The Blind Side Review

By Perry Meas, Staff Writer

John Lee Hancock\’s Oscar winning motion picture may come across to many as a conventional story about overcoming the odds of athletic life, but its apparent social and spiritual message remains a keynote of this part-sports drama part-biographical film centered on the journey of real-life professional football start Michael Oher from complete destitution to personal success.

The life of Michael Oher (Quinton Aaron) could have ended at anytime by starvation, disease, or by handgun. As a neglected African American teenager, Michael struggled through life in poverty-stricken and crime-ridden Memphis Tennessee. Orphaned by the recent death of his father who worked tirelessly to enroll him into a prestigious private school away from the Memphis slums, Michael seemed all but lost. While walking the streets, cold and homeless, Michael was rescued and adopted by Leigh Tuohy (Sandra Bullock) and her wealthy white family.

At first, the odds seemed to be against Michael, who initially did not fit in at all among his wealthy and caucasian peers. His teachers had no faith in his academic abilities and his classmates avoided him for his imposing height and their social prejudices. Yet, beneath his great height and intimidating appearance, Michael proved to be a quiet and extremely shy and sensitive young man, one who was very much aware of the world around him.

With the support of his adopting family, the Tuohy\’s, Michael worked to improve his school grades so that he would be able to play on the football team. Through trial and error, struggle and effort, Michael overcame his academic challenges and was finally able to try out for high school football, beginning the career that is the real Michael Oher. Interestingly enough, Michael had no passion for football during the beginning. But as Michael develops his character, he also develops a love for the game.

As a sports drama, The Blind Side follows the traditional norms of its predecessors: An aspiring athlete is struggling to find success and endures numerous physical trials in order to develop his or her skills for a shot at fame and fortune, while along the way dealing with personal hardships and external conflicts with elements such as society itself.

In this sense, it\’s not cinematically or thematically significant. However, the film\’s intended message and emotional appeal is the predominant attribute as is its bold cast of characters. In the role of Leigh Tuohy, Sandra Bullock is a strong, tough-as-nails, and independent but loyal wife and caring mother of two in her extravagant Memphis home. She is the driving force that pulls Michael from the depths of poverty into a world of plenty; she gives him the care and love he never received as a child and watches him grow into a successful young man.

Michael\’s transformation from hopeless adolescent to rising star is yet another theme centered around the belief that anyone can realize anything if they apply their interest and effort into it; that you\’ll never know where you\’ll end up by doing good in the world, and when one provides an act of charity to another, its more than providing it with the necessitates of survival, you are giving that life a chance to flourish and thrive.

With all this emotional appeal however, The Blind Side still comes off as slightly artificial; its conventional athletic-drama plot at times too simple and predictable. Its heartwarming moments, though impactful, are by-the-book standard, with events ranging from athletic turning points caused by the motivating force of the Tuohy\’s to Leigh\’s impassioned defense of the Michael\’s residence in her Caucasian family\’s home amidst criticism and racial prejudice. But what the Blind Side lacks in innovation, it makes up for it with a strong cast and touching message. Leigh and her supportive husband Sean (Tim McGraw), come across as a real couple, while Michael presents himself as a truly kindhearted individual, protective of his family and friends. Supporting characters such as SJ (Jae Head) and Collins (Lily Collins), the two children of the Tuohy\’s, provide to Michael an outlet in which to express his private feelings and bashful character traits.

Unlike its other sport-drama predecessors, the Blind Side doesn\’t dramatically put the audience on the edge of their seats. It doesn\’t generate the intensity and dramatic suspense found in classic films such as Rocky and Rudy. Instead the film attempts to gently guide the audience down a narrative path of relative calm, lacking in edgy action and giant pitfalls characteristic of the heaviest dramas.

Contrary to the simplicity of the plot, one of the more surprising elements of the film were Michael\’s remote childhood flashbacks, which gave the audience a brief insight into the young man\’s disturbing past, involving years of abuse and forced separation by his parents. The irregularity of these short, one to three second sequences fed the audience\’s interest in the mysterious past of Michael Oher and kept the pace of the film moving toward its final conclusion.

Whether or not this lightly scripted drama appeals to you doesn\’t overshadow the film\’s intention: to teach the audience the importance of self-sacrifice, human compassion, strength in overcoming life\’s struggles, and setting aspiring goals to find success where success would seem all but impossible.

The Blind Side is a noteworthy tale of what anyone can achieve regardless of the circumstances; where racial and social prejudice can be pushed to the side to make way for opportunity and achievement.

Rating: 8/10