Oral Research part1: Genre and Audience

The film The Pursuit of Happyness (2006) is a biography on the life of Christopher Gardner, and is also a drama. This film can be classified as a drama due to its use of the themes of losing everything and trying to find one's place in the world. The classification of the drama genre is commenced when there is tension between Chris Gardner (Will Smith) and his wife and his wife leaves him, and after that his life continued to go downhill until he catches a break by being offered and internship. This turning point defines the film as a drama and allows for further development of the concept that one can still accomplish great things if they just persevere.

This film connects to the film Seven Pounds, another film by director Gabriele Muccino in which Will Smith stars. These films connect in that both of the main characters suffer tremendous loss, and choose to keep fighting to do good in the world rather than just giving up because the odds are against them. In addition, both characters experience a loss of a loved one, and the characters have to deal with the fact that it is their fault.

This film was made by Gabriele Muccino and written by Steve Conrad. This movie was based off real life events and Christopher Gardner's memoir The Pursuit of Happyness. The main purpose of the movie is to inform others about the troubles of life, and that everyone can achieve the American Dream. Also, this film helped to capture the emergence of the homeless, especially in San Francisco.

We can learn from the director by looking at the themes and also the family he depicts. He depicts a struggling American family going through a difficult economic time, as the country was having economic trouble as well. The rift that the burden caused stopped them from being able to be happy. Additionally, in the except, he depicts the strength of human character when it seems like nothing is going in Chris's favor, he still tries his hardest to remain strong. It is harder to find directorial preferences in this novel due to the fact that it is based on a true story and also based off of a book. A thematic connection is the loss of a loved one, as seen in Seven Pounds, where Smith also starred while Muccino was the director. While this film feels the blame because he couldn't make ends meet, in the latter movie the main character has to deal with the fact that the death of the love of his life was his own fault, along with the death of 6 other strangers. Similar stylistic choices include a lot of transitional shots with music playing and the actor usually in a pensive mood.

The most prominent theme in the novel is definitely perseverance because it can be seen in almost every part of the movie. It plays its largest role in the excerpt I chose because my excerpt depicts Chris when he is at his lowest point, he has a little over $21 left in his bank account and has lost the only friend he had that is shown to us. In addition, he is growing increasingly irritable as he yells at his son and is unsure what to say when his son says he wants to go home.

This film is aimed at anyone that has ever gone through a rough patch in their lives, especially single fathers. Muccino wants the audience to recognize the difficulties of life and that if one continues to try and persevere, the American Dream is never out of reach.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0454921/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pursuit_of_Happyness
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0814314/synopsis