Tyson's Run 2022 Movie Review Trailer

 The hearts of those who made “Tyson’s Run” were certainly in the right place. The production, scheduled to premiere on March 11, is a very sensitive and uplifting story about how capable an autistic person can be.

The hearts of those who made “Tyson’s Run” were certainly in the right place. The production, scheduled to premiere on March 11, is a very sensitive and uplifting story about how capable an autistic person can be.

Director: Kim Bass

Writer: Kim Bass

Stars: Major Dodson, Amy Smart, Rory Cochrane

Unfortunately, heart is not the only measure of a film. You must also present a story that stays within the limits of illogical actions and reactions. There is also a responsibility to make the characters texture enough so that there is a very human element present. Those are areas where the film has problems.

Director and writer Kim Bass has problems in both of those areas and that eventually prevents “Tyson’s Run” from being a champion. It's admirable that the film was inspired by a real person, but inspiration can only go so far.

Tyson (Major Dodson) is a 15-year-old boy who has never let his autism limit him. When he reaches a point in homeschooling where his mother, Eloise (Amy Smart), can no longer teach him, Tyson strives to attend public school where his father, Bobby Hollerman (Rory Cochrane), is a legendary high school football coach.

High school is an emotional battlefield as Tyson must deal with the teasing and ridicule of his classmates. When Tyson expresses his desire to help his father win another soccer championship, he is relegated to cleaning up after the team.

This changes when Tyson befriends Aklilu (Barkhad Abdi), a local shoe salesman who is a marathon champion and has been banned from competing. He becomes Tyson's coach when the teenager expresses his desire to compete in a local marathon.

There are two ways to watch “Tyson’s Run,” as it is both a sports movie and a family drama. A focus on the sports angle leaves the film in the creative dust.

A trope of sports movies is that a complete underdog becomes a winner. But the winning part is not so much the end result but what the person learns about themselves in the fight. Even Rocky Balboa failed to win his big fight in the original "Rocky" movie.

Bass has crafted a script that goes beyond how an underdog can find the courage to succeed and takes it to such an incredible level that the film suffers. The focus is so outside the bounds of reality that “Tyson’s Run” almost falls into the realm of fairy tales.

That leaves the family story, and while the production is full of stereotypical characters and over-the-top performances, there is a lot of strength in the father-son scenario. This is where the film finds its heart.

Cochrane gives a suitably gruff performance that shows the conflicts his character faces. It is logical that an athlete whose career was cut short would want his son to fill that void of success. That's no longer an option for the high school coach whose playing days ended with a shoulder injury because he didn't have the kind of son he wanted. Tyson may not see his autism as an obstacle, but his father certainly does.

The growth of the father-son relationship is the best part of Bass's work. There are some rushed elements, but overall the approach is solid. It had to be a strength because the film has many weaknesses beyond the sports elements.

There's also a nice father-son style relationship between Tyson and Aklilu. Abdi's character provides the sage fatherly advice that Tyson doesn't get at home.

Dodson had the difficult task of portraying someone with autism. Although the actor is on the spectrum, it would have been easy for the performance to become caricature, but Dodson finds the right tone for the performance. He points out Bass for the sensitive casting.

Father-son relationships are necessary to save "Tyson's Run" from all of his problems. High school bullies are expected in this type of story, but in the case of "Tyson's Run," those who pick on Tyson seem more like comic book characters than real students. They are so disconnected from the real world that one of them uses a mirror to look at a teacher's dress.

The bullies aren't the only underdeveloped characters. Reno Wilson plays the mayor of the marathon host city. He seems like a melodrama villain when he talks about how someone like Tyson shouldn't be in his race. He is not surprised that a politician would be concerned about his public image, but the expression of these concerns should have been presented in a more realistic way.

Watch Tyson's Run 2022 Movie Trailer