The Blind Side of The Blind Side

The Blind Side seems to be generally recognized as one of the best sports movies of the past several years. And why shouldn't it be? It features a knock-out performance from Sandra Bullock, a parade of cameos from famous college football coaches, and an uplifting story that everyone can walk away feeling good about. But to the sociologist in me, there are some troubling aspects of the film that I feel it's necessary to comment upon:

Most generally, The Blind Side suffers from the same problem as many movies in the "feel-good" genre: By presenting a true yet highly atypical story of an impoverished youth attaining success with the help of some kindly benefactors, it leaves viewers with the impression that America truly is a place where anything is possible and where the rags-to-riches miracle is still alive and well. Unfortunately, there's plenty of data showing that to be false. It may be that I'm overly pessimistic about this, but I fear that many people finish watching The Blind Side and think to themselves, "Gee, it's great to live in a country where there are generous people like the Tuohys to take care of disadvantaged youth like Michael Oher! We are such a compassionate and equitable society, aren't we?" The more appropriate response, I believe, would be to think, "What about all of the other poor kids out there who aren't fortunate enough to be six-and-a-half feet tall and 300 pounds and who, therefore, don't catch the eyes of wealthy aristocrats or football coaches at elite private schools? Isn't it a shame that the richest and most powerful nation in the history of the world has chosen not to provide for them?"

Essentially, The Blind Side hypes a micro-level triumph while obscuring a macro-level failure on the part of American society to appropriately address poverty and inequality. If one thinks for just a moment about the implications of this overall failure, then the feel-good message that the film attempts to portray quickly crumbles. For example, as generous as the Tuohys are toward Michael, the fact remains that their comfortable and privileged lifestyle has been built upon Mr. Tuohy's ownership of dozens of fast food establishments that thrive by preying upon economically disadvantaged individuals who seek to purchase the cheapest food that is available to them regardless of its nutritional value. If the family hadn't stumbled upon the rather visceral image of Michael meandering around aimlessly in the rain one night, then to them he would have merely remained "Big Mike," a kid notable only for his expansive waistline, a feature that would have been due in no small part to the diet pushed upon him by Mr. Tuohy's fast food empire.

A more specific flaw with The Blind Side is that even though it presents a few scenes offering a critical view of the condescending attitudes displayed by many white elites toward Michael and other disadvantaged black youths, the film itself utilizes a grossly stereotypical and classist framework in the construction of one of its most important moments. Without giving away too many details, this scene centers around the first high school football game in which Michael plays. At this point, he is playing for the elite private Christian school into which the Tuohys have placed him and is up against what appears to be a decidedly less exclusive public school made up primarily of what is crassly termed "rednecks." The driving force behind the scene is the apparent crudeness and racism of the opposing team and its fans, and the point of it is to show Michael's acclimation to the rough-and-tumble world of football where he has to protect his new "family," i.e. his team, from a menacing enemy. Yet by employing a stereotypical and offensive portrayal of economically disadvantaged, rural white people, the film undermines its own message of respect and compassion toward the less fortunate. While the Tuohys grow to realize over the course of the film that they have been very insulated from the tragedies facing inner-city youth like Michael, this apparently isn't enough to make them--or the filmakers-- think twice about insulting the "redneck" country folk who likely face a number of the same challenges.

Overall, the movie is entertaining and I appreciated the acting by Bullock, Quinton Aaron (as Michael Oher), and Jae Head (as the family's young son, S.J.). But I wish that films like The Blind Side would make more of an effort to examine the complex social and psychological hypocrisies behind the lives of their main protagonists. Also, it should be conveyed more explicitly to viewers that random acts of charity from upper-crust families aren't a particularly effective social safety net. I understand that it wouldn't have the same cinematic appeal as The Blind Side, but a film about an America with marginally higher levels of taxation being used to fund programs like expanded early education, universal health care, and improved public housing would be one that would realistically be much more uplifting.