Culture

Directed by John Lee Hancock
(1/5)

The Blind Side is the latest instalment in the long-running narrative that is the myth of white supremacy. Leigh Anne Tuohy (Sandra Bullock) is a wealthy, conservative mother of two who takes black teenager Michael Oher (Quinton Aaron) into her family's home. Oher has been accepted, on a sports scholarship, to the exclusive country club school which Tuohy's son and daughter attend. He's walking around in the rain one night, with nowhere to go. Leigh Anne spots him from the car and demands that her husband pick him up. She invites Oher into the home and he becomes part of Tuohy family. Michael is shy and oafish, but with the support of the Tuohys he lifts his grades and excels at football.
There is no question that at its core, this film is about race, but what does it say? Unfortunately, the racial representations in The Blind Side are entirely based on tired and worn-out stereotypes. The white side of the film is the Tuohy family, a model of stability. They don't ever fight or argue about anything – a perfect home! And they are willing to open their home up to a black kid, from the projects across town, as long as he is dumb and non-threatening. The film goes on to paint the black community as a horror story. In the world of The Blind Side, white folk can't help being generous while black people are criminals and gangsters who can't take care of someone as 'special' as Michael. This film was in fact “based on real events” which is really the only way the producers could justify making it, an easy-to-swallow pill for white guilt.