Movie Trailer Breakdown: 'Safety'

If you’re a fan of Disney and football, Disney+’s new film “Safety” might be the film for you. Directed by Reginald Hudlin, “Safety” is a lightly fictionalized adaptation of the life of Clemson University football player Ray McElrathbey. With McElrathbey being intimately involved with the production, audiences can expect that this movie will do justice to McElrathbey’s compelling story of overcoming adversity.

Amidst an empty football field and a sea of cheers, the narration of Clemson Coach Bowden (Matthew Glave) immediately sets the stakes for the trailer, as he asks: “What does sacrifice mean to you?” The trailer then transitions to fast-paced clips, accompanied by vibrant band music, of the team’s intensive training regimen. As a scholarship athlete, Ray (Jay Reeves) has the burden of balancing school and work; he trains day and night with his teammates while managing a full class load. His daily life, as the trailer demonstrates, is grueling. “If you don’t perform on the field and in the classroom,” Coach Bowden says to Ray, “it will all be taken away.”

The normalcy of Ray’s day-to-day schedule halts when he receives news that his 11-year-old brother Fahmarr (Thaddeus Mixon) will be placed in foster care. The trailer effectively changes the mood with this reveal, as the lighting dims and the music transitions to a dramatic, ticking ring. Pressed with a life-changing decision, Ray adopts his brother, thus having to balance his scholarship, football training, and secretly raising his brother on the Clemson campus.

The beauty of this trailer is that it encompasses the duality of Ray’s personal and professional life. The word “safety” acts as a double entendre: It connotes both the football position and the feeling itself, emphasizing not only the safety’s role as team support on the gridiron but also the support and comfort that we crave in our life. The trailer shifts from the relationship between blood-related brothers, Ray and Fahmarr, to the brotherhood that Ray receives from his teammates where “everyone is family.”

The last half of the trailer focuses on Ray’s evolution and the support he receives from those around him as he faces a series of challenges as an athlete, student, and brother. Vo Williams’ song “History in the Making” plays in the background, elevating the mood with motivating lyrics such as “we build bridges and break limits.” The scenes alternate between fictionalized behind-the-scenes moments in Ray's life and, interestingly, real footage of the team in action surrounded by actual Clemson fans — Director Hudlin shot the scenes during the halftime of a real Clemson game.

“Safety” may appear to follow a well-trodden formula similar to other football movie classics like “The Blind Side.” But it seems to be a promising film nonetheless, capturing the grit, glory, and teamwork that define the sport.