Concussion
Short description
Concussion follows Dr. Bennet Omalu, a forensic neuropathologist and immigrant to the United States, who examines the brain of a former professional football player and finds evidence of a degenerative condition caused by repeated blows to the head. He publishes his findings and argues that the sport itself is putting players at risk, which brings him into conflict with the National Football League, one of the most powerful organisations in American sport. As more former players are found to show similar damage, Omalu's stand costs him personally and professionally. Will Smith plays Omalu, with Alec Baldwin, Albert Brooks, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, David Morse and Arliss Howard among the supporting cast.
Peter Landesman directed and co-wrote the film, adapting Jeanne Marie Laskas's reporting. It was his second directorial effort, between Parkland and Mark Felt: The Man Who Brought Down the White House, and Ridley Scott was among its producers. Made for around 35 million dollars, it took roughly 49 million worldwide, a modest return for a studio release with a star of Smith's profile.
Audience response has been solid and consistent: on IMDb it holds 7.1 from about 105,000 votes, and on TMDB the same 7.1 from a far smaller base of some 2,774 votes. A critics' rating of 6 out of 10 from 205 reviews places it slightly below those viewer scores.
What's left behind the scenes
- Filming took place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
- The role of Prema Mutiso was initially offered to actress Lupita Nyong'o.
- Matthew Willig, who starred in this film, should be familiar with this topic. Willig played 14 seasons in the National Football League.
- Some scenes of the film were shot in Oxnard, California.
- Preparing to play the role of a doctor in 'Concussion,' actor Alec Baldwin observed several physicians.
- The plot is based on Jean Marie Laskas's article 'Game Brain,' published in 'GQ' magazine in 2009.
- Will Smith and Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje will star together in 'Suicide Squad' (2016).
- While preparing for the film "Concussion," Will Smith and screenwriter and director Peter Landesman observed autopsies. In two cases, the autopsies were performed by Dr. Bennet Omalu himself.
- The scientific article that drew attention to cases of chronic traumatic encephalopathy in football players was titled "Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy in National Football League Players." It was published in the journal "Neurosurgery" in July 2005 (volume 57, issue 1). The article was written by an author collective consisting of B. Omalu, S. DeKosky, R. Minster, M. Cambo, R. Hamilton, and C. Wecht. Excerpts from the article can be found on the website of the National Library of Medicine, and the full text can be purchased from the journal's publishers for a fee.
- Initially, it was believed that Ridley Scott would direct "Concussion" after completing work on the film "Exodus: Gods and Kings" (2014).
- Clayton, founder and frontman of the musical project "Celldweller," composed a synthesizer program for the film's main musical theme.
- In Cyril Wecht's office, several photographs of John Fitzgerald Kennedy can be seen. In reality, Cyril Wecht was famous, among other things, for his critical attitude towards the Warren Commission's (or the Presidential Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy) conclusions regarding the assassination. In the film "Parkland" (2013), Peter Landesman, conversely, took a position supporting the Warren Commission's findings, presented on September 24, 1964.
- This is the second film from Columbia Pictures starring Will Smith, scheduled for release on December 25th. The first was the 2001 sports drama "Ali." In both cases, Will Smith played characters based on real people.
- Mike Webster died of a heart attack at the age of 50. After leaving professional football, he lived in his car, slept in train stations, and was repeatedly arrested for forging prescriptions for stimulants. He claimed he needed the medication to cope with the effects of concussions. Doctors stated that his frontal lobe was damaged, causing cognitive dysfunction. At the time of his death, Webster was "homeless, unemployed, deeply in debt, plagued by ailments, and without health insurance." To make matters worse, Webster was in the midst of a divorce.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
