The Pursuit of Realyty

We watched "The Pursuit of Happyness" last night at our house. It is intense. I am going to spoil it for you now, though no worse than any trailer does these days.

It is based on the true story of Chris Gardner, played by Will Smith, who overcame incredible odds to become a stockbroker, after a disappointing life as a medical equipment salesman who lost his wife and home. He manages to get an internship with an investment firm, one of twenty of whom one will be chosen for a job at the end. The internship is unpaid, which means that Chris and his son end up being homeless while he's doing the internship. As you can probably guess (because why would they make the movie otherwise?) he gets the job at the end.

It's a very intense, at times depressing and hard to take movie. And, of course, it's very inspiring, as it is intended to be. But there are some other things that result from the creation of this movie as well, things that are more subtle.

The good stuff first: There is a pretty accurate portrayal of some of the many obstacles that face the "have-nots" in our country. Everything seems to go wrong at once. Basic transportation is a major obstacle that causes other problems. Things get stolen from you because you don't have safe places to store them. Jobs are hard to get because you can't always show up dressed appropriately. It's hard to catch a break when you're so far behind.

There is also a very moving and fairly accurate (as far as I know) representation of the homeless shelter at Glide Memorial Methodist Church in San Francisco and its pastor, Rev. Cecil Williams. In one of the special features, the actual Chris Gardner talks about how the first draft of the script didn't include him specifically and how he insisted that Rev. Williams have a role. He plays himself, which is probably anachronistic, since it's 20 years later, but who cares?

The difficulty I have with this movie is that is ends up becoming another volume in the canon of American dream, you-can-pull-yourself-up-by-your-own-bootstraps stories. They actually talk about that in the special features, when they're discussing how they got an Italian director, because only foreigners really get the American dream. Or something like that. I felt better about the movie before I watched that part. Because it made me realize something else.

Chris Gardner has an amazing story. He overcame incredible odds. He worked harder and faced challenges than most of us will ever have to. But the other thing is that Chris Gardner is demonstrably smarter, both intellectually and socially, than the average American. This is illustrated in one scene where he solves a Rubix cube in just a few minutes. But it's not necessarily given the emphasis it deserves, especially in a society that has, until very recently, been so hostile to intelligence. He managed to do what he did -- what most people could not do -- because he was way smarter than most people.

Which means the actual moral of the story is not that anyone can achieve the American dream, but that you really only have a shot at it (assuming it's not handed to you by virtue of birth) if you are extraordinarily gifted in multiple ways. I know that's not very uplifting, but it's more real than the other. But it's also something the movie doesn't want to focus on. Because if it did, people wouldn't be so excited about watching it.

It's worth watching. Perhaps because it is more complex than it wants us to think it is. There are also stellar performances from Will Smith and his son Jaden. Their chemistry, and quite frankly, Jaden's acting chops are a joy to watch. There is a lot to learn from this movie. It just might not be what Hollywood is trying to sell.