10s Movie Review - Concussion

Director: Peter Landesman
Genre: Drama
Runtime: 118 minutes
Year: 2015
Starring: Will Smith, Alec Baldwin, Albert Brooks, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, David Morse, Eddie Marsan, Hill Harper, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Stephen Moyer, Richard T. Jones, Paul Reiser, Luke Wilson

Description: In Pittsburgh, accomplished pathologist Dr. bennet Omalu (Will Smith) uncovers the truth about brain damage in football players who suffer repeated concussions in the course of normal play.

I WATCHED THIS MOVIE FOR MY 2021 MOVIE CHALLENGE.
WEEK 30: A MOVIE RECOMMENDED BY A FRIEND
 
Review: Mike Webster was one of the best center players in the National Football League (NFL) in America. He played professional American Football for sixteen years, mostly for the Pittsburgh Steelers. After his career, he soon declined. He lives in a pickup truck and suffers from dizziness, forgetfulness and insomnia. Not surprisingly, he dies. A heart attack is soon the official reading. Nigerian forensic neuropathologist Dr. Bennet Omalu is assigned to investigate Webster. He discovers that something is wrong with the brain, but can’t quite pinpoint what it is. When another former football player dies, Omalu notices the same brain abnormalities. Could there be something more going on with football players after all? Omalu tries to bring this to the attention of the NFL board, but his research is dismissed as nonsense. In fact, since then Omalu has only been thwarted in his investigation and even received death threats.
Jeanne Marie Laskas wrote the article Game Brain for the men’s magazine GC in 2009. In it, she describes the story of how Nigerian Dr. Bennet Omalu discover what effect the hard hits and collisions of American Football players have on their brains. And how Omalu is opposed by the entire NFL after this discovery. Peter Landesman is a director and writer, but also a journalist. He has written a number of articles on human and gun trafficking for New York Time Magazine, The New Yorker and other leading magazines. His first feature film, “Parkland”, dealt with the aftermath of the assassination of John F. Kennedy. He made the follow-up “Concussion” in response to Jeanne Marie Laskas’ article. His background as a journalist came in handy for the structured telling of the story surrounding Dr. Bennet Omalu and his investigations. A story that is structured according to fairly standard principles, but contains poignant moments. Its distressing that a large organization like the NFL considers entertainment interests more important than the health of its players. Somehow it’s understandable, because the stakes are high. The NFL desperately needs the players to keep the entertainment going. The chances that young people will stop playing American football when they hear that it can cause brain damage are high, so the sport will eventually cease to exist. Yet it is strange that people do not want to look for a solution, but continue to deny the danger Omalu points out.
As a sub-line in the story, there’s Omalu’s personal struggle to adapt to the American system as an immigrant. He wants to succeed at all costs in the promised land. But as a Nigerian, he has his own ideas and principles and they do not always correspond to what is expected in America. This leads to misunderstanding on both sides. Omalu is portrayed by Will Smith, who is very convincing, inspiring and strong in his role. Another actor I need to point out is David Morse. He only has a minor role at the start of the film, but he really leaves an impression.
“Concussion” doesn’t really color outside the lines. The film is made according to standard movie laws. But a film like “Spotlight” had already shown that you can still make an interesting film this way, because the content is so well done. “Concussion” can’t match that film, but is intriguing enough to keep you interested the entire runtime.

Rating: 4/ 5

Netflix Friday - Volume 62

Some Netflix film tips for the weekend! And there is something for everyone, since I picked a movie for all the different genres.
 

Action: The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)
A reluctant Hobbit, Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman), sets out to the Lonely Mountain with a spirited group of dwarves to reclaim their mountain home, and the gold within it from the dragon Smaug.
 

Drama: Concussion (2015)
In Pittsburgh, accomplished pathologist Dr. Bennet Omalu (Will Smith) uncovers the truth about brain damage in football players who suffer repeated concussions in the course of normal play.
 

Comedy: 50 First Dates (2004)
Henry Roth (Adam Sandler) is a man afraid of commitment until he meets the beautiful Lucy (Drew Barrymore). They hit it off and Henry think he's finally found the girl of his dreams until discovering she has short-term memory loss and forgets him the next day.
 

Animation: TMNT (2007)
When the world is threatened by an ancient evil, the four adolescent turtles must reunite and overcome their faults in order to stand against it.
 

Romance: Me Before You (2016)
A girl (Emilia Clarke) in a small town forms an unlikely bond with a recently-paralyzed man (Sam Claflin) she's taking care of.
 

Horror: Fear Street Part 2: 1978 (2021)
Shadyside, 1978. School's out for summer and the activities at Camp Nightwing are about to begin. But when another Shadysider is possessed with the urge to kill, the fun in the sun becomes a gruesome fight for survival.
 

Science Fiction: Jurassic World (2015)
A new theme park, built on the original site of Jurassic Park, creates a genetically modified hybrid dinosaur, the Indominus Rex, which escapes containment and goes on a killing spree.
 

Crime: Sicario: Day of the Soldado (2018)
The drug war on the U.S.-Mexico border has escalated as the cartels have begun trafficking terrorists across the US border. To fight the war, federal agent Matt Graver (Josh Brolin) re-teams with the mercurial Alejandro (Benicio Del Toro).
 

Thriller: Death Wish (2018)
Dr. Paul Kersey (Bruce Willis) is an experienced trauma surgeon, a man who has spent his life saving lives. After an attack on his family, Paul embarks on his own mission for justice.
 

Documentary: Strong Island (2017)
When filmmaker Yance Ford investigates the 1992 murder of a young black man, it becomes an achingly personal journey since the victim, 24-year-old William Ford Jr., was the filmmaker's brother.
 

Family: Jumanji (1995)
When two kids find and play a magical board game, they release a man (Robin Williams) trapped in it for decades - and a host of dangers that can only be stopped by finishing the game.

Movie Trailer Sunday (104)

Here are this weeks trailers.

Plush
Description: After losing her band mate and brother to a drug overdose, rising rock star Hayley (Emily Browning) finds herself in a downward spiral. The second album from her band Plush is received as a critical and commercial disaster. She finds new hope and friendship in Enzo, the replacement guitarist who inspires her to reach new creative heights. But soon their collaboration crosses the line sexually and Hayley, who is married with two children, retreats from Enzo's advances. As Hayley slowly discovers Enzo's dark and troubled history, she realizes she may have let a madman into her home and family and that her mistake may cost the lives of people closest to her.
Director: Catherine Hardwicke
Starring: Emily Browning, Cam Gigandet, Frances Fisher, Xavier Samuel, Brandon Jay McLaren, Dawn Olivieri
Trailer: Trailer "Plush"

The Railway Man
Description: Eric Lomax (Colin Firth) is a British Army officer who is tormented as a prisoner of war at a Japanese labor camp during World War II. Decades later, Lomax discovers that the Japanese interpreter he holds responsible for much of his treatment is still alive and sets out to confront him, and his haunting past, in this powerful tale of survival, love and redemption.
Director: Jonathan Teplitzky
Starring: Colin Firth, Nicole Kidman, Jeremy Irvine, Stellan Skarsgard, Sam Reid, Tanroh Ishida, Hiroyuki Sanada
Trailer: Trailer "The Railway Man"

Homefront
Description: A widowed ex-DEA agent (Jason Statham) retires to a small town for the sake of his 10-year-old daughter. The only problem is he picked the wrong town.
Director: Gary Fleder
Starring: Jason Statham, James Franco, Winona Ryder, Kate Bosworth, Frank Gillo
Trailer: Trailer "Homefront"
Comment: Not a fan of Jason Statham, but loving James Franco. It actually looks pretty shitty, but who cares. And Stallone is the screenwriter!

Grudge Match
Description: Billy "The Kid" McDonnen and Henry "Razor" Sharp are two local Pittsburgh fighters whose fierce rivalry put them in the national spotlight. Each had scored a victory against the other during their heyday, but in 1983, on the eve of their decisive third match, Razor suddenly announced his retirement, refusing to explain why but effectively delivering a knock-out punch to both their careers. Thirty years later, boxing promoter Dante Slate Jr., seeing big dollar signs, makes them an offer they can't refuse: to re-enter the ring and settle the score once and for all. But they may not have to wait that long: on their first encounter in decades, their long-festering feud erupts into an unintentionally hilarious melee that instantly goes viral. The sudden social media frenzy transforms their local grudge match into a must-see HBO event. Now, if they can just survive the training, they may actually live to fight again.
Director: Peter Segal
Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Robert De Niro, Kevin Hart, Alan Arkin, Kim Basinger, Jon Bernthal, Camden Gray
Trailer:
Comment: Stallone and De Niro going head to head... hell yeah!!

Concussion
Description: Abby (Robin Weigert) is an interior designer turned soccer mom who wakes up one day--after suffering a bad bump on the head--to the feeling that the spark has gone out of her life, sexually and otherwise. So she goes back to work, renovating a Manhattan loft, and tries paying for sex, first with a low-end Craigslist hooker who freaks her out, then with a high-end one who suggests Abby consider giving the world's oldest profession a try.
Director: Stacie Passon
Starring: Robin Weigert, Maggie Siff, Johnathan Tchaikovsky, Julie Fain Lawrence, Emily Kinney, Laila Robins
Trailer: Trailer "Concussion"