Trying Too Hard..."Concussion"

Concussion (2015)

Rated PG-13

Starring Will Smith, Alec Baldwin, Albert Brooks, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, David Morse,

Directed by Peter Landesman

The Story:

Dr. Bennett Omalu (Smith) is a forensic neuropathologist in Pittsburgh who happens to be on duty when the body of former Steelers great Mike Webster (Morse) arrives at the morgue. As Bennett attempts to discover what really killed Webster, he makes the discovery of CTE: chronic traumatic encephalopathy. This discovery should be heralded as a scientific breakthrough, but instead threatens the very nature of the NFL.

In the 2015 edition of Trivial Pursuit, this will be the answer for why Jada Pinkett Smith boycotted the Oscars.

This was Will Smith's Hail Mary (see what I did there?) at an Oscar nab.

The problem is, the movie is rather uneven and therefore not worthy of Oscar buzz.

He gives a fine performance, but when he spoke for the first time with his accent, all I could think about was Eddie Murphy doing a similar accent decades earlier and laughed.

Probably not the correct first reaction to a riveting drama!

The science, the football, it's all good.

The sad decline of some of the NFL's fiercest warriors and the grim realization that Dr. Bennett was right years after bringing it to the attention of the NFL, and largely being ignored, brings the movie to a somber close.

What really isn't that great is the relationship with Prema (Raw). Whether it happened in real life like it does in the movie, I'm chalking that portion up to "who cares?" .

It seems tacked on and very poorly conceived, almost a tender romance bone to throw to the ladies in the audience that have to endure a football movie with their husbands.

Hands down, the best character in the movie is Bennett's boss, played by Albert Brooks. When he's onscreen, the movie picks up and hums along nicely. Sadly, he's not there nearly enough.

Still, no discounting the subject matter.

There was much potential here, but just like the NFL, the opportunity to do something historic was fumbled.

Final Grade:  B- / C+ range

A True Story That Helped Change The World... "Belle"

Belle (2013)

Rated PG

Starring Matthew Goode, Emily Watson, Tom Wilkinson, Sarah Gadon, Gugu Mbatha-Raw

Directed by Amma Assante

The Story:

Dido Elizabeth Belle (Raw) comes to live with her uncle, Lord Mansfield (Wilkonson) when her father (Goode) drops her off. She is raised with her cousin Elizabeth (Gadon), but though she is raised to enjoy much of the benefits of her noble bloodline, her color keeps her at a distance with what she is able to do.

Naturally, this is based on a true story!

Of course, in a period drama like this, there are two things that will happen.

First, there's the forbidden romance (Sam Reid) that should not be allowed in the late 18th Century.

Finally, there is the historical event that centered around Lord Mansfield as the Supreme Justice who was faced with a monumental ruling that would forever change the slave trade in Britain.

A very competent cast, and a surprisingly shorter running time than movies typical to the period dramas, not a bad film, but nothing exceptionally noteworthy to make this a must see.


Final Grade: C

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: Probably not, long period dramas rarely get multiple replays.