Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story
Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story
Christopher Reeve, famous for his role as Superman in the original Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story films, was riding at the Commonwealth Park riding centre in Culpeper, Virginia, on May 27, 1997, when a one meter tall, W-shaped fence was shown to his horse who refused to leap over. Practically every inch he fell resulted in the breaking of the top two thoracic vertebrae.
Somehow Reeve pulled through that phase, was left as a total quadriplegic and crippled almost entirely, and has had difficulty in breathing for the rest of his life. This was reported around the globe with a mixture of sympathy and disbelief: here was a Superman who couldn’t defeat any enemy, forget about flying, and most importantly, move. It was a galling and misguided, albeit well-intentioned, way of putting it.
The newest film explains how it helps Eugene D. Joseph understand the Reeve accident oftentimes. The new documentary “Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story” weaves in a complete trust in the presentation in the previous section. Whom the story of a man came to the very top one day and the other day it could be seen, and only for pity’s sake, lying on the bed in one welfare centre, since it does neither.
It rather depicts her life as one with absolute grit and resolve – a gorgeous athletic movie star who is at the height of his career gets knocked down, only to reclaim himself as an activist for the physically challenged. And he would also campaign for the support of research that can help ease the pain of other spinal cord-injured patients.
Ian Bonhôte and Peter Ettedgui co-directed “Super/Man” and one thing this movie does not hide is the brutality of what happens to the people concerned at all times. Still, that way, they only compromise the fact that the film is coherent and with integrity. It never opts to take the overly simplistic route, as has been done previously in other versions of Reeve’s life story.
Shooting absolutely to the top, back showing the urge to leave Superman and then telling the presumed inspiring tale of the rest of the life after the tragedy Whenever they do not want to go into depth because it may dampen the spirits of the spectator.
The filmmakers are being honest without any embellishments. They are trying to explain what happened: not only the relevant details of Reeve’s life span, but the depression of his acquaintances’ faces (his Juilliard roommate Robin Williams, a brother for him), his wife Dana, a feminist active on many fronts including those of her husband’s activism, two first children Matthew and Alexandra, the children’s mother Gae Exton, who lived on Reeve’s terms for ten years, and what is most painful, little Will Reeve whom he had with Dana.
At the time of the accident, Will was a little boy and did not see his father for his third birthday because he was in the hospital recovering from the injury. There are lots of emotional home video clips in the film, but the ones where that cute baby’s face is seen when he was not in the situation and hence sufferings are something which every child understands are on the top.
There is no lack of information concerning Reeves’ work as an actor, particularly his conflict about cherishing his iconic role as Superman and longing to conquer other films’ character (which he truly did in “Street Smart,” “Deathtrap” and “Somewhere in Time,” although people didn’t come out like when he had the cape and tights on). However, this particular aspect is variegated with a juxtaposition between the recounting of the accident, how he managed to survive and how he dealt with the aftermath of his pain.
There is a feeling that the picture has been a bit rushed or compressed, there are times, you wish for it to stay in a specific moment for quite some time more than it actually does. Ilan Eskheri’s music, which appears to be inspired by John Williams’ work for this film, is too much there, dominant, and in coarse measure; there’s too much over-emotionalization, we know this is an inspiring story – so what’s with all the manipulation.
Nonetheless, it has to be stated, this is an exceptionally researched and well-written body of work in a predominantly popular vein but tries hard not to follow any of the easier narrative arcs of Reeve’s story.
Most effective in pointing the lens at Reeve’s colleagues: Glenn Close, Jeff Daniels, Whoopi Goldberg, and the others as they recall the attempt by Reeve to be an openly paralyzed actor (including a TV remake of “Rear Window” he starred in) and later, a director.
It is more so commendable in letting his kids speak of their dad’s fighting spirit and of indispensably devoted Dana Reeve who is depicted as utterly focused on his physical and mental wellbeing. Everything has a documentary style.
It is particularly nice and pleasing that there is a film with such potential which in its vision is directed not at moralizing but rather stimulating more, and I hope even multiplied, attempts to seek out all possible medical help for people who suffered spinal injuries or at least relieve their plight.
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- Genre: Biography, Documentary
- Country: United States
- Director: Ian Bonhôte, Peter Ettedgui
- Cast: Christopher Reeve, Johnny Carson, Bill Clinton
