Q&A USA

감독: Gabriele Muccino

주연: Will Smith/Thandie Newton/Jaden Smith

* This film is based on book ‘The Pursuit of Happyness’ by Chris Gardner

의료기기를 판매하는 세일즈맨인 크리스 가드너(윌 스미스)는 물건을 팔기 위해 하루하루 매일 최선을 다하지만 성과는 마음대로 되지 않는다. 결국 아내는 집을 떠나고, homeless 신세가 된다.

절망적이지만 하나뿐인 아들 ‘크리스토퍼’(제이든 스미스)를 위해서 살아남아야 하는 그에게 기회가 찾아 온다. 치열한 경쟁 속에서 반드시 행복해져야 하는 그의 절실한 도전이 시작되는 story.

In 1981, San Francisco salesman Chris Gardner invests his entire life savings in portable bone density scanners, which he demonstrates to doctors and pitches as a handy quantum leap over standard X-rays. The scanners play a vital role in his life. While he is able to sell most of them, the time lag between the sales and his growing financial demands enrage his already bitter and alienated wife Linda, who works as a hotel maid. The financial instability increasingly erodes their marriage, in spite of them caring for Christopher Jr., their soon-to-be five-year-old son. Because Chris has trouble selling the scanners, as they only produce a slightly better picture than a common X-ray but for a much higher price, and hence does not have enough money to make ends meet, Linda has to work double shifts.

While Gardner is trying to sell one of the scanners, he meets Jay Twistle, a manager for Dean Witter Reynolds, and impresses him by solving a Rubik's Cube during a taxi ride. (This incident did not happen in real life. It was added to the movie for artistic reasons.) After Jay leaves, Gardner lacks money to pay the fare and chooses to run instead, causing the driver to angrily chase him into a BART station. Gardner boards a train but loses one of his scanners in the process. His new relationship with Jay earns him the chance to become an intern stockbroker. The day before the interview, Gardner grudgingly agrees to paint his apartment so as to postpone being evicted due to his difficulty in paying the rent. While painting, Gardner is greeted by two policemen at his doorstep, who take him to the station, stating he has to pay for the numerous parking tickets he has accumulated. As part of the sanction, Gardner is ordered to spend the night in jail instead, complicating his schedule for the interview the next morning. He manages to arrive at Dean Witter's office on time, albeit still in his shabby clothes, wearing his undershirt, a gray jacket and jeans, which have paint splashes on them. Despite his appearance, he impresses the interviewers and lands an unpaid internship. He would be among 20 interns competing for a paid position as a stockbroker.

Gardner's unpaid internship does not please Linda, who eventually leaves for New York because she might get a job at her sister's boyfriend's new restaurant. After Gardner bluntly says she is incapable of being a single mom, she agrees that Christopher Jr. will remain with his dad. Gardner is further set back when his bank account is garnished by the IRS for unpaid income taxes, and he and Christopher are evicted. He ends up with only $21.33, resulting in them being homeless, and they are forced at one point to stay in a restroom at a BART station overnight. Other days, he and Christopher spend nights at a homeless shelter, in BART, or, if he manages to procure sufficient cash, at a hotel. Later, Gardner finds the bone scanner that he lost in the BART station earlier and, after repairing it, sells it to a physician, thus completing all his sales of his scanners.

Disadvantaged by his limited work hours, and knowing that maximizing his client contacts and profits is the only way to earn the broker position, Gardner develops a number of ways to make phone sales calls more efficiently, including reaching out to potential high-value customers, defying protocol. One sympathetic prospect who is a top-level pension fund manager even takes Chris and Christopher to a San Francisco 49ers game. Regardless of his challenges, he never reveals his lowly circumstances to his colleagues, even going so far as to lend one of his bosses $5 for cab fare, a sum that he cannot afford. Concluding his six-month-internship, Gardner is called into a meeting with his managers. One of them notes he is wearing a new shirt. Gardner explains it is his last day and thought to dress for the occasion. The manager Martin Frohm smiles and says he should wear another new one tomorrow, letting him know that he has won the coveted full-time position and giving him back his $5 as he promised. Fighting back tears, Gardner shakes hands with them, then rushes to his son's daycare to embrace Christopher. They walk down the street, joking with each other (and are passed by the real Chris Gardner, in a business suit). The epilogue reveals that Gardner went on to form his own multimillion-dollar brokerage firm.

감독: Rupert Goold

주연: Jonah Hill/James Franco/Felicity Jones

기사조작으로 뉴욕타임즈에서 해고된 마이클 핀클(Jonah Hill)은 오레건 지역 신문사로부터 핀클행세를 하며 돌아다니던 아내와 세 자녀를 살해한 혐의를 받는 용의자 크리스천 롱고(James Franco)가 체포되었다는 것을 알게 된다. 롱고는 모든 것을 핀클에게만 알려주겠으니 글쓰는 것에 관해 알려달라고 요청한다. 둘은 점점 신뢰를 쌓아가고 핀클은 롱고의 결백을 믿으며 ‘트루 스토리’란 책을 출간할 계획을 갖게 되며 재판이 진행되는 story.

Christian Longo (James Franco), an Oregon man whose wife and three children have been discovered murdered, is arrested by police in Mexico, where he had been identifying himself as a reporter for the New York Times named Michael Finkel.

In New York City, Michael Finkel (Jonah Hill) is an ambitious and successful reporter. He is confronted by his editors about a story he has written and has featured on the cover of the New York Times Magazine, who accuse him of using a composite character as the focus of his story, a violation of basic reporting principles. Finkel briefly attempts to defend his actions, but he is unsuccessful and is fired. He returns home to his wife (Felicity Jones), and struggles to find work as a journalist due to his public firing from the Times.

Finkel is contacted by a reporter for The Oregonian, who is seeking his opinion on Christian Longo's theft of his identity. Finkel, who was not aware of Longo's case at all, is intrigued, and arranges to meet with Longo in prison. During their first conversation, Longo claims that he has followed Finkel for his entire career and always admired his writing. Longo agrees to tell Finkel his side of the crimes he is accused of, in exchange for writing lessons and Finkel's promise not to share their conversations until after the conclusion of the murder trial.

Finkel becomes increasingly absorbed with Longo, who is likeable but evasive about his guilt. Convinced that the story will be redemptive, Finkel visits Longo in prison and corresponds with him for several months. Longo sends Finkel numerous letters as well as an eighty-page notebook entitled "Wrong Turns", which contains what Longo describes as a list of every mistake he has made in his life. Finkel begins to recognize similarities between Longo and himself, their handwriting and drawing, and Longo's letters and Finkel's personal journals. As the trial approaches, Finkel grows increasingly doubtful that Longo is guilty of the murders, and Longo informs Finkel he intends changing his plea to not guilty.

In court, Longo pleads not guilty to two of the murders, but pleads guilty to the murder of his wife and one of his daughters. Finkel confronts Longo, who claims that he can not share everything he knows because he has to protect certain individuals, whom he refuses to name. Greg Ganley (Robert John Burke), the detective who tracked Longo down and arrested him, approaches Finkel, and claims that Longo is an extremely dangerous and manipulative man. He tries to convince Finkel to turn over as evidence all of his correspondence with Longo. Finkel refuses and Ganley does not press him for an explanation.

At the trial, Longo takes the stand and describes his version of the events in detail. He claims that, after an argument with his wife about their financial situation, he had come home to discover two of his children missing, one of his daughters unconscious, and his wife sobbing, saying that she put the children "in the water". Longo says that he strangled his wife to death in a blind rage. He says he thought his other daughter was dead at first, but then realized that she was still breathing and strangled her as well because she was all but dead. Finkel's wife, Jill, watches Longo's testimony.

As the jury deliberates, Jill visits Longo in jail and tells him that he is a narcissistic murderer who will never escape who he is.

Longo is found guilty of all four charges and sentenced to death. After he is sentenced, he winks at Finkel, who to his shock and rage, realizes that Longo has been lying throughout their conversations, using him in order to make his testimony more believable. A short time later, Finkel meets Longo on death row. Longo tries to convince Finkel that he discovered his wife strangling their daughter and then blacked out, so that he has no memory of the murders. Finkel angrily tells Longo that he will not believe any more of his lies and will warn the judge when Longo appeals his sentence of Longo's manipulative nature. Longo retorts by pointing out the success Finkel has had with his book about their encounters, leaving the reporter shaken.

Finkel reads a section of his book, entitled True Story, at a promotional event in a bookstore. Taking questions from the audience, he imagines Longo standing in the back of the room. Longo says that, if he has lost his freedom, Finkel must have lost something as well. Finkel is unable to respond.

Title cards reveal that Longo admitted, a year later, to killing his entire family. Although Finkel never wrote for the "New York Times" again, Longo has contributed articles to a number of publications from death row, including the "New York Times." The final title card reads that Finkel and Longo still speak on the first Sunday of every month.