Blu Ray Review: THE BLIND SIDE
OWF's original pre-release review of The Blind Side caused something of a storm a few months back [96 comments, the biggest response to any article in OWF history] just as the world was starting to fall for Sandra Bullock again after the whole All About Steve fiasco. On reflection it may have been a little over-inflammatory for its own good - giving an Oscar-winning movie half a star is one thing, but calling it "Sandra Bullock Says Adopt a Negro: Why The Blind Side Offends Me" and the overall sentiment was apparently a step too far for some readers.
Even ignoring its focus on the racial element of The Blind Side, the review was pretty much in the minority in its final evaluation of the movie, given the relatively good reception and Bullock's subsequent Academy recognition (ranging between 65% and 80% across the board).
Personally, I don't necessarily believe that the film is intentionally working towards a Christian propaganda agenda - I merely think that in an attempt to more overtly attach an accessible allegory to the real-life story of Michael Oher it creates a few too many overly-sentimental sequences and casts its vision to include universal appeal. So instead of telling the uplifting story of one man's triumph over adversity helped by an incredibly charitable family, the over-riding message in places is one of religious redemption - the Tuohy family representing the wholesome, religious antithesis to Michael (Big Mike) Oher's difficult background.
In all honesty, the film might have been even better had it gone with a more stripped approach similar to Precious- the film it arguably shares most aspects with- and remained far more humanist than the ultimately pretty sanctimonious final product became.
That isn't to say I didn't enjoy the film - far from it in fact. While there is a definite sense that the director had too much access to the sugar-bowl when it came to conveying emotional messages and the portrayal of the central relationships, both remain evenly and roundly developed on screen. Okay, it's manipulative cinema, but there is a strong pervading heart at the centre of all the schmaltz, and the story of Big Mike is compelling enough to make even the most sentimental or border-line racist passages forgivable.
In response to those who didn't believe that Bullock deserved her Oscar, I would say that the film itself is the perfect answer.
When you take time to consider Bullock's career, she has largely played the same character since way back with Speed in 1994- slightly cooky, comedic but individual type - and any break from that tradition like the hugely popular The Proposal (okay, so it was a minor departure) has been welcomed with both hands. The fact that Bullock is able to cast off the shackles of type-casting and present a character who doesn't immediately appear to be just another version of the archetypal Bullock-figure is not something to be sniffed at (take heed Ryan Reynolds).
Her performance as Leigh Anne Tuohy, as indicated by almost all of the pre-release marketing and publicity, is what the film lives on: and although it purports to be a biopic of Oher, The Blind Side is definitely Bullock's movie.
Big Mike himself is admirably played by Quinton Aaron, his broad shoulders carrying the responsibility of being the emotional balance to Bullock's Tuohy without disappearing and becoming merely a cipher for everything that is wrong with the world in her charitable eyes. He doesn't have a great deal in terms of dialogue, but in his locker he does have the same invaluable ability to wear the emotional scars of his character emblazoned in his eyes that made Michael Clarke Duncan such a (flash in the pan) hot commodity after his comparable role in The Green Mile, and will no doubt enjoy a similar wave of good tidings as Gabourey Sidibe did in the aftermath of Precious last year.
The key is, neither Aaron or Bullock's performances are obviously award-baiting: there is none of the flamboyance or hysterics that one might expect of such a film, and that is enormously refreshing.
Elsewhere, the other acting performances are good without ever intruding on Bullock's screen space- although really they are essentially just furniture to Bullock and Aaron's performances. This is the filmic journey of their relationship after all.
And, to top off all of that, the film's about American football. And oddly for a British lad brought up as an avid (often painfully passionate) soccer fan, that usually spells good news for a movie. I can barely think of an American football film that I haven't enjoyed - from teen classic (I know I'm definitely on my own here) Varsity Blues, to the uplifting social commentary of Remember The Titans, Disney-fied biopics like Invincible and excellent straight sports movies like Friday Night Lights and Any Given Sunday. Hell, I even liked The Game Plan a little.
I don't know what it is, but it seems American Football is the easiest sport to bring to the big screen. Traditionally British sports like football and rugby suffer on film because of a ridiculous lack of good technical advisors on-set, so the action never gets anywhere near an authentic or even believable level, which is occasionally made even worse by the use of actual footage that served only to emphasise the shortcomings of the staged sequences (the horrible Goal did it most spectacularly).
Perhaps it is my ignorance of the sport - I am a fan, though one who cannot claim to fully grasp the rules, and I marvel at it as a sometimes startled outsider, amazed by the spectacle- but it always looks authentic on screen. Even the limited on-screen football action of The Blind Side works well, which ultimately (at least partially) helps to sell Michael's redemption through his love of the sport: it seems that the sport lends itself to being an excellent backdrop to an emotionally compelling narrative.
Whatever the reason, the film works, both as an American football flick and as an involving personal tale of redemption. Ignore the slushiness, and the attempt at a broader message (because its just not handled well enough), and enjoy it, as I did for the human relationships on show. And to see by far Sandra Bullock's finest work to date.
Quality
The transfer is bloody impressive overall: it looks beautiful, thanks to a cracking level of clarity that doesn't rob too much of the grain from the original thankfully. The transfer also sticks to a natural palette (with flesh tones remaining authentic), but colour levels are distinct enough to give every pixel good depth, particularly the black tones, which is one of those simple achievements that makes all the difference.
All in all there are no clear signs of doctoring, and the transfer adds a good deal to the viewing quality, which has got to earn it a huge thumbs up.
Extras
A pretty good selection of featurettes, including a BR Exclusive interview with Michael Oher, which is welcome though a little limited, considering the amount of reality-based movies that neglect to even reference their subject matter in the Extras.
The "Sideline Conversations" featurette holds conversations between director John Lee Hancock and writer of the novel, and Bullock and Leigh Anne Tuohy which is similarly interesting, and adds a little more depth to the otherwise pretty pedestrian Extras. If you're buying the DVD version, all you'll get are the four deleted scenes and the Free Willy: Escape From Pirate's Cove starring Steve Irwin's daughter Bindi.
That content in full:
Deleted Scenes (7 mins) Theatrical Trailer (of bloody Free Willy 19 or whatever it is now) Exclusive Interview: The Real Michael Oher (10 mins) Featurette: "Acting Coaches: Behind The Blind Side" (5 mins) Featurette: "The Story of Big Quinton" (14 mins) "Sideline Conversations" (32 mins) Digital Copy/DVD Copy The Blind Side is out now on Blu-Ray and DVD. All Blu-ray screenshots come from the excellent DVD Beaver resource.