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Karina Vargas Mr. Newman English: Rhetoric 101 16 October 2013 The Real Side In the movie The Blind Side written by Michael Lewis and directed by John Lee Hancock, Leigh Anne Touhy (Sandra Bullock) and her family took in a young African American teenager, Michael Oher (Quinton Aaron). It was an inspirational film about a young African male who starts with nothing except a drug addict mom with nowhere to live, into a college prospect for football. While living in a white dominant community and not being able to afford an education, Michael struggles to get into college. Critics say the movie was a typical tear jerker about a wealthy family helping out a young African boy from the projects grow into a professional athlete; however, not only did Michael grow, but Leigh Anne grew as well. Although David Hiltbrand and Wesley Morris believe that the focus on The Blind Side was Leigh Anne Touhy, they differ on the use their tone and focal point on the review. Even though both reviews seem to base themselves off of different meanings of the story, they both agree on Leigh Anne Touhys character and how she grows through out the story. Leigh Anne was portrayed as an independent, bossy woman who stands her ground and hides her emotions. Hiltbrand describes Leigh Anne as a mix of Southern decorum and sass, a woman who hides her big heart under a bossy, no-nonsense shell. Morris also believes Leigh Anne to be bossy as he says, The last word is always hers and, shes hardly subtle, but shes not

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showy, either. In both reviews, they believe Leigh Anne changed through out the entire movie. Hiltbrand clarifies, Like most of the characters in The Blind Side, she undergoes instantaneous and convenient conversions. Morris also agrees by conveying, were meant to believe that its Leigh Anne who does all the growing. They also both relate Leigh Anne as a possible character of The Real Housewives. Hiltbrand describes Leigh Anne and her friends as The Real Housewives of Memphis. Morris says, This is basically one of her comedic parts given a Real Housewives gloss. While the reviews have some similarities, they have more differences than anything. One main idea that the two reviews differ on is the tone. Hiltbrand has a lighthearted tone while Morris has a more informative tone. Hiltbrands lightheartedness is shown throughout his review. An example is when he introduces her friends, Over lunch, she suddenly discovers that her best gal pals- together they look like The Real Housewives of Memphis- are narrow-minded bigots. No hint of this ever emerged on the thousands of Cobb salads she shared with them over the years? (Hiltbrand). He also has a sarcastic tone, Fed a steady diet of kindness and material goods by the Touhys, Oher begins to- you guessed it- blossom (Hiltbrand). The sarcasm is used in his writing by saying something that is obvious to keep his tone as lighthearted as possible while Morris seems to lead in a more informative and serious way. Just how Hiltbrand talks about Michael opening up, Morris does as well, But as his grades improve and as hes nudged toward a Division 1 football scholarship (hes a natural tackle), Michael starts to open up. The difference between the way Hiltbrand explained Michaels growth and Morris does is in the way of their tone. Not only is there a difference with tone, but there are other differences in both reviews.

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Another difference is the focal point of these two reviews. Hiltbrand bases his off of the characters in the movie and what their roles are while Morris focuses on the meaning of the movie and how it compares to the book. Hiltbrand talked about Sean Touhy, the husband, and how he isnt a big role, but is there for Bullock when she needs it. He also mentioned S.J., the son, who put Michael through training regimes and recruiting videos for football. The last person he talks briefly about is Michaels tutor who pushed him to just pass through school and get into college. In contrast, Morris connected the movie to the book. His analysis was, Writer and director John Lee Hancock bears down on the more affecting parts of Michael Lewiss 2006 book, The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game. (Morris). Morris expresses the two main parts that Hancock emphasizes on the film which are race and helping a young kid make a transition from a poor, low-educated person to a well-off, talented athlete with great morals. After watching the movie a billion times, one would think that it would no longer be entertaining and enjoyable, but for me the story behind it never gets old. The Blind Side is inspirational, but also predictable in the sense that Michael is going to end up getting a better life and go off to be a big time NFL football player. Hancock accentuates on being lighthearted and sarcastic while introducing the characters and their roles in the movie. Morris takes the more informative approach and explores the way the movie relates to the book. Though the movie may be foreseeable, it is still enjoyable by many people because of the motivational storyline.

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Works Cited Hiltbrand, David. "A Big Tackle and a Little Lady." Philly.com. N.p., 20 Nov. 2009. Web. 7 Oct. 2013. Morris, Wesley. "'Blind Side' Sticks to the Playbook on Race and Renewal." The Boston Globe. N.p., 20 Nov. 2009. Web. 7 Oct. 2013.