Seven Pounds

This is a difficult one to review. The movie is billed as a big super secret ending. Unfortunately, said ending is obvious from the first scene. This doesn't really detracted from the power content of the movie, it just makes the advertising a little misleading.

I don't want to give too much away, so I'll just say that Will Smith stars as Ben Thomas, a man on a mission to atone for his sins. He tries to dedicate his life to being the ultimate good Samaritan, sacrificing whatever he can. Rosario Dawson stars along side him as the new found love of his life, Emily Posa, and one of his targets for good deeds.

The chemistry between the two leads is wonderful- probably the best part of the movie. Will Smith is definitely one of the best actors of his generation, and Rosario Dawson manages to pull out emotional performances in a wide variety of roles. The relationship is even more powerful with the knowledge of what is to come later in the movie.

I harp on the lack of surprise, but after thinking about long after the movie was over, it almost enhances the theme. We know what Thomas has to do, and it's heartbreaking seeing him continue to go through with it.

Woody Harrelson continues what could be thought of as a career revitalization. It took nearly a decade for him to recapture the brilliance he portrayed in Natural Born Killers. In the last several years he's run the gambit from equally violent movies like No Country For Old Men, to brilliant sci-fi flicks (Scanner Darkly). Seven Pounds took him in an even different direction, portraying one of the kindest people I have seen captured on screen in some time.

Seven Pounds was okay. It wasn't terribly memorable, and clearly mis advertised. I enjoyed watching it, but it just couldn't meet my expectations.

2.5/5