At this point, I'm going to assume you already know that the film is based on the true story of Michael Oher (Quinton Aaron), an essentially transient teenager who is taken in by Southern belle Leigh Anne Tuohy (Bullock) and her family. They help get him into a good school, where he quickly proves to be intelligent, despite lacking some basic skills. The Tuohys also encourage him to pursue football, a sport for which Michael has a lot of raw natural talent. Long story short, he goes on to become an All-American star, playing for the Baltimore Ravens.

I think what moviegoers fell in love with was the unrepentant feel-good nature of this story, which says that even an impoverished inner-city kid can make dreams come true with the aid of a solid support system. Although he would seem to have little in common with the Tuohys, Michael becomes a part of their family, and they accept him as one of their own, even including him in the family Christmas card photo. In the end, a young man who would seem to have many obstacles to overcome is able to thrive when given the chance. No wonder so many people responded so strongly to it!

But…

The Blind Side has some obvious similarities to Precious: Based on the Novel "Push" by Sapphire, which I picked as the best film of 2009. Both are about African-American teenagers who come from backgrounds of poverty and abuse. Both show how these teenagers manage to overcome (or start to overcome, in the case of Precious) the economic, educational, and social limitations they have been saddled with. The difference, however, is that The Blind Side is the happy-go-lucky Hollywood version of this story, where no problem is too horrific that it can't be solved by one sassy white woman. Precious, on the other hand, is the real version of the story - the one reminding us that some people have to literally claw their way out of a dysfunctional existence, one millimeter at a time. I realize it may not be completely fair to compare one film to another, but I do it only to emphasize how much this movie wants to avoid the gritty realities that made the other such a powerhouse.

Consider what is, for me, the most notable example of Blind Side's sugarcoating. Michael runs away from the Tuohy home. Leigh Anne heads down to the housing project in the ghetto where he used to live with his mother. She asks a couple of local drug dealers if they've seen Michael, and they respond by making ominous intimations toward her. Leigh Anne responds by getting in their faces and talking smack. It just doesn't go like that. If it went down in real life as it's portrayed here, she would have been shot in the face. I don't care how spunky you are - a drug dealer is not going to be intimidated by sheer attitude. There are several other scenes in the picture where severe problems are simply and unrealistically resolved.

Hollywood has a long history of telling African-American stories from the viewpoint of white saviors, and it's hard to deny that this is yet another. My assertion is backed up by the fact that Michael Oher comes off as, well, kind of stupid; despite everyone proclaiming his intelligence, the other characters have to keep explaining things to him while he stares blank-eyed into space. Leigh Ann Tuohy gets most of the credit for his success, as though he's an accidental victim of it. No wonder the real Oher has largely distanced himself from the film.

Now, having said all this, I fully admit that The Blind Side is perfectly fine as a piece of entertainment. Bullock is good, albeit limited by the overly simplistic screenplay, as is Tim McGraw as her husband. There are moments of effective humor too. And let's not deny that the general arc of the story works, even if it is shamelessly contrived and manipulated. I'm not going to argue that this is a bad movie, because I don't believe that it is. If you haven't seen it, should you check it out? Sure, why not. However, I will argue that The Blind Side is nowhere near as "inspirational" as many have claimed it to be. It's a manufactured story that takes real situations and squeezes them into a standard cinematic formula. Take the movie on a shallow level and it's okay; dig a little deeper, though, and it starts to come apart at the seams.

( 1/2 out of four)

DVD Features:

The Blind Side arrives on DVD and Blu-Ray on March 23 in widescreen format. The sole DVD feature is a series of deleted scenes, running about seven minutes total. The most notable has Mr. Tuohy approaching Michael in the school cafeteria, realizing he can't afford food, and arranging for him to get a meal card. Another finds Leigh Anne back at the housing project, having an earlier run-in with the drug dealer.

This film is also available On Demand via your digital cable or satellite company, and via XBox 360 and PlayStation 3 videogame consoles. You can also download or rent it from iTunes and Amazon Video on Demand.

The Blind Side is rated PG for one scene involving brief violence, drug and sexual references. The running time is 2 hours and 5 minutes.