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A lot of criticism has existed againstThe Blind Side, a film that elevates Sandra Bullock to an Oscar-winning actress while perpetuating harmful connotations of white savior trope through the veil of a morally uplifting story. After seeing several dozen reports and complaints, most of which originatedafterthe subject of the film began to speak out against it, it begs the question:
Do we really need a white family to drive in on their station wagon and save the day for a future NFL star? Could Michael Oher have accomplished nothing if not for the Tuohy family? Would he have accomplished everything in spite of them?
While there is no refuting the events that truly occurred and later inspired the sports biopic, the harmful stereotype thatThe Blind Sidepromotes takes away from Sandra Bullock’s award-winning performance, leaving a bitter aftertaste in its place instead.
Sandra Bullock’s Film Does More Harm Than Good
In the vast registry of films that have tried to be educational while serving a healthy dose of entertainment, films likeThe Help,The Green Book, andThe Blind Sideoccupy a very special place. These movies do more than just educate the audience about prejudice and intolerance. While promoting the message of anti-racism, these films end up preaching the one thing they were trying to fight against – white Americans and their feelings of superiority.
InThe Blind Side‘s case, the message is more harmful than most. It blindly propagates the false message of selfless altruism on the Tuohy family’s part, especially Leigh Anne Tuohy – played bySandra Bullockin the biopic – while the reality of the situation that Michael Oher found himself in was much darker and far less altruistic.
“Leave her the f—k alone”: Sandra Bullock Defended By Fans Amid ‘The Blind Side’ Controversy as Critics Demand Her Oscar Back With an Apology
The film showed nothing about the conservatorship that Oher was under, which further indicates that no fact-checking was done by the screenwriter, the director, and the studio before rolling out their big award-season propaganda. The Tuohy family came out of the deal a wealthy family with the added benefit of being painted as benevolent by the film while reducing the protagonist – Michael Oher – to a supporting character whose role is to make the white woman look noble and good.
The Blind SideGets Michael Oher to Spill the Truth
Films that need to make white people feel good about themselves systematically erase the dark and inexcusable horror of racism from the harsh era of 400 years of American, especially African-American history. Such films aren’t really worth the effort of being categorized under anti-racism.
To set the record straight, Michael Oher went one step beyond speaking up for what’s right when he revealed in 2011 [viaBaltimore Sun]:“You don’t have to be saved by a wealthy white family. You can do it on your own. It is possible.”Slowly but surely, the truth about the Tuohys began to unravel as it showed the dark layers of misinformation and fabrication that the book and the film were trying to preach while covering up the dirty tricks of the Tuohys.
“We’re in the business of entertaining”: After Defending Sandra Bullock, ‘The Blind Side’ Actor Defends Movie Despite Michael Oher’s Startling Revelation
Despite Sandra Bullock delivering one of the best performances of her lifetime,The Blind Sidenegates her role to an offensive one that damages the progress that the Black community has strived to achieve in the past century. In its effort to promote a feel-good story of hope and perseverance, the movie ends up doing more harm than good by telling the African-American children out there that their lives are only as good as a white person deems them to be. That then essentially becomes the basis for the white savior trope in cinema.
The Blind Sideis streaming on Max.
Diya Majumdar
Senior Writer
Articles Published :2410
Diya Majumdar is a Senior Content Writer at FandomWire with over 2000 published articles on the website. Since 2022, she has been working as an entertainment journalist with a special focus on films and pop culture.Among the countless genres and themes of Hollywood, the ones that particularly favor Diya’s tastes include Game of Thrones, DC, and well-aged thrillers and classics.
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Michael OherSandra BullockThe Blind Side
