‘Courage is a hard thing to figure…’
Long haul flights are already emotionally draining. The lethargy, the excitement, the anxiety (Is my passport still in my pocket where I left it thirty seconds ago?? Are these bastards going to board before me?? WHAT END OF THE PLANE WILL FOOD BE SERVED FROM?!). What I didn’t anticipate is that a seemingly innocuous sports movie starring Sandra Bullock would push me over the edge, and yet, here we are…
Michael ‘Big Mike’ Oher (Quentin Aaron) is a kid from the wrong side of the tracks. Abadoned by his crack head mother and shunned by society at large, Michael is taken in by the Tuohy family – made up of determined matriarch Leigh Anne (Bullock), kindly dad Sean (Tim McGraw), sporty daughter Collins (Lily Collins) and S.J., the irrepressible youngest sibling.
If there could be one criticism levelled at The Blind Side (and there can surely only be one), it is that this family is just too perfect. Watching this film made me ache for the hospitality of the American south and the ideal nuclear family. Everyone wishes for a family this beatific. Aside from that minor and inconsequential quibble, this is a film in the top tier of the sports genre. Bullock offers a stark reminder of just how good an actress she can be, but honestly? Everyone shines here. I don’t think I had encountered Quinton Aaron before, but he completely convincing throughout, and Ray McKinnon does a great job in offering comic relief as the hapless Coach Cotton.
I’m not much of a crier really, but sports films do get me from time to time. Just seeing Kevin Costner’s face has been known to set me off, but this film? This film? Forget about it. I think I first started weeping around the 20 minute mark, and then I spent the following 90 minutes sobbing and wailing until the credits rolled.
Put simply, this is not just a movie for fans of American football (I don’t give a shit about it), it’s not just a movie for sports fans. This is one of those rare magical movies that absolutely everyone with a heart beating in their chest will enjoy. A fantastic film.