46460.html> The Economy in the 1980s, U.S. Department of State, About.com. Retrieved on 4th June 2013 from <http://economics.about.com/od/useconomichistory/a/economy_1980s.htm> The Pursuit of Happyness Quotes, Rotten Tomatoes, Retrieved on 4th June 2013 from <http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/pursuit_of_happyness/quotes/>

Cite this page

Share with friends using:

Removal Request

Finished papers: 1507

This paper is created by writer with

ID 253653431

If you want your paper to be:

Well-researched, fact-checked, and accurate

Original, fresh, based on current data

Eloquently written and immaculately formatted

275 words = 1 page double-spaced

Get your papers done by pros!

Other Pages

Accessibility argumentative essays, saliva creative writings, fringe creative writings, pile creative writings, hug creative writings, wage increase creative writings, shawl creative writings, deviant creative writings, drinking water creative writings, reaction time creative writings, monologue creative writings, market value creative writings, bile creative writings, free critical thinking on definition of religion chapter 1, benefits of linkedin term paper examples, story literature review, do college rankings matter argumentative essay samples, free essay on the effects of poverty on children, dieting makes people fat essay examples, free collective critique of the 10 designated peer presentations essay sample, chrysler building and the empire state building research papers examples, caucasian questions and response book reviews example, positive psychology essay examples, good example of other article review, lifestyle assessment essay example, example of alternative incentives essay, specialties missing in our healthcare reform strategies article review, article review on the origin of old earth geology, good whether age group race marital status gender degree is matter for confidence research paper example, example of essay on ceasar chavez, free the quiz show course work sample, course work on carbon footprint, good eating disorders essay example 2, acute respiratory distress syndrome research paper examples, evidence based maternity care postoperative pain management after caesarean section essays examples, good example of developing professional identity essay, forman essays, easy task essays, customer response essays, thee essays, civil society essays, inner peace essays, antisocial behavior essays.

Password recovery email has been sent to [email protected]

Use your new password to log in

You are not register!

By clicking Register, you agree to our Terms of Service and that you have read our Privacy Policy .

Now you can download documents directly to your device!

Check your email! An email with your password has already been sent to you! Now you can download documents directly to your device.

or Use the QR code to Save this Paper to Your Phone

The sample is NOT original!

Short on a deadline?

Don't waste time. Get help with 11% off using code - GETWOWED

No, thanks! I'm fine with missing my deadline

Home — Essay Samples — Entertainment — In Pursuit of Happiness — Rhetorical Analysis Of Will Smith’s Speech From The Movie Pursuit Of Happyness

Rhetorical Analysis of Will Smith’s Speech from The Movie Pursuit of Happyness

• Categories: Film Analysis In Pursuit of Happiness Will Smith

About this sample

Words: 1031 |

Published: Aug 6, 2021

Words: 1031 | Pages: 2 | 6 min read

Works Cited

• Muccino, Gabriele, director. The Pursuit of Happyness. Sony Pictures, 2006.

Cite this Essay

To export a reference to this article please select a referencing style below:

Let us write you an essay from scratch

• 450+ experts on 30 subjects ready to help
• Custom essay delivered in as few as 3 hours

Get high-quality help

Dr. Karlyna PhD

Verified writer

• Expert in: Entertainment

+ 120 experts online

By clicking “Check Writers’ Offers”, you agree to our terms of service and privacy policy . We’ll occasionally send you promo and account related email

No need to pay just yet!

Related Essays

2.5 pages / 1050 words

4.5 pages / 2017 words

4 pages / 1928 words

2.5 pages / 1123 words

Remember! This is just a sample.

You can get your custom paper by one of our expert writers.

121 writers online

Still can’t find what you need?

Browse our vast selection of original essay samples, each expertly formatted and styled

Related Essays on In Pursuit of Happiness

University of Zurich. (2019, March 18). People who feel fulfilled in their lives are happier. ScienceDaily. Retrieved July 13, 2021 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/03/190318093210.htmUniversity of Michigan. (2021). [...]

Released in 2006 and directed by Gabriele Muccino, "The Pursuit of Happyness" stands as an evocative representation of resilience and the unyielding pursuit of success despite towering adversities. Based on a true story, the [...]

Life is a struggle for single father Chris Gardner in 1981, San Francisco. Evicted from their apartment, he and his young son find themselves with no place to go. Jumping around town, barely surviving by selling a 40-pound [...]

The film “The Pursuit of Happyness”, directed by Gabrielle Muccino, tells the true-life experiences of Chris Gardner who faces many hard obstacles. He struggles to overcome these obstacles in order to create a better life for [...]

Pursuit of Happiness is about a family living check by check, just trying to get by. The husband Chris, that sells bone scanner machines. He had bought into these machines, thinking they would be a big hit, but not knowing that [...]

In ‘The Pursuit of Happyness’ I believe Will Smith did an exceptional performance in his performing abilities. The movie exceeded the action and romantic films Will Smith is known for. He illustrated the position of Chris [...]

Related Topics

By clicking “Send”, you agree to our Terms of service and Privacy statement . We will occasionally send you account related emails.

Where do you want us to send this sample?

By clicking “Continue”, you agree to our terms of service and privacy policy.

Be careful. This essay is not unique

This essay was donated by a student and is likely to have been used and submitted before

Download this Sample

Free samples may contain mistakes and not unique parts

Sorry, we could not paraphrase this essay. Our professional writers can rewrite it and get you a unique paper.

Please check your inbox.

We can write you a custom essay that will follow your exact instructions and meet the deadlines. Let's fix your grades together!

Get Your Personalized Essay in 3 Hours or Less!

We use cookies to personalyze your web-site experience. By continuing we’ll assume you board with our cookie policy .

• Instructions Followed To The Letter
• Deadlines Met At Every Stage
• Unique And Plagiarism Free