Adam Driver with the recent success of his A Marriage Story has gained enough confidence to write, direct and star in his own film which at best may be called only mildly pretentious. An obvious Oscar bait, his movie attempts to dive into the murky world of genetic ethics and the lengths people would go to win college football. Looking almost 20 years older than an average college athlete, Driver's performance as a star athlete with winning genetic combination is not convincing as he huffs and puffs his way through the screen.
Unblind Side, an obvious spin on Blind Side that it could have passed off as a parody, is about a greedy college coach who is trying to regain his pride after a series of losses 18 years ago. Instead of being a serious critique, the scenes are so nonsensical that it could have passed as a comedy easily but it takes itself too seriously to be anything.
The ending of Driver’s movie is shocking only in that we were never convinced there were any real stakes involved. The revelation that he is a designer baby only provokes a monologue about losing one’s identity. However, he manages to leave his planned life almost immediately and set off on deciding what his destiny is for himself. His suicide is a shocker since he gets to do what he wants (a very rich and successful Digeridoo player. Yes, this movie attempts to convince us that it is a successful venture for anyone) and then decides to jump off his expensive Manhattan high rise because he dreamt about his birth. This movie wants to teach you something about the morality of designer babies but the only lesson learnt here is to not inflate yourself with too much self-importance. Or you will end up making a movie that can only laughed at, not laughed with.