EVEN LEGENDS NEED A HERO.
In 2002, a Nigerian-American doctor (Will Smith) in Pennsylvania looks into the deaths of several former NFL players and discovers a pattern of brain injuries. A drama that wants to be a new The Insider (1999), this time with the NFL, not tobacco companies, as villains. This reality-based film follows the battle between a doctor and an organization unwilling to face the heartbreak caused by the sport they’re benefitting handsomely from. Engaging enough; Smith is good as the enthusiastic physician who doesn’t understand the powers he’s challenging, and Albert Brooks is also worth a look as an acerbic colleague.
2015-U.S. 123 min. Color. Widescreen. Written and directed by Peter Landesman. Music: James Newton Howard. Cast: Will Smith (Bennet Omalu), Alec Baldwin (Julian Bailes), Albert Brooks (Cyril Wecht), Gugu Mbatha-Raw, David Morse, Arliss Howard… Eddie Marsan, Stephen Moyer, Paul Reiser, Luke Wilson.
Trivia: Ridley Scott was allegedly considered for directing duties.
