The DC Studios documentary Super/Man: the Christopher Reeve Story opens in cinemas this Wednesday, Oct. 16, and it’s a challenging film to watch without a box of tissues on hand. More than just a shot of nostalgia, the film examines the cost of celebrity, his social activism before and after his spinal injury accident of 1995, and how he led a limited but active life until his unfortunate death from heart failure in 2004. Interspersed are vignettes from those who were close to the actor and played vital roles in his challenging life story.

Glenn Close, Jeff Daniels, Director Richard Donner, and the two women in his life, Gae Exton and Dana Morosini - Gae is the mother of two of Christopher’s children, while Dana is the Mom to the youngest son - share a lot of the screen time that isn’t devoted to the man himself. One wonderful anecdote, accompanied by film clips, is about the special friendship forged between Reeve and Robin Williams. 

Without giving too much away, the two were roommates while studying at Julliard, and it was a friendship that became a saving grace when Reeve was despondent and depressed after the accident of 1995. His appearance at the 1996 Academy Awards and Williams's role in getting him from the East Coast to Hollywood is of particular note here, and given its time in the spotlight. So, there’s a lot of irony in how Williams was there for Reeve and what eventually happened to Williams. 

The pacing of the film and the way it’s been cut and edited is an admirable feat of storytelling as it doesn’t follow a linear approach. It helps maintain an element of surprise despite our knowing the trajectory of his life. They touch on the curse of being Superman and how being regarded as a serious actor would elude and frustrate him. There’s footage of him commenting on having to complete four Superman films and his thoughts on them. 

His social activism in the name of those suffering from spinal injuries and on behalf of people with disabilities is admirable to watch, as the perspective of history teaches us how, back then, so many of the things and measures that exist to help those with disabilities today were then not in place. To a significant extent, it took Reeve’s celebrity status to prod the government to make these features part of the law. In terms of changing the narrative about disabilities, Reeve played a role that, in hindsight, had even more global impact than his Superman roles.

There is an attempt to keep a balanced story going, as when the film talks about the Christopher Reeve Paralysis Foundation and how Reeve was overly enthusiastic about stem cell research. He polarized the community through an ad that used CGI to show a Reeve who had fully recovered from the spinal injury, thus creating false hope. 

It is not just a trip down memory lane for Superman fans and for those who say that Reeve is the only cinema Superman for them; the film does show us Reeve, the person.