My Side of The Blind Side

I took a look at the Oscar-winning film, The Blind Side, yesterday.  And I see why so many people love it.  It was one of those family-oriented, heartfelt films that anyone of all ages can enjoy.  It had that basic formula that all the sports films have about down-and-out athletes who want to make it.  You know that formula...

• People around them don’t think they have the talent to make it
• They have the talent but no one has given them a chance
•  In the end they beat the odds and surprise everyone
  

Pretty standard.

The movie is the story of the Baltimore Ravens’ offensive left tackle, Micheal Oher.  As a child in Memphis, Tennessee he grew up in the projects as the son of a drug-addicted mother and had little to no care being shuffled around from one foster home to another while also spending some time homeless on the streets.  This would all change for him one day due to an older guy in Oher’s neighborhood, ‘Big Tony’ Hamilton, who let him sleep on the couch occasionally.  In the movie 'Big Tony' convinces the football coach of a private school to admit Michael Oher in along with his own son.  And so the story began...

Being admitted to the private school did not change Oher’s situation right away as he was still homeless and out on the streets.  That is until the wife and mother of one of the prominent families in the school took notice.  Leigh Anne Tuohy (Sandra Bullock) with her husband Sean (Tim McGraw) and children decide to take Michael in.  As Leigh Anne Tuohy does some investigating she finds out that Michael is not doing so well in his classes or out on the football field.   His reading level is very low but he does listen in class.  As teachers begin to give him assignments and tests orally instead of written down, his grades begin to improve.  L. A. Tuohy also uses the fact that Oher has high protective instincts to teach him his position and role on the football field.  As Michael begins to flourish on the football field there is no doubt that major college coaches took notice and came calling.

As major colleges begin recruiting Michael there is some talk about the Tuohy’s motives behind inviting Michael in their home in the first place.  Was it so they could breed and condition him to play for their alma mater, University of Mississippi?  While the Tuohy’s insist that was not the case and left the decision up to Michael, he did turn out playing for the university (Ole Miss) and of course later going to the pros.

Just Me:   I did enjoy this movie but I had some issues with it.  And as it turns out…so did the real Michael Oher but I will get to that later.  The most entertaining character in the film was Leigh Anne Tuohy played by Sandra Bullock.  She was a beautiful, smart, tough, and strong-minded wife, mother, and career woman who was used to having her way.  Throughout the movie she took charge in every situation.  Leigh Ann didn’t seem to care what others such as her stuck-up snobby friends thought about taking in ‘Big Mike’.   Sandra Bullock, being who she is, brought an immense amount of infectious love and southern charm to her character in her interactions and endearing feelings towards Michael.  But the entire movie seemed to be about her?  It was from her perspective and all the different situations involving Michael did not show how it affected him.  It was how it affected her.  I just didn’t get that?  It was his story, right?  Not hers. 

Michael Oher’s character only said about 30 words and 8 complete sentences throughout the whole movie.  I wasn’t counting but that’s my estimate.  I also just found it hard to believe his only friend was the Tuohy’s youngest son who was in elementary school.  Oher played on the football team in high school.  And everyone knew him as ‘Big Mike’.  You mean to tell me he didn’t interact with anyone his own age?  He had no friends?  Hmmm….I doubt it.  I know he was somewhat reserved but they made him out to be some Michael Jackson Never-Neverland type.  I just don’t think that was the case.

And then the guy in the beginning of the movie who really made all this happen --- what happened to him?  In the beginning of the movie it starts off with a guy, ‘Big Tony’ Hamilton talking to the football coach of a private school in Memphis.  Hamilton is trying to get his son admitted to the school but decides to motivate the coach to admit Michael as well.  ‘Big Tony’ was an older friend of Oher’s who would let him sleep at his house occasionally to keep him off the streets.  Even though ‘Big Tony’ admits Michael’s grades aren’t the greatest, he tells the coach that he wouldn’t regret admitting Michael because of his athletic skills.  And of course the coach finally gives in and pushes for the school to admit Michael in.  Now I was surprised that you never saw ‘Big Tony’ again throughout the entire movie.  It was obvious he cared about Michael and put himself on the line to make a difference in his future.  I can assume there were so many other people in Michael’s neighborhood as well.  But of course the movie only showed the project thugs and drug dealers.   
As I said all in all I enjoyed the movie.

Now for Michael Oher’s perspective…..
If you noticed when this film was being promoted, you didn't see much of Michael Oher?  There were many interviews with the real Leigh Anne Tuohy and the rest of the family but not much of Michael.  This is because he didn't appreciate the way he was portrayed in the film which basically was 'dumb'.  So Oher has decided to write his version of his story.  It is a memoir titled: I Beat the Odds: My Amazing Journey from Foster Care to the NFL and Beyond.  It is scheduled to be published next February.