In 1995, the actor Christopher Reeve, who played Superman/Clark Kent in the classic series of films in the 1970s and 1980s, was in a horse-riding accident that damaged his spinal cord and nearly killed him. By the time he recovered, he was paralyzed from the neck down and required a wheelchair and ventilator.  

As he says in the new documentary, Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story, Reeve initially didn’t want to continue living in his condition, but his wife, Dana, convinced him otherwise. Together, they established a foundation that eventually merged with the American Paralysis Association to become the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation. The organization supports research into curing spinal cord injuries and aims to improve the quality of life for patients and their loved ones. The foundation opened the National Paralysis Resource Center in 2002, just two years before Christopher Reeve died at age 52. (Dana Reeve died of cancer in 2006.) 

The film features home videos and archival footage of Reeve during his movie career and after his injury as well as interviews with his three children and several famous friends, including Glenn Close and Susan Sarandon. Critics have called the documentary a love letter to Reeve. His son Matthew calls it a gift, according to an interview in Variety. He especially appreciated a rare Australian interview in 1977 that he never knew existed. The film hasn’t changed his perspective of his father but enhanced it, Matthew says. 

The documentary will play in select theaters on just two dates, September 21 and 25, Reeve’s birthday. See Super/Man Showtimes

Every year, approximately 12,000 people sustain spinal cord injuries involving damage to the cord or the nerves at the end of the spinal canal. The injuries are categorized as either complete (no sensation or voluntary movement remains below the injury) or incomplete (some sensory or motor function exists below the injury). In addition to changes in strength, sensation, and other body functions, people may have torn ligaments, displaced bone fragments or disc material, or fractured and compressed vertebrae.