Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story
A nuanced and inspirational account of the life-changing legacy of leading man turned disability activist Christopher Reeve.
Reeve found global fame as Hollywood’s era-defining Superman in the 1970s, but his life was forever altered when he was paralysed from the neck down following a 1995 spinal injury. From his beginnings as a theatre actor to his global superstardom to his life of post-accident advocacy, this beautiful, open-hearted portrait weaves together a warming cinematic blanket of archival footage, home movies, interviews with friends and family, the recurring presence of long-time pal Robin Williams, and Reeve himself narrating from his 1999 autobiography Still Me.
Inspiring a standing ovation at its Sundance premiere, this emotional cine-portrait is as complex, and at times conflicted, as Reeve himself. While chronicling the struggles and controversies that Reeve encountered after 1995, directors Ian Bonhôte (McQueen, MIFF 2018) and Peter Ettedgui also position the actor as a figure to explore disability advocacy and under-acknowledged struggles within the disabled community. Both Super/Man and its titular figure are powerful vessels of empathy and humanity.
“What the film does exceptionally well, above all else, is to portray the Man of Steel as a fallible family guy … A rich and intensely moving experience.”– Time Out
Tickets
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