THE PURSUIT OF HAPPYNESS
RYAN: We just walked out of “The Pursuit of Happyness,” which I saw because Will Smith was nominated for a Best Actor Golden Globe, and which you saw because for months you’ve been telling me you wanted to cry during this film.
CAROLINE: I was excited for this movie. Every time I saw the trailer I thought, “Wow, this is gonna be a great tearjerker, an emotional journey,” – and oh that it were.
RYAN: All I can is, if you hadn’t cried, I’d never speak to you again. I felt like you owed it to me to well up with tears, and thankfully you did.
CAROLINE: I did, but only in the last five minutes because the rest of it was slow and boring.
RYAN: This is one of the slowest-moving films of the year. Period.
CAROLINE: Totally. Nothing happens.
RYAN: And this is a film where you know the beginning, middle and end just from the trailer. And you’re kind of just kind of waiting to see each of those points hit throughout the film, and it couldn’t have been more tedious.
CAROLINE: We all know this is based on a true story of a man who faced homelessness and then got a great job, and made some real money,
but it took so long to get to each point in the film that I was like, “Where is the drama?”
RYAN: That being said, Thandie Newton was outstanding. She’s gorgeous and very intense.
CAROLINE: I liked her a lot in her fight scenes with Will Smith. Howe’er, we must put her in the Kate Bosworth Anorexia Club because my God! She is dying she’s so skinny!
RYAN: She’s very frail-looking but I feel like she always has been. It’s not like she got suddenly skinny.
CAROLINE: True. But it’s scary-looking and she needs to eat a big sandwich.
RYAN: And little Jaden Christopher Syre Smith was fine, but considering how great the performances have been by kids in movies this year, such as in “Babel” and …what’s the other one where the kids were brilliant?
CAROLINE: “The Holiday.”
RYAN: Yes. We’ve seen some movies with incredible performances by children this year so with Jaden Smith, I liked seeing him act with his real dad, but they didn’t even give him any great scenes.
CAROLINE: Yeah, he was fine. He was passable. You’re watching it and thinking, “Oh how cute, that’s his real-life son,” but I was annoyed by it because I was also thinking, “Oh look, Daddy bought you a part in a Hollywood movie.”
RYAN: Exactly, Will was the highest bidder. And as far as he goes, I pray he doesn’t get nominated for an Oscar because honestly, he was merely fine in this. There’s maybe one moment of brilliance and emotion but I don’t think you can judge an entire performance by one great moment. I don’t even think he’s deserving of the Golden Globe nomination.
CAROLINE: I concur. This is a decent vehicle for him and he played it well enough, but I don’t see why he should get an Oscar nom. I mean, sometimes you walk out of a movie and say, “Ok, the movie wasn’t so good but the lead actor was great,” but this wasn’t one of those times.
RYAN: I’d rather have seen Patrick Wilson get nominated for “Little Children.”
CAROLINE: Yes, you love that movie. Bottom line?
RYAN: It’s not a bad movie but it’s a boring movie. And you know what? Save some time and just watch the trailer.
CAROLINE: Yeah, if you know anything about this movie ahead of time, then you know the whole movie already and there’s very little to fill in the weak spots. Wait to see it on cable.