Movie Critique - The Blind Side - Essay Example

Through experiencing the elements of a happy family whose sole interest is in his personal and scholastic development (as well as a focus on his efforts as a defensive lineman), the Tuohy family, along with Michael, engage in a type of odyssey through which old racial stereotypes are torn down, an emphasis upon personal development and education is rekindled, and an overall growth between each of the main characters is realized. Whereas it may seem evident that the theme of racism is ridiculed as being a false and entirely fabricated concept throughout the film, how this is affected is nuanced and not directly straightforward. In this way, the filmmaker can create a film that on its surface is about racial prejudice in the deep South while all the time relating a story of personal struggle and sacrifice.

For instance, the first of these concepts that the filmmaker greets the viewer with is the harsh realities of life that define the lives of the Tuohys as compared to that of Michael Oher and his family. This juxtaposition is useful because it can bring the viewer face to face with the disconnect that seemingly exists between the two representations of culture that come together within this movie. The message that is therefore conveyed, although not readily apparent to the viewer, is that before chance happenstance brought these individuals together. This tangential approach to the issue of cultural interaction is of course at least subliminally noticed; however, due to how the issue is broached, the viewer has little knowledge that they have been presented with such a nuanced topic whatsoever.

Similarly, a second aspect and topic that is brought to the viewer’s attention are that race that is covered within the movie is the pervasive fear among the white society that since the family now has a black boy living in their house, he must necessarily be a rapist or some other form of criminal. However, rather than give way to such a rampant case of racial bias, the Tuohy family treats young Michael as their son and does not go to the great lengths to “protect” their daughter as the so-called “friends” of the family suggest. Without exhibiting this behavior within the Tuohy family, the filmmaker can broach the topic through the conversations that Sandra Bullock’s character has with her friends around the breakfast table.

Finally, the movie approaches the topic of education and achievement as a function of how the Tuohy family work to engage Michael with all of the appropriate tutors and educational advantages that he never experienced before. In this way, the filmmaker is approaching the viewer from a strong position of the environment about the age-old argument between environment/culture. Whereas Michael had previously been labeled as learning disabled, he was able to achieve high marks and graduate with distinction due to the efforts that the Tuohy family invested in him. In so doing, the filmmaker can engage the audience with the understanding that although the cultural and racial divide that separated Michael from the Tuohy family early in the movie was vast, the correct application of key environmental roles was all that was needed to bridge this wide expanse.

In this way, the filmmaker can bring unique and nuanced elements of how peoples and cultures from different backgrounds relate to one another. Similarly, such an approach is useful in that it engages the viewer with nuanced aspects of many of the paradigms that a straightforward representation would not have affected to such a tangibly relevant degree. Moreover, the means of conveyance are especially useful because Michael’s life was very truly touched and molded by the influence of the Tuohy family and their relatively open-minded approach to the age-old issues of race, culture, and the importance of a nurturing environment as what can make a radical difference in the life of every person. Read More