So whatever happened to the actor fromThe Blind Side? From his place on the sideline Sean watched in amazement. Quinton Aaron is best known for his portrayal of Michael Oher, aka Big Mike, alongside Oscar winner Sandra Bullock, in the Academy Award winning hit movie, The Blind Side (2009), which has grossed over $300 million in U.S. box office alone. She later asks Collins how she feels about it. Lineman for the San Francisco 49ers in the 1980s. Later, Leigh Anne and Sean watch their daughter Collins playing volleyball. Seriously, though, can you imagine how differently this would've played out hadthe rolesbeen reversed? Later, Michael is befriended by a younger student named Sean Tuohy, Jr./"SJ". The Blind Side is set in the South, which explains not only itspolite racism but also its obsession with football. The fact that the strapping 16-year-old nicknamed "Big Mike" would make a powerful addition to the school's sports teams is not a small part of the decision. Surprisingly often, given the abundance of public housing in Memphis, they had no shelter. It's also pretty racist. Then I figured, why not speak about my experiences and how I got over them? Our, "Sooo much more helpful thanSparkNotes. and Leigh Anne Tuohy interrupting practice with a family-based metaphor for Oher to figure out blocking. According to Oher, the greatest help that theTuohys offered him didn't come in the form of football tutorials (again, he already knew how to play the sport when he metLeigh Anne andSean), but their ability to take care of his most basic needs. Oher was invited to Thanksgiving, and finally, Leigh Anne asked him to stay permanently. In some ways, Michael Oher successfully overcomes the challenges of being an outsider. [5] NFL commissioner Roger Goodell had an uncredited voice cameo announcing Michael's drafting into the Baltimore Ravens during the 2009 NFL Draft. However, to do that, he must meet the minimum grade point average to get in so the Tuohys hire a private tutor for him, the outspoken and kind Miss Sue. He went on to lecture Michael on the burdens of conspicuous success. by Jake Cole. LEIGH ANNE I suppose they can be on the team, too. Last edited on 31 December 2022, at 08:03, Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture Drama, Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role, NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, DallasFort Worth Film Critics Association, Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role, Washington D.C. Area Film Critics Association, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, "Hugh Freeze, Houston Nutt, and Michael Oher just made 'The Blind Side' super weird", "Believers Walk the Talk in The Blind Side", "Sandra Bullock scores touchdown at box office", Weekend Box Office Results for November 2022, 2009, Daily Box Office for Thursday, November 26, 2009, "'Blind Side' tops 'New Moon' at box office", Weekend Box Office Results for January 810, 2010, "'Avatar' passes $300 million mark on Friday, and Sandra Bullock makes box-office history", Sports Football Movies at the Box Office, Weekend Report: Avatar Rocks New Years, End-of-Run Report: 'Blind Side,' 'Crazy Heart,' 'Runaways' Close, "Nanny McPhee sends Alice in Wonderland to the naughty step at the UK box office", "19 of the Most Loved or Hated Movies: Films That Got A+ or F CinemaScores (Photos)", "Steamrolling Over Life's Obstacles With Family as Cheerleaders", White Fragility: Why It's So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism, "Michael Oher Says 'The Blind Side' Has Ruined His Football Career", "Beyond 'The Blind Side,' Michael Oher Rewrites His Own Story", "Super Bowl 50: 'The Blind Side' Michael Oher feels wanted at Carolina Panthers", Blind Side Finds a Path to the Oscars by Running Up the Middle, "82nd Academy Awards to Feature 10 Best Picture Nominees", "Academy Builds Surprise Into Best Picture Rules", The Academy's new Best Picture rule: How it will change the prediction period, Blind Side, The [2009] Soundtrack @ what-song, "Blockbuster CEO: The movie's not over yet", Warner Bros. Home Entertainment And Netflix Announce New Agreements Covering Availability Of Dvds, Blu-Ray And Streaming Content, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Blind_Side_(film)&oldid=1130654801, This page was last edited on 31 December 2022, at 08:03. He drove the Munford player straight down the field for 15 yards, then took a hard left, toward the Munford sidelines. The film also received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Picture. The story of Michael Oher, a homeless and traumatized boy who became an All-American football player and first-round NFL draft pick with the help of a caring woman and her family. Paperback. Didn't at least one of the six hundred guys think about giving up, and joining with the other side? It is an acceptablemovie to watchinthe YMCA movieroom if you have forgotten your headphones and also ifmost of your soulhas died. Sandra Bullock starred as Leigh Anne Tuohy, Oher's adoptive mother, andwon an Oscarfor her performance, but at just 25 years old, Aaron made a name for himself as a serious young actor with charisma, talent, and the potential for a long career. As the book ends, the Tuohy family is planning a foundation designed to help inner-city children like Michael, who dont always have the talent or support to finish school and go to college. Football drama fictionalizes events surrounding the true story of All-American offensive tackle Michael Oher. Michael Oher: Courage is a hard thing to figure. [22] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film a rare "A+" grade. It's who you are and maybe who you want to be. She is currently a student at USC majoring in broadcast journalism. Michael Oher, a struggling African-American teenager from a broken home facing an uncertain future, turned his life around when affluent couple Leigh Anne and Sean Tuohy took him in and acted on his love of football, fostering his . From that moment, Michael improves dramatically, well enough to play at the college level. It was amazing he hadnt already died some nineteenth-century death from, say, the mumps. (including. Leigh Anne points straight-ahead and says, "home". In Worthless, a cheerleader horror movie, he played the principal in a school overrun by mean girls and dark magic that sends the main character on a terrifying journey into her past. By her own account, Bullock felt she could not objectively represent such a person's beliefs on screen. Then two great forces alter Oher: the family's love and the evolution of professional football itself into a game where the quarterback must be protected at any cost. "Acting is definitely my primary focus," he said, "but I'm certainly interested in producing as well. The Blind Side stars Sandra Bullock as Oher's real-life adoptive mother Leigh Anne Tuohy, who is married to a guy named Sean who owns Taco Bell (played by country singer Tim McGraw). But the family easily accepts him, including SJ and his sister Collins (Lily Collins). Racism and Outsiderness Quotes in The Blind Side. (2012). Although Halfway would take some time to produce, Aaron didn't slow down while the indie film was underway, and stayed busy taking an assortment of other acting jobs in between. The movie (based on a book by Michael Lewis) tells the story of Michael Oher, a black NFL lineman who was adopted by a white Southern family when he was a homeless teenager. Its racism, like the film itself, is quiet. LitCharts Teacher Editions. He finished off 2016 playing Tino, a pimp, in the low-budget indieHero of the Underworld. The Blind Side was produced by Alcon Entertainment and released by Warner Bros. After that, he continued his busy streak with roles inWorthless, Fishbowl California, andBad Company. The film premiered on November 17 in New York City and New Orleans, and opened in theaters in the rest of the United States and in Canada on November 20. What happened to all the football equipment used in the movie? Teachers and parents! The Blind Side (27,159) 7.6 2 h 8 min 2009 X-Ray PG-13. Through it all, the film'smuted politeness prevents it from ever having to address any of these issues. First he played Michael, a genetic scientist, inThe Second Coming of Christ, another religious film about the rapture and finding faith in God. The president in turn had phoned Simpson and told him that if he felt right with it, he could admit the boy. But that focus still pulls attention away from the other people in his life who did try to help him, including his own family and people from his community. Below you will find the important quotes in The Blind Side related to the theme of Racism and Outsiderness. This is a literal exchange between Bullock's character and a gang member who knows Michael: Bullock: "No, you hear me, B*TCH! The film ends with information about and photos of the real Tuohy family and Michael Oher. Sean's mother, Leigh Anne Tuohy (Sandra Bullock), wonders about Mike's family life, and becomes distressed to learn he is basically homeless. LitCharts Teacher Editions. There was also a release of this Limited Edition set issued on DVD. "When I first started speaking to kids, it was about following your dreams,"he recalled. His name was Michael Oher, but everyone just called him Big Mike. Tony liked Big Mike, but he also could see that Big Mike was heading at warp speed toward a bad end. After his role onLaw & Order: SVU, Aaron surfaced as a guest in an episode ofMercy, as well asHarry's LawandDrop Dead Diva. Leigh Anne Tuohy was trying to do for one boy what economists had been trying to do, with little success, for less developed countries for the last fifty years. In October 2014, The Wrap reported that Aaron was going to star in and executive produce a film called Halfway, about a man released from prison into a Wisconsin farming town. [18] In the United Kingdom and Ireland, The Blind Side was released on March 26, 2010. Cookies help us deliver our Services. But as Ole Miss was where Sean Sr. had played basketball, Leigh Anne had been a cheerleader, and Miss Sue had been as well, NCAA investigator Granger is tasked to look into the matter to determine if the Tuohys took him in and unduly influenced him just so he would play for their alma mater. David Lingenfelser . Despite mixed reviews from critics, Bullock's performance was universally praised, leading to her winning the Academy Award for Best Actress. Oher was born Michael Jerome Williams Jr. on May 28, 1986, in Memphis, Tennessee. All I can say is, if there were more Leigh Anne Tuohys, the world would be a better-run, more harmonious and more productive placeas long as it was by her rules! Menu. Though Collins, 29, hasn . Why is the movie the blind side called the blind side? Halfwaydidn't hit theaters until April 21, 2017. Aaron plays Tommy, a member of the camera crew. Big Mike responded badly; Harrington hadnt seen this side of him. After thinking things over and questioning Leigh Anne, Michael tells Granger he chose Ole Miss because "it's where my family goes to school." No one asked her to do this, and Oher was doing fine on his own, but Bullock's character felt it her sacred duty to allowOherentry into her magicalLand of White Privilege wherein she positions herself as his very own saving grace. [28], In her book, White Fragility, Robin DiAngelo criticized The Blind Side's perpetuation of "negative racial stereotypes", calling it "fundamentally and insidiously anti-black". "I am a Christian, so I do believe in a lot of positive messages. "[30][32] Despite his displeasure with his portrayal in the movie Oher has stated that he likes the film's message of perseverance and the general treatment of the Tuohy family and has been quoted as saying, "It's a great story. One of the most successful movies to explore the transformational power of sports is "The Blind Side." She refers to a scene in which Oher returns to his stereotypically violent former neighborhood, only leaving when Tuohy rescues him from it. Collins replies that they cannot just throw Michael out. And if he dropped out, hed be like all his friends who dropped out: dead, in jail, or on the street selling drugs, just waiting to be dead or in jail.. By the time [Sean] met Big Mike, he had a new unofficial title: Life Guidance counselor to whatever black athlete stumbled into the Briarcrest Christian School. Minor Characters. First African-American admitted to the University of Mississippi. I've been studyingreally studyingthe game since I was a kid! The film was inspired by the real-life story of football player Michael Oher, played by Aaron, who was adopted by his high school football coach's family. Left tackle for the Washington Redskins in the 1980s. 16/01/2023. When Michael gets his grades high enough, he decides to attend the University of Mississippi (known colloquially as "Ole Miss"). Throughout The Blind Side, Michael Oher is an outsider. Despite that star power, it only grossed $6,300,147 at the box office on its opening weekend, and enduredserious scorn from critics. Michael runs away before the interview is over and confronts Leigh Anne about her motives for taking him in. David Furones, . The majority of the football team wound up majoring in Criminal Justice. What Criminal Justice had going for it was that it didn't require any math or language skills. We were all blindsided by the news of her sudden death. Pass rusher for the Raiders in the 1970s. The film is an excellent biographical film for an interesting and interesting story. "My students can't get enough of your charts and their results have gone through the roof." It just went away, the way it would have gone away for some well-to-do white kid. Namely, it's the film'simplication that he's unintelligent, rather than "a kid who had never had consistent academic instruction and ended up thriving once he got it," he wrote in "I Beat the Odds." TV commentary Then, like a traffic accident, staff begins to randomly collide. Even after Michael overcomes some of the challenges of outsiderness, however, he continues to experience racism and discrimination. 182 offers from $2.70. [40] However, while the score soundtrack by Carter Burwell was released on CD, none of the featured songs were included. According to Oherin real life, he was already participating inbasketball, football and track before the Tuohys came along. 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