Long before comic book characters dominated movie screens, actor Christopher Reeve made the world believes in superheroes with the 1978 classic "Superman." Reeve died in 2004, nearly a decade after an accident re-shaped his life."Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story" is using interviews with family and friends and never-before-seen home videos to explore his real-life heroism. Reeve started his career on the stage, studying at the prestigious Juilliard School and living with comedian Robin Williams.
The pair had a friendship that was "more like a brotherhood," said Reeve's son Matthew.Reeve was in awe of Williams' energy and versatility, Matthew Reeve said, but audiences quickly clued into Reeve's own star power when he took on the role of the Man of Steel. To his children, though, he "was just dad," Matthew Reeve said.
The documentary explores how Matthew Reeve and his sister Alexandra Reeve Givens grew up watching their dad take the stage as Superman."Super/Man" also reveals their heartbreak over their parents' breakup and the joy they found when Reeve re-married.
He tied the knot with Dana Reeve in 1992, and the pair welcomed another child, William Reeve, later that year. "Dana was sunshine," Alexandra Reeve Givens recalled.
"She just brought joy with her wherever she was and could find it even in the darkest moments." Those dark moments came suddenly, when in 1995, a near-fatal horseback riding accident left Reeve paralyzed from the neck down.The documentary allows viewers to see, for the first time, what went on out of the public's view.
Reeve can be heard talking about how he "ruined (his) life and everybody else's," but in a touching moment, old friend Robin Williams is seen visiting him in the hospital."Robin showed him 'Hey, you're still you,'" Alexandra Reeve Givens said.
"'You still have this foundation of friendship and people around you, who adore you.And you're going to find those fun moments in life again.'" That support...