When Hollywood meets Sports

Rating: 7/10 (19 November 2017)

"Concussions" tells the story of a Nigerian doctor who comes to the United States and works in the pathology. When a few formerly famous football stars land on his table, he notices some strange connections between them and learns that the sport everybody is so crazy about could be far more dangerous than one expects.
It is a tremendous story based on real happenings. For the important message alone, it is a huge win to have this film shot with a high budget and a remarkable cast. Unfortunately, the side effects of this high production value are that the movie follows the basic Hollywood principles. The story is surely worth being told but it is dramatized and interwoven with personal emotions in a way that sometimes seems to have been created mainly for the big screen. This way the sports plot gets a touch of American dream and becomes the tale of an unsung hero, that occasionally comes a bit too close to the mainstream.
All in all this is an important movie produced in a way that makes it look like most Blockbusters. Worth a watch but it misses out on some potential as well.