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Will Smith returns to the big screen tomorrow with his new flick, “Focus.” Here are five more Smith favorites.
Six Degrees of Separation (1993)
Smith’s finest film to date was also his big breakthrough, wherein he played Paul, a con-artist who convinces a posh New York couple (Stockard Channing and Donald Sutherland) that he’s chums with their Ivy League kids — and the son of Sidney Poitier. Paul’s infiltration of an Upper West Side clan does more than move him up the social ladder — it upends the family’s social views.
Independence Day (1996)
Before movies about creatures blowing up cities were a dime a dozen, Roland Emmerich had viewers gobsmacked with his alien-invasion disasterpiece, which saw the White House gloriously blown to smithereens. Smith played a military pilot who formed an unlikely partnership with a plucky nerd (Jeff Goldblum), and their respective brawn and brains likely saved the next landmark.
Bad Boys II (2003)
Say what you will about Michael Bay (namely, that he’s a greedy, sexist, man-boy of a filmmaker), but the director sure knows how to put on a chic spectacle. In this sequel to Bay’s 1995 hit, Smith and Martin Lawrence reprise their roles as Miami cops who might kill each other before the bad guys. Bay ups the ante with epic action sequences, like a car chase involving a boat on a trailer and vehicles that feel like they’re whizzing overhead.
The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)
Smith earned his second Oscar nod (following 2001’s “Ali”) for playing real-life figure Chris Gardner, who struggled, along with his son (played by Smith’s son, Jaden), with a year-long bout of homelessness. The triumph of this don’t-give-up weepie is primarily thanks to Smith, whose paternal instincts lend themselves to a heartbreaking performance.
I Am Legend (2007)
A highly atmospheric adaptation of Richard Matheson’s novel, this post-apocalyptic one-man show leaves Smith alone in an abandoned New York with his dog — until the nocturnal zombies show up. “I Am Legend” stands out as one of the rare bloodsucking, populist films with genuine pathos. Amid his character’s loneliness, Smith makes a chat with a mannequin aim straight for your tear ducts.
Contact the South Philly Review at editor@southphillyreview.com.
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