Seven Pounds is truly about the tragedy of human suffering, the need to feel redeemed after human mistakes happen and human compassion. The film also deals with love on several levels at once; and that's both thought-provoking and sophisticated. This film is not what you think it will be when you sit down and watch it--not even after a full hour. The filmmakers are masters at skillfully showcasing the human condition in tough situations, to say the least, right up until the very end of the movie. Seven Pounds starts with the shocking scene of a man calling 911 to report his own suicide; and the rest of the movie continues with more surprises, drama, excellent acting by all and a few flashbacks that help to flesh out the story. The plot twists are very good and keep the film interesting. There are one or two spots where they could have edited out a couple of minutes; but by the end the film is a very good experience that should stimulate a lot of conversation. The cinematography is very well done and the choreography works best in the nursing home scenes as well as the scenes at the hospital. Once we see Ben Thomas (Will Smith) calling in his own suicide to 911; the movie goes forward by showing Ben to be a tormented man haunted by the loss of his former wife. How exactly did she die? We learn that in bits and pieces of flashbacks throughout the film. What does take center stage, though, is that because he believes he was partly to blame for his wife's death, Ben quits his job as an engineer and decides to help seven strangers in his own way. Among the people Ben helps are blind customer service agent Ezra Turner (Woody Harrelson); a man to whom Ben gives one of his kidneys when Ben sees that the fellow is a real do-gooder; and a young boy with cancer who gets a bone marrow transplant from Ben. Ben even gives his home to a woman constantly beaten by her boyfriend; and Ben develops a friendship with Emily Posa (Rosario Dawson), a young woman who needs a heart transplant if she is to live more than a few weeks. We know what Ben originally intends to do after he helps these people and the others; but a few very real surprises crop up that could change things easily. Ben soon finds himself conflicted; he has fallen in love with Emily but he is still so tormented by the memories of the accident that took his late wife that he must choose between his previous plans and Emily. Ben must also deal with his brother (Michael Ealy) who confronts him about something really big; his brother throws a huge curve ball into the plot that I had no idea was coming! In the end, Ben chooses what he feels is best for all concerned and even then the movie still gives you an unexpected tearjerker scene at the very last minute. The DVD comes with some nice extras including an optional running commentary with director Gabriele Muccino, deleted scenes, and a featurette of seven interviews with seven people who made this film a reality. Excellent! Seven Pounds deserved more artistic recognition than it received. Fortunately, however, we can still appreciate this film as a significant work of art and that's grand. I highly recommend this film for people interested in human issues; and people interested in drama may also want to have this movie in their collections.