Head Games (film)

Last updated
Head Games: The Global Concussion Crisis (2014)
Directed bySteve James
Produced bySteve James
Steve Devick
CinematographyDana Kupper
Keith Walker
Edited byDavid E. Simpson
Katerina Simic
Liz Kaar
Music byBIlly Corgan
Craig J. Snider
Release date
  • March 4, 2014 (2014-03-04)
Running time
75 min
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Head Games (2012)
Directed bySteve James
Produced byBruce Sheridan
Steve James
Anthony Athanas
Casey Cowell
Jon Cronin
Steve Devick
Andrew E. Filipowski
Frank J., Jr. & Jacqueline C. Murnane
Hank Neuberger
Jim O'Donovan
CinematographyDana Kupper
Keith Walker
Edited byDavid E. Simpson
Music byBIlly Corgan
Craig J. Snider
Distributed by Variance Films
Release date
  • September 21, 2012 (2012-09-21)
Running time
91 min
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Head Games: The Global Concussion Crisis is an expanded version of Head Games (2012), a 2012 documentary film that examines the effects of repeated concussions and subconcussive blows, particularly those associated with sports. It focuses on American football and hockey, but also covers boxing, soccer, lacrosse, and professional wrestling. It covers findings that chronic traumatic brain injury is occurring in female sports. Also covered is physiological evidence of brain injury in adolescent athletes.

Contents

Head Games is directed by Steve James, director of the highly acclaimed documentary, Hoop Dreams . [1] It is a film followup to Christopher Nowinski's book, Head Games. [2]

The film features interviews with Nowinski (founder of the Sports Legacy Institute), Dr. Robert Cantu (a professor of neurosurgery at Boston University School of Medicine, Dr. Ann McKee, and Robert Stern, who are experts on chronic traumatic encephalopathy). In addition to other medical experts, it also extensively interviews athletes, their families, and journalists.

Details

Title

Head Games was inspired by the book Head Games written by former Ivy League football player and WWE wrestler Christopher Nowinski.

Cast

Head Games: The Global Concussion Crisis (2014)

  • Bob Costas
  • Brendan Shanahan
  • Robert Cantu, MD
  • Ann McKee, MD
  • Robert Stern, PhD
  • Hunt Batjer, MD
  • Gary Dorshimer, MD
  • Ruben Echemendia, PhD
  • Douglas Smith, MD
  • Steven Galetta, MD
  • Laura Balcer, MD, MSCE
  • Christina Master, MD
  • Dr. Willie Stewart
  • Dr. Barry O'Driscoll
  • Dr. James Robson
  • Greg "Diesel" Williams
  • Dr. Alan Pearce
  • David Dodick, MD
  • Dr. Huw Williams

Head Games (2012)

  • Christopher Nowinski
  • Alan Schwarz
  • Keith Primeau
  • Cindy Parlow Cone
  • Bob Costas
  • Isaiah Kacyvenski
  • Bill Daly
  • Brendan Shanahan
  • Robert Cantu, MD
  • Ann McKee, MD
  • Robert Stern, PhD
  • Hunt Batjer, MD
  • Gary Dorshimer, MD
  • Ruben Echemendia, PhD
  • Douglas Smith, MD
  • Steven Galetta, MD
  • Laura Balcer, MD, MSCE
  • Christina Master, MD
  • Eric Laudano, M.H.S., A.T.C.

Critical and media reception

Head Games was a critical success, winning Best Documentary at the 2012 Boston Film Festival and Sports Illustrated Best Sports Movie of 2012. Head Games was also an official selection for both the 2012 International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam and the 2012 Sprout Film Festival. The films was also noted in iTunes Best of 2012 and Rotten Tomatoes Top Movies of 2012. [3]

Roger Ebert gave the film three stars noting that "the documentary by Steve James paints a devastating picture of the long-term consequences of head injuries among pro NFL players." [4] Ebert also called Head Games one of the year's "best documentaries." [5] The New York Times stated "Head Games gains credibility and power from compassion for athletes and respect for their accomplishments. But it also tries to open the eyes of sports lovers to dangers that have too often been minimized and too seldom fully understood." [6] The Pittsburgh Post Gazette listed the film as one of the year's best films. [7]

In March 2014, UK Distributor Dogwoof announced that it would be a launching doc-centric digital distribution platform entitled IF365 to help filmmakers get their work on top digital platforms. IF365 will use Dogwoof’s relationship with platforms such as iTunes and Netflix to showcase feature documentaries including Head Games: The Global Concussion Crisis. [8]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Concussion</span> Medical condition

A concussion, also known as a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), is a head injury that temporarily affects brain functioning. Symptoms may include loss of consciousness; memory loss; headaches; difficulty with thinking, concentration, or balance; nausea; blurred vision; dizziness; sleep disturbances, and mood changes. Any of these symptoms may begin immediately, or appear days after the injury. Concussion should be suspected if a person indirectly or directly hits their head and experiences any of the symptoms of concussion. Symptoms of a concussion may be delayed by 1–2 days after the accident. It is not unusual for symptoms to last 2 weeks in adults and 4 weeks in children. Fewer than 10% of sports-related concussions among children are associated with loss of consciousness.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christopher Nowinski</span> American neuroscientist and professional wrestler

Christopher John Nowinski is an American neuroscientist, author and retired professional wrestler. After extensively researching concussions in American football, Nowinski co-founded the Concussion Legacy Foundation, where he is currently CEO and co-founded Boston University's CTE Center. As a professional wrestler, he is best known for his tenure with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) under the ring name Chris Harvard and later under his real name.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sports medicine</span> Branch of medicine for sports injuries

Sports medicine is a branch of medicine that deals with physical fitness and the treatment and prevention of injuries related to sports and exercise. Although most sports teams have employed team physicians for many years, it is only since the late 20th century that sports medicine emerged as a distinct field of health care. In some countries, sports medicine is a recognized medical specialty. In the majority of countries where sports medicine is recognized and practiced, it is a physician (non-surgical) specialty, but in some, it can equally be a surgical or non-surgical medical specialty, and also a specialty field within primary care. In other contexts, the field of sports medicine encompasses the scope of both medical specialists as well as allied health practitioners who work in the field of sport, such as physiotherapists, athletic trainers, podiatrists and exercise physiologists.

Isaiah J. Kacyvenski is a former American football linebacker of the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Seattle Seahawks in the fourth round of the 2000 NFL Draft. He played college football at Harvard and earned an MBA from Harvard Business School after he retired.

<i>Murderball</i> (film) 2005 US documentary film by Henry Alex Rubin and Dana Adam Shapiro

Murderball is a 2005 American documentary film about athletes who are physically disabled who play wheelchair rugby. It centers on the rivalry between the Canadian and U.S. teams leading up to the 2004 Paralympic Games. It was directed by Henry Alex Rubin and Dana Adam Shapiro, and produced by Jeffrey V. Mandel and Shapiro. It was nominated for Best Documentary Feature for the 78th Academy Awards. Murderball was the first and only MTV film released through THINKFilm as well as Participant Media.

Alan Schwarz is a Pulitzer Prize-nominated writer and author, formerly at The New York Times, best known for writing more than 100 articles that exposed the National Football League's cover-up of concussions and brought the issue of brain injuries in sports to worldwide attention. His investigative and profile pieces are generally credited with revolutionizing the respect and protocol for concussions in youth and professional athletics. Schwarz's work was profiled in The New Yorker and several films, including the Will Smith movie "Concussion" and the documentaries "Head Games" and PBS Frontline's "League of Denial". The Columbia Journalism Review featured him on the cover of its 2011 Art of Great Reporting issue and wrote of his concussion work, "He put the issue on the agenda of lawmakers, sports leagues, and the media at large — and helped create a new debate about risk and responsibility in sports." The impact of the series was described by Hall of Fame sports writer Murray Chass as "the most remarkable feat in sports journalism history."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chronic traumatic encephalopathy</span> Neurodegenerative disease caused by head injury

Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is a neurodegenerative disease linked to repeated trauma to the head. The encephalopathy symptoms can include behavioral problems, mood problems, and problems with thinking. The disease often gets worse over time and can result in dementia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andre Waters</span> American football player and coach (1962–2006)

Andre Maurice Waters was an American professional football player who was a safety for the Philadelphia Eagles and Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League (NFL) from 1984 to 1995. Waters was regarded as one of the NFL's most aggressive players, serving as an integral part of one of the league's top defenses. On November 20, 2006, Waters died by suicide and was subsequently diagnosed with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). He is one of at least 345 NFL players to be diagnosed after death with CTE, which is caused by repeated hits to the head.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coup contrecoup injury</span> Type of head injury

In head injury, a coup injury occurs under the site of impact with an object, and a contrecoup injury occurs on the side opposite the area that was hit. Coup and contrecoup injuries are associated with cerebral contusions, a type of traumatic brain injury in which the brain is bruised. Coup and contrecoup injuries can occur individually or together. When a moving object impacts the stationary head, coup injuries are typical, while contrecoup injuries are produced when the moving head strikes a stationary object.

<i>British Journal of Sports Medicine</i> Academic journal

The British Journal of Sports Medicine is a twice-monthly peer-reviewed medical journal covering sports science and sports medicine including sport physiotherapy. It is published by the BMJ Group. It was established in 1964 and the editor-in-chief from 2008 to 2020 was Karim M. Khan. Jonathan Drezner has been editor-in-chief since January 1, 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Helmet-to-helmet collision</span> Dangerous contact in gridiron football

Helmet-to-helmet collisions are occurrences in gridiron football when two players' football helmets make head-to-head contact with a high degree of force. Intentionally causing a helmet-to-helmet collision is a penalty in most football leagues, including many high school leagues.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bennet Omalu</span> Nigerian-American pathologist

Bennet Ifeakandu Omalu is a Nigerian-American physician, forensic pathologist and neuropathologist who was the first to discover and publish findings on chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in American football players while working at the Allegheny County coroner's office in Pittsburgh. He later became the chief medical examiner for San Joaquin County, California, and is a professor at the University of California, Davis, department of medical pathology and laboratory medicine. He is currently the president and medical director of Bennet Omalu Pathology.

Concussions and play-related head blows in American football have been shown to be the cause of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), which has led to player deaths and other debilitating symptoms after retirement, including memory loss, depression, anxiety, headaches, stress, and sleep disturbances.

Concussions, a type of mild traumatic brain injury, are a frequent concern for those playing sports, from children and teenagers to professional athletes. Repeated concussions are known to cause neurological disorders, particularly chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), which in professional athletes has led to premature retirement, erratic behavior and even suicide. A sports-related concussion is defined as a "complex pathophysiological process affecting the brain, induced by biomechanical forces". Because concussions cannot be seen on X-rays or CT scans, attempts to prevent concussions have been difficult.

<i>Life Itself</i> (2014 film) 2014 American film

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<i>League of Denial</i> 2013 book

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boston University CTE Center and Brain Bank</span>

The Boston University CTE Center is an independently run medical research lab located at the Boston University School of Medicine. The Center focuses on research related to the long-term effects of brain trauma and degenerative brain diseases, specializing in the diagnosis and analysis of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). According to researchers at Boston University, CTE is a brain disease involving progressive neurological deterioration common in athletes, military personnel, and others who have a history of brain trauma. The disease is primarily caused by repeated blows to the head, some of which result in concussions or sub-concussive symptoms.

Daniel H. Daneshvar is an American neuroscientist, brain injury physician, and physiatrist. He is known for his academic work in traumatic brain injury and the long-term consequences of repetitive head impacts, including chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). He also founded Team Up Against Concussions, the first scientifically validated concussion education program for children. He is the Director of the Institute for Brain Research and Innovation at TeachAids, which created CrashCourse, a virtual-reality or video based concussion education program.

References

  1. Ebert, Roger (July 8, 2001). "Hoop Dreams". Chicago Sun-Times . Retrieved August 9, 2018.
  2. "Head Games: Football's Concussion Crisis". Archived from the original on 5 October 2013. Retrieved 8 August 2018.
  3. "Top 100 Movies of 2012 - Rotten Tomatoes". www.rottentomatoes.com. Retrieved 8 August 2018.
  4. Ebert, Roger. "Head Games Movie Review & Film Summary (2012) - Roger Ebert". www.rogerebert.com. Retrieved 8 August 2018.
  5. Ebert, Roger. "Some of the year's best documentaries - Roger Ebert's Journal - Roger Ebert". www.rogerebert.com. Retrieved 8 August 2018.
  6. Scott, A. O. (20 September 2012). "'Head Games,' a Documentary About Athletic Injuries". New York Times. Retrieved 8 August 2018.
  7. "The PG's best movies of 2012" . Retrieved 8 August 2018.
  8. "Dogwoof launching doc-centric digital distribution platform" . Retrieved 8 August 2018.