by John P. Meyer

This white conservative's feel-good philanthropist fable defies expectations by taking the time to build genuine emotional connections between its characters.

Let's not kid ourselves: A clinical analysis of the story behind The Blind Side would lead one to the conclusion that it's little more than a white conservative's feel-good philanthropist fable (with a Southern twang). But, in terms of one's filmgoing experience, the clinical approach seldom suffices. That's because good movies -- such as this one -- rely as much on human, character-driven elements as they do on plot underpinnings.

And thus director John Lee Hancock's film (based on Michael Lewis' book) succeeds in rising above its potentially maudlin "based on a true story" source material thanks to the marvelous, unaffected performances of its actors -- and the effective play-calling of the filmmakers, who score points up-front by concentrating on the family story and leaving the football portion of the tale for the second half.

Quinton Aaron (who -- refreshingly -- plays the role much smarter than Hollywood stereotypes might lead us to expect) stars as Michael Oher, known to most everyone as "Big Mike." A kid from the Memphis projects who grew up without a father, Big Mike gets a chance to attend tony Briarcrest Christian School thanks to the fact that the school's coach has observed his prowess on the basketball court. (His football talents are dormant at this point.) Coach Cotton (Ray McKinnon) advocates for Oher to the school's admissions board thusly:

"Look at the wall: 'Christian.' We either take that seriously, or we paint over it."

This shame-'em-into-action approach bears fruit, and Oher begins attending classes -- though without, by any stretch of the imagination, fitting in. Most of his teachers think he's a lost cause: He's taciturn and seemingly uninterested in his studies, but the key word here is "seemingly." In fact, Mrs. Boswell (Kim Dickens) discovers him to be a thoughtful young man after finding a crushed-up note he's thrown into a trash can on the way out of her classroom.

After receiving both positive feedback and the benefit of the doubt from Mrs. Boswell and others -- not to mention a good deal of personalized instruction -- Michael applies himself to schoolwork, going so far as to read from the biology text while hanging out at the laundromat at night. Where he's washing his one change of clothes. (And more or less living, given the fact that his drug-addicted mother is incapable of providing a home.)

In terms of socializing, Michael makes a breakthrough when a boy named S.J. Tuohy (spark plug kid actor Jae Head -- one of the shining stars of this movie) strikes up a casual friendship with him on the playground between classes. It's S.J. who makes the introduction between Michael and the rest of the Tuohys when they (the Tuohys) encounter him (Michael) while driving down a darkened, wind-blown highway one night.

Leigh Anne Touhy (Sandra Bullock), Type A matriarch of this upper middle class suburban clan, insists that Michael return home with then to spend the night -- once she determines that he has nowhere else to go. Both her teenage daughter Collins (Lily Collins) and her husband Sean (Tim McGraw, turning in a great, believable, laid-back performance) are skeptical, but accepting: Knowing Leigh Anne, they realize that resistance is futile.

Thus we plunge headlong into the trust-building, odds-beating, goal-accomplishing core of the story, which -- improbably -- finds us grasping for adjectives such as "heartwarming." And really meaning them.

As mentioned, at least the first half of the film's two-hour runtime is given over to an exploration of family relationships. During this heartwarming (there, I've said it) segment we gain insight into Michael's troubled childhood. Leigh Anne makes a brief foray into the projects to meet Michael's mom, Denise (Adriane Lenox, coming across tragic and proud). The poverty-stricken, danger-laden, other-side-of-the-tracks neighborhood where Michael came from stands in stark contrast to the tranquil tree-lined boulevards called home by his adoptive family.

We also get a feel for the kind of complications that a house guest like Michael might cause for a popular teenage school girl such as Collins. You get the idea: a strapping African American athlete suddenly living under the same roof as an attractive young white chick? Tongues would be crazy not to wag -- and wag they do.

Cementing this whole drama together are the talents of Sandra Bullock, which emerge here at their full potential. Seldom have I felt so comfortable with an on-screen portrayal, and in this one I have some personal basis for comparison with real-live folks: I have cousins in West Tennessee. (Hi, Bob and Debbie!)

The trust and mutual respect that Leigh Anne and Michael share seems entirely genuine; thus their fierce loyalty (which develops into a primary theme) really works.

As for the second-half football stuff: He shoots; he scores! Wrong sport, but you get the idea. After a series of fits and starts, Michael discovers his true calling thanks to a bit of inspired coaching by his adoptive mom (you've seen the movie trailer, right?). It's in this portion of the show that the remarkable talents of young Jae Head get full focus, as S.J. acts as Michael's chief negotiator with the collegiate teams vying to sign him. Amusingly, we get cameo appearances from a string of real-life coaches, such as Lou Holtz, Houston Nutt, Nick Saban, Phillip Fulmer, and others; they talk up the amenities and advantages of their schools like seasoned used car salesman -- while S.J. leverages for all the options.

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