The Blind Side

If you were one of the many who helped The Blind Side achieve box office hit status, you were probably also intrigued by the extraordinary true story behind the film. NFL player Michael Oher was taken in as a teen by Tennessee family the Tuohys, led by matriarch Leigh Anne (Sandra Bullock has been nominated for a Golden Globe for the role).

Like me, you probably wanted to learn even more about the real story behind the film, and now you can have it: 20/20 is focusing on the real-life Tuohys on tonight's episode. Blind Side: The True Story Behind the Movie will feature host Deborah Roberts interviewing Michael Oher about how he came to live with the Tuohys. His real-life adoptive parents, Leigh Anne and will also appear (and Bullock herself shows up too, along with Tim McGraw, who plays her husband in the movie). Personally I can't wait to meet the real woman who inspired Bullock's spitfire performance and hear more from her; the photos shown of the real family at the end of the film were a small taste that left me wanting more.

Avatar ran away with this weekend's box office, bringing in $73 million in theaters. It's a large number, but not quite as big as anticipated — a letdown that many are blaming on the East Coast blizzard, which caused a significant drop in sales figures from Friday to Saturday. Still, the film brought in $232.2 million worldwide, which means that James Cameron is well on his way to making back that $500 million price tag for the film.

Following far behind at No. 2 was last week's champ, The Princess and the Frog, with $12.2 million. Third place finisher The Blind Side continued to hold strong in its fifth week in theaters with $10 million, while Did You Hear About the Morgans? debuted with a disappointing $7 million. Rounding out the top five was The Twilight Saga: New Moon with $4.3 million.

Disney's princesses can still bring it: In its opening weekend, The Princess and the Frog topped the box office with $25 million. The animated film knocked out last week's champ, the underdog drama The Blind Side, which came in second and drew in $15.4 million.

Matt Damon's Invictus debuted in the third spot with $9 million, while New Moon dropped to the fourth spot with $8 million. Rounding out the top five is seasonal flick A Christmas Carol, with $6.8 million.

Looks like New Moon should have kept an eye on its blind side! The surprise hit has been nipping at the Twilight sequel's heels since they were both released two weeks ago, but this is the first weekend that the football drama actually took the top spot at the box office. The Blind Side earned $20.4 million, while New Moon pulled in $15.7 million.

In its first weekend out, Jake Gyllenhaal and Tobey Maguire's sibling thriller Brothers nabbed the third spot with $9.7 million, while A Christmas Carol continues to bring in audiences with $7.5 million. Rounding out the top five is Robin Williams's comedy Old Dogs, with a $6.9 million haul.

Jason Reitman's Up in the Air also had an impressive showing, taking in $1.2 million. The film was only open in 15 theaters, proving that all the hype is already paying off for the George Clooney dramedy.

Photos courtesy of Warner Bros.

Give thanks for movies! This weekend broke sales records, making it the highest-grossing Thanksgiving holiday ever with $278 million over the five days. In the top spot? New Moon reigned supreme once again, raking in $42.5 million. (That's a significant decline from last week's jaw-dropping $140 million, but a strong showing nonetheless.) Nipping at its heels was the Sandra Bullock feel-good film, The Blind Side which drew in even bigger numbers than its debut last week and took in $40.1 million.

Following far behind in third was 2012 with $18 million, box office newcomer Old Dogs in fourth place with $16.8 million, and A Christmas Carol in fifth with $16 million.

Photos courtesy of Summit Entertainment

New Moon madness translated to big bucks for the Twilight sequel: After it set new records for midnight ticket sales and single-day ticket sales, it was obvious it would rule the weekend box office at number one. And how: the movie pulled in $140.7 million, clocking it at the third biggest opening weekend ever, behind The Dark Knight and Spider-Man 3.

What trailed New Moon? I was pleasantly surprised to see heartwarming drama The Blind Side in second, earning a respectable $34.5 million and beating last week's box office ruler, 2012, which was No. 3 with $26.5 million. At No. 4 was animated adventure Planet 51 with $12.6 million, followed by A Christmas Carol with $12.2 million.

Photos courtesy of Summit Entertainment

It's not that the trailer for The Blind Side isn't compelling; the problem is that it combines Sandra Bullock's twangiest, most-over-the top lines with a heartrending song, which makes it seem schlocky. That's exactly what I expected from the movie, but I have to admit that I was wrong — to my surprise, I found it to be a sentimental gem that's actually quite restrained.

The Blind Side is the true story (based on Michael Lewis's book) of NFL player Michael Oher, who grew up in Memphis's projects with his drug-addicted mother and landed in and out of foster homes. He ended up in a fancy private school and in the home of a wealthy family, the Touhys, led by tough-talking Leigh Anne (Bullock). The weaving of Michael's newfound life in the movie is effective, with sweet bits of humor and just enough emotion.

To see what I liked about the film, just read more

The Blind Side, which opens today, promises to be a tearjerker. The movie, which is based on the true story captured in Michael Lewis's book The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game, stars Sandra Bullock as Leigh Anne Touhy, the Christian, Southern mom who takes in Michael Oher, played by Quinton Aaron. Touhy's house is pretty standard for an upper-middle-class Southern family, but one element that caught my eye were these white dining chairs.

I love the idea of using white chairs in the dining room. The color can really lighten up the space, even if the chairs are geometric and wooden, like these. See some of my favorite white wooden chairs below.