Austin, Central Texas, along with the rest of our state and country, congratulate you, Sandra, on your winning the Oscar for Best Actress! We are proud of you and are pleased with The Blind Side. We are also impressed with your honoring caring women, selfless mothers, and the other female nominees for best actress. 

We are grateful for this substantive, entertaining, inspirational film! Our country and the world are hungry for stories with humor, heart, and hope. It is also refreshing to see a film that realistically depicts Christian people who reach out in loving kindness and support to others. The Blind Side encourages us to value human relationships and connections at a time when we especially need this inspiration. It motivates us to reach out with grace, respect, and compassion to others in need.

You display substance and skill as an actor as you effectively play a real life Steel Magnolia, who develops in character as she provides for the neglected Gentle Giant, Michael Oher in The Blind Side. You entertain, uplift, and inspire us in this movie. You make us laugh, cry, and think. You are a role model as an actor and as a woman.

For many years I have been conducting research, writing, and presenting around the world on the power of role models in autobiographical stories. I think this work is especially significant today and can bring light into our dark world of personal, national, and international struggles. In redemptive autobiographical stories, we can find inspirational journeys of those who have persevered and overcome against great odds and high stakes. In The Blind Side we see parental and educational role models and a film that meets criteria of what makes an artistic, redemptive film.

I am glad to add this movie to my list of effective, enlightening, and entertaining redemptive movies. Thank you, Sandra, cast, crew, and real personalities in the story of The Blind Side. This film is an ongoing gift to those who see it.

See Dr. Diane Howard's other recent film reviews and publications.