MOVIE REVIEW:
Seven Pounds
By Tara Bartgis
ASST. COPY EDITOR
The Klaude Kendrick Library offers many movies for the student body. Students can now check out Seven Pounds on DVD.
In Seven Pounds (2008), a film directed by Gabriele Muccino, Ben Thomas is looking to transform the lives of seven people he doesn’t know. His reasoning? A terrible secret that only he knows. His method? Suicide.
Will Smith stars as Ben, an IRS agent who only wants to help people, but harbors some dark secrets of his own. Smith performs excellently in a demanding role. He continues to get rid of the funny character that he has consistently played in the past—something his fans can only expect after his performance in the similarly serious film The Pursuit of Happyness.
Rosario Dawson plays Emily Posa, a young woman suffering from life-threatening congenital heart failure. Posa is also one of the potential recipients for Ben’s kindness. As the two get to know each other, she becomes his love interest as well. Dawson is excellent alongside Smith.
There are six other people that Ben give his anonymous gifts to. They include a mother of a young boy with leukemia, a single mother with an abusive boyfriend, a child services worker, a blind customer service representative, a junior hockey coach for underprivileged kids and Ben’s own brother.
The pieces of this mysterious puzzle aren’t all shown in a logical order, so sometimes the plot can be a tad confusing. In the end, however, most of the loose ends are completely tied up. The film is still a moving one and can be the start to many great conversations.
Seven Pounds is rated PG-13 by the Motion Pictures Assocication of America for “thematic material, some disturbing content and a scene of sensuality.”
I give this movie three stars. While Smith’s performance was excellent and the plot was fascinating, the end left something to be desired.