‘Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story’ Is Deserving of Its Sundance Standing Ovation
You may want to bring some tissues to the upcoming HBO documentary about Christopher Reeve, Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story. It’s a real tearjerker — but not in an unearned, sentimental way. Beautifully constructed and well organized in its storytelling (despite jumping around in time quite a bit) the film not only explores the tragedy of a man most well-known for his portrayal of an immortal superhero, who, in a tale of perhaps ultimate tragic irony, becomes paralyzed from the neck down after falling off a horse, but it also clearly portrays that story with an uplifting, hopeful gaze.
There are several memorable moments from the documentary. One includes an audio clip from Reeve where he explains that following his accident, his entire idea of a hero changed. No longer did a hero mean a cartoon character in a cape or even a man who plunges himself headfirst into danger with no regard for his own safety, as Reeve often did as Superman. After spending months in rehabilitation for his injuries, only to remain stuck in his chair/bed, with very dark thoughts of a future living in such a limited capacity, Reeve began to understand that a hero is a person who, faced with insurmountable challenges and obstacles, moves ahead to meet these obstacles with purpose and doesn’t let himself crumble in the face of what seems impossible.
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That image of resilience and bravery was the main theme behind his story, or at least his story told through the eyes of cowriters Ian Bonhôte, Otto Burnham and Peter Ettedgui.
Another memorable, heartwarming moment (for which you may need those tissues again) was a clip that featured Reeve receiving a standing ovation at the Oscars a year after his accident, when he made a special surprise appearance onstage. The look on Robin Williams‘ face alone!
Resilience was a key factor in Reeve surviving as long as he did after being paralyzed, and it was a key factor in how he lived his last years. But another important theme was family; Reeve had a wonderful, supporting family, who all became much closer to each other following the accident, proving once more that you can find beauty in even the darkest moments. Throughout the film, there are interviews with celebs such as Glenn Close and Jeff Daniels, an old friend of Reeve’s, as well as an array of clips and photos of Reeve with longtime close friend Robin Williams prior to his death; however, most of the interviews involved the people Reeve was most important to — his family. His three children, Matthew, Will and Alexandra, were the main narrators of the film, as they were the main focus of Reeve’s life outside of acting, in addition to wife Dana Reeve, who sadly died just a couple years after him, leaving Will an orphan at age 13. (The film also explores the romance between Christopher and Dana, which is just adorable, and might make you feel like you’re in a Hallmark movie!)
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The movie will be of interest to any Reeve fans, but even if you know nothing about Christopher Reeve and have never seen any Superman films, this is an interesting story regardless, so you can watch it just for that reason alone.
Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story is in theaters now for a limited release and will be released in November on Max.
