Movie

The Pursuit of Happyness

Name: The Pursuit of Happyness
Released: 2006

2006 • Biography, Drama

Woke Score

out of 10

Plot

Based on a true story about a man named Christopher Gardner. Gardner has invested heavily in a device known as a "bone density scanner". He feels like he has it made selling these devices. However, they do not sell well as they are marginally better than x-ray at a much higher price. As Gardner works to make ends meet, his wife leaves him and he loses his apartment. Forced to live out in the streets with his son, Gardner continues to sell bone density scanners while concurrently taking on an unpaid internship as a stockbroker, with slim chances for advancement to a paid position. Before he can receive pay, he needs to outshine the competition through 6 months of training, and to sell his devices to stay afloat.

Overall Series Review

The Pursuit of Happyness is a biographical drama that tells the story of Chris Gardner's relentless struggle to rise from homelessness and financial ruin to a successful career as a stockbroker. The film's narrative is fundamentally centered on the classic American ideals of meritocracy, individualism, and perseverance. It is a powerful testament to a father's dedication, showcasing how raw intelligence, hard work, and a protective love for his son allow him to overcome immense poverty and institutional barriers. The movie's core message is that an individual can achieve their dreams through unyielding effort, which places it in direct contrast with modern narratives focused on systemic privilege and oppression. The main antagonist to the protagonist's success is not societal structure but the sheer difficulty of his circumstances and the abandonment by his wife. The film celebrates traditional family roles, fatherhood, and capitalist ambition.

Categorical Breakdown

Identity Politics3/10

The narrative focuses on a black protagonist whose success is based entirely on merit and hard work, emphasizing the universal nature of the American Dream. There is no lecturing on systemic oppression or vilification of whiteness. The story implicitly critiques structural inequality by showing the extreme hardships Chris faces, and he does experience microaggressions from some white colleagues, which is the only element preventing a 1/10 score.

Oikophobia1/10

The central theme is the affirmation of the American Dream and the belief in the nation's capacity for social mobility through individual effort. Institutions like fatherhood and the church (which provides shelter) are portrayed positively as essential structures that provide protection and support against chaos, directly opposing the definition of civilizational self-hatred.

Feminism2/10

The story centers on the heroic, protective, and devoted masculinity of the father who struggles to care for his son. The mother character leaves the family to pursue a life that is financially more stable, effectively abandoning her son and is positioned as the film's source of domestic chaos, which counters an anti-natalist or 'Girl Boss' narrative.

LGBTQ+1/10

The movie contains no material related to alternative sexualities, gender ideology, or a critique of the nuclear family structure for ideological reasons. The focus remains strictly on the traditional family unit of a father and his biological son.

Anti-Theism1/10

Faith and organized religion are portrayed positively, with a church serving as a crucial refuge for the homeless, including the protagonist and his son. The film uses the church as a resource for community support, indicating a transcendent morality and strength found in faith, not hostility toward it.