Concussion

Alongside the movie lineup including Joy, Point Break, and Daddy’s Home that released on Christmas Day, Concussion, one of the most anticipated movies that released at the end of 2015, is based on the true events of Dr. Bennet Omalu (played by Will Smith) performing an autopsy on former Pittsburgh Steelers center Mike Webster and finding that his cause of death was from severe brain damage at age 50. The story goes on to tell the following years where Omalu finds that several more former NFL players including Terry Long, Justin Strzelczyk, and Andre Waters died prematurely due to similar brain damage. Omalu named this disorder chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) which Omalu believes is caused from repeated blows to the head. Despite the revolutionizing discovery, the film also illustrates its controversy with the NFL as it gives the league an image that they do not fully protect their players. Concussion is a great film that will raise attention of the head trauma concern of the NFL, but will not provide any significant uprising on the issue.

“People who love football blindly will hate it. People who hate football for whatever reason will love it,” David Haugh said in an article from the Chicago Tribune about Concussion. Even though Haugh brings up this point, several football players have stated their interest in the film.

Former NFL quarterback Kurt Warner said on Twitter, “Took my boys to #Concussion last night, important movie 4 all those involved in game! As we know more we MUST do more...”

Current Indianapolis Colts long snapper Matt Overton also expressed his thoughts on Twitter saying, “Just watched Concussion. A great movie & a frightening reality.”

Many former and current players were able to see the film several weeks in advance while the rest of America saw it after Christmas day and shared similar opinions of the players.

“The movie was entertaining and informative on a pressing issue today in sports, but at times seemed desperate to drum up drama by misconstruing a situation. I think that anytime you dichotomize twos sides as black and white, evil and good, you lose out on a truly accurate representation of reality and the thoughtful discussion that comes along with it,” NHS Junior Jason Hebner said.

Hebner who is a big fan of football also stated, “The message of the real life main character of Bennet Omalu, is anti-football. As a Nigerian, he views football much like we would view cricket. This is good and bad, it means objectivity in the science, but also a lack of understanding in communicating his idea to the public, as he can’t relate to the people he is warning. The movie is not anti-football, and makes the smart choice of focusing on the easier to hate executives, rather than the game itself. It plays a David vs. Goliath narrative, but makes sure to remind us that Goliath isn’t the sport but the executives in charge of it.”

Near the end of the film, the concept of comparing the NFL to tobacco companies is reiterated. The reason for this comparison is that several characters in support of Omalu where saying that the NFL was denying the discoveries from Omalu. In one scene, Omalu is warned by an attorney that said, “You’re going to war with a corporation that owns a day of the week.” However, a former player in the NFL disability board, Dave Duerson (who was betrayed in the film) agreed with the findings of Omalu, but was afraid of the power of the NFL as their goal was to keep this information from the public. Duerson wound up committing suicide by shooting himself in the chest so that his brain can be examined for further research by Dr. Omalu.

“Comparing the NFL to the tobacco companies is fair because they are both in similar situations, forced to defend their brands against impending reality. In this way, they both act similarly, conducting biased studies in an attempt to reassure themselves and protect their profits, which, unfortunately, is what they are obligated to do,” Hebner said.

All in all, Concussion made a bold decision to release a film with such a controversial topic. However, the controversial topic was actually limited as several deleted scenes leaked on barstools.com indicated a focus on NFL commissioner Roger Goodell. There will be no progress in preventing this issue as if the film director (Peter Landesman) did not attack the heart of the problem at commissioner Goodell, then it indicates how powerful of an industry the NFL has become and will only continue to grow.

Image Courtesy of thereelcritic.com