Nowadays, like the rest, films are compartmentalized. We have become a society that functions and performs based primarily on focus group discussions, random samplings, and demographics. Gone were the times when films were produced to tell a good story, or feature a great actor or actress in a part that moved the heart. Maybe it is due to the vast amounts of money spent on a film, with the cost of actor's costs as one of the biggest expense. But if not for the known actor, maybe the film wouldn't sell.

It's a chicken and the egg eventuality of who is to blame for the rocketing price of films and the decline of the quality of the movie narrative. We go back to compartmentalizing into two kinds of films : those that make the super bucks and the ones that do not. And for the ones that need to make the mega bucks, they're further subdivided into groups : horror/slasher, action, and comedy. Barely have we got drama films that do make the hundred million mark at the box office. But because of the comparatively low budget of the drama films, they do not have to. These are the films that are praised by the critics and frequently are given the Oscar nods. These are the films that couples like to watch, goaded particularly by the female to excite the mind of an often unresponsive partner. These are narratives that teach a life lesson to us all, the ones that you would wish to collect in your DVD selection. And if we are fortunate, we receive a film that has got a bit of action, a bit of drama, a little bit of reality, a bit of comedy, and a lot of things that makes one think about life.

We have one this year which has all of the above.

The Blind Side is a movie based on a true story about a young man given a second chance in life through the intercession of a female mentor, who is as headstrong and bullish about how life should be lived and how values should be inculcated. Through the game of football, this young man is given a chance to show his excellent talent for the game and through his coach, his adopted mom, as it were, this young man learns how to live life. This film won for its lead actress, Sandra Bullock, her first academy award on her first nomination.

Maybe it is about time to see the film and for the 1st time, enjoy a great movie and learn from it also.