Blind-sided by Quinton Aaron, bullish on Bullock

Rating: 9/10 (7 January 2010)

Disclaimer: I often think that movie makers DO get the books right at least 50% of the time (& sometimes they actually improve upon them).
This movie proved to be a really nice surprise.
I love the book & 20/20 piece did a nice job on the story so I felt I had already seen the movie. (So why spend $10 on it?)
The actor cast as Oher did not look intimidating enough (as he is initially portrayed in the book) to pull off the unlikely transition that is the key to this true story so I thought this would be Leigh Anne Touhy's story due to all the press about Sandra Bullock's performance in it.
I was wrong. Oher is the main character & Quinton Aaron proved more than capable of portraying this complex young man as I remember him in Michael Lewis's excellent prose. BUT it is also the Touhys' family story as well & Bullock well deserves the Oscar nom she is likely to get. Unfortunately for her & the movie it may too down-home-value oriented for her to get the statue.
The movie is schmaltzy, a bit corny & pushes some obvious emotional buttons (things I typically hate in a movie) but John Lee Hancock & his players never push too hard. The true story itself is incredible. The movie's makers know this & are smart enough not to over sell it --in fact they actually pull back from a scene on the football field that Lewis described in further detail when Oher finally decides enough is enough.
If you liked REMEMBER THE TITANS (which pushed buttons much further & got away with it) then you'll love this movie. It is one of the best of the year, but be quiet & don't tell "Hollywood" that.