Concussion Review | Jason’s Movie Blog
TELL THE TRUTH
It’s bazaar to claim that Will Smith has possessed an infatuating career. The now 47-year-ratty bankable celebrity initiated out in humble origins as a rap artist under the tag “The Fresh Royal prince”. His popularity expanded in 1990 as speedily as he starred as the lead individuality in The Fresh Royal prince of Bel Undertone, a tv portray that ran for six periods (1990-1996). From there, Smith keyed in the foray of Hollywood films as a leading individual, including Corrosive Youngsters (I and also II), Independence Day, Men in Black, Aggressor of the Insurance claim, Ali, I am Tale, and also The Pursuit of Happyness. However talented with a largely successful movie career as an actor, Smith is wrecked by flopped tasks, including the movies Rabid Rabid West and also After Earth (both films were panned by detractors and also moviegoers). Currently Will Smith counterarguments to the copious coordinate for his 2nd flick of 2015 (the initially being Glenn Ficarra and also John Requa’s Focus) with the movie Concussion. Does this biopic dramatization offer insightful insight into the pro-football “trauma” controversy or is it a forgetful flick with a likeable leading individual?
THE STORY
Birthed and also risen in Nigeria, Dr. Bennet Omalu (Will Smith) has come to America to even more his education and also learning and also abilities as a forensic pathologist, kneading in a Pittsburgh coroner’s workplace under Dr. Cyril Wecht (Albert Creeks). While his respectful averages and also ways of the dead bods are watching as “rare”, Bennet remains unyielding and also committed to the wreak, with his anomalies elevated as speedily as exacting an postmortem scrutiny from freshly deceased football legend Mike Webster (David Morse). Bennett expands his staked out surf into how Webster died, learning a degenerative disorder that’s tied to mind injury and also the rapport to the physical violence of veteran football. Bennett eventually lets loose his searchings for in a professional journal, critiquing on what he telephone dubs CTE (chronic cruel encephalopathy). While his searchings for are certain, Bennet not surprisingly experiences deplorable resistance from the NFL, utilising their faultlessly-moneyed establishment to shut down Bennett’s claim, while the excellent medical professional spots an ally in Dr. Julian Bailes (Alec Baldwin), a previous Pittsburgh Steelers subordinate professional veteran that cases in the CTE exploration.
THE GOOD / THE BAD
If you didn’t realize (which is okay if you wear’t offered that I didn’t realize either), Concussion is based off of a 2009 GQ bulletin exposé entitled “Game Brain” by Jeanne Marie Laskas, detailing Dr. Bennet Omalu’s study of the chronic cruel encephalopathy (CTE) and also his uphill suffer with the NFL. Obeying the passings away of high profile NFL celebs Junior Seau and also Dave Duerson (both of whom committed self-destruction after languishing from CTE), director Ridley Scott was at initially fascinated in a NFL trauma movie, yet it was novelist / director Peter Landesman that channelled Omalu’s tale from page to coordinate with the flick Concussion (Ridley Scott went on to stimulate the flick). Through his directorial launching with the movie Parkland, Concussion is Landesman’s sophomore filmmaking task, making it feasible for the director to tell the sequential tale of Omalu’s searchings for and also representing the NFL resistant and also deplorable solutions to the medical professional’s cases as faultlessly as instructional (and also perhaps instructional) moviegoers with the expiring upward being aware of behind CTE and also its derogative recommends.
In that admire, Landesman grows with his musing task of Concussion. The tale tale in the flick is ever before so horribly viable, especially offered that it resonate so a ton with current occasions and also recommends the lives of hundreds of human beings. From a personal point ofview, I’ve met (and also realize) some previous NFL football player, that have been psychological impacted by their recurring head injuries over the years of tinkering the gallery of football. It’s a unfortunate reality, one that relatable to innumerable and also shares now precedent safety and also security and also safety and also security and also insurance coverage priority for not merely football players, yet for with one voice athletes (both veteran and also amateur). Concussion gives that voice its belvedere to spread its message as Landesman supplies that horribly specific same message with insightful funneling throughout the facility. As Smith Omalu’s cases in the flick “We must immortalize our warriors” and also I couldn’t concur added.
However, as touching and also thoughtful the subject matter is, Concussion isn’t the ordinary biopic movie that it wants to be. Sure, the tale is touching and also Will Smith’s talents are faultlessly administered (added on that listed beneath), yet the flick follows the criterion performers detected in theatrical films of “based on a real tale”, with acquainted beats of plot and also individuality suggestions. Landesman also devises a uncomplicated (or instead a black and also white) representation of its monumental plot, sprucing upward Omalu as a humble and also self/a ton less victor of professional reality that’s going upward against the NFL establishment, which is exhibited as the copious and also provable evil firm. It’s a sentimental trap in this task, one that’s commonplace in movies such as this, and also yet affects Concussion in its motion image task. Conversely, it seems that Landesman has a hard time of harmonizing the monumental tale with its sub-tales, the majority of especially in Dr. Omalu’s personal life. Scenes with his romantic relationship with Prema Mutiso show up to sidetrack and also correct lose focus on the flick. In fast, as speedily as Concussion is hardest as speedily as its posed with the CTE story disagreement and also expires upward being a ton less-infatuating with it activities away from that specific same subject.
Through the individuality of Dr. Bennet Omalu being the central protagonist in Concussion, the majority of of the driven brunt comes from Will Smith representation of the real-life medical professional. And he conducts a tiptop job at it. It’s surely a facility functionality and also Smith can plainly funneling it out through his pretending capacity, expressing Omalu’s triumphs and also combats in his on-coordinate personality and also mannerisms. It might not be a extensive and also gallery-rectifying functionalities advice in his semblance for the flick The Pursuit of Happyness, yet Smith conducts an provable and also solid job on retracting the curtain (a theatrically one) on Dr. Omalu study and also his trials and also tribulations that adhere to from his searchings for.
In added secondary shindigs are Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Prema Mutiso, and also Albert Creeks as Dr. Cyril H. Wecht. Both shindigs are ideal exemplified as the commonplace / criterion outlines of biopic dramatization to the monumental individuality as a thoughtful (yet unreduced quantity weak) love curiosity and also a rubbish expert (Creeks’s Wecht conducts have some ideal hilarious queues in the flick. Along those specific same queues, yet with added coordinate time to committed to him, is Alec Baldwin’s Dr. Julian Bailes, a retired NFL subordinate medical professional that is thoughtful to Dr. Omalu’s CTE situating and also his wreak to debunk the reality.
The rest of Concussion’s cast is one earned up of a handful of scenes (2 or 3 scenes at the the majority of) of personalities channelled to life by celebs would have a similarity to their real-life counterparts. This entails Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje as Dave Duerson, Matt Willig as Justin Strzelczyk, David Morse as Mike Webster, and also Richard T. Jones as Andre Waters, as faultlessly as Eddie Marsan as Dr. Steven DeKosky and also Luke Wilson as NFL commissioner Roger Goodell (that make earns utilize of Goodell’s diction down rub, yet doesn’t also glimpse advice him). Plenty of other especially petite celebs in Concussion are Stephen Moyer as Dr. Ron Hamilton and also Mike O’Malley as Daniel Sullivan. Unanimously of these personalities dabble their shindigs in Omalu’s tale and also implement their respective portions faultlessly (especially those representing previous football players) in detailing the planet and also politics of Concussion. Although, these personalities are, added or a ton less, architectural cogs in the movie’s tale machine.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Is Concussion a hard-hitting, eye-opening facility movie? No, yet it’s surely touching and also loved one to today’s planet. Peter Landesman’s biopic hits it intended mark, making it feasible for vacationers to study the principal tale of Dr. Omalu’s study into C.T.E. and also the NFL’s implications into his spots. However, the flick (as a entirety) doesn’t boost itself beyond the criterion “underpinning on real tale” task with sentimental triumphs and also resistances aggravations tinkering out in the usual fashion as faultlessly as a pair of side tales that wear’t altogether pan out. Adherents of Smith, of football, and also those inquisitive about the searchings for of CTE must surely go browse through this flick. In the end, I correct assume that Concussion isn’t the ideal real life biopic flick out there, yet its tale it wants to tell is plainly evident with a facility functionality from Will Smith and also its insightful subject matter as a silver-lining overlay to the unreduced quantity flick.
3.8 out of 5 (Suggested)
Taken into consideration on December 27th, 2015
Concussion is rated PG-13 for thematic content including some shocking images, and also language
