The list of compelling documentaries released this year is quite impressive, and “Murderball,” a labor of tough love from a group of neophyte NYC-based filmmak-ers, certainly deserves mention alongside the best of the bunch. Bearing the name of the smashmouth sport officially known as quad rugby, which is played in more than 40 countries internationally by iron-willed quadriplegics of varying degrees of upper-body mobility, the film chronicles two-plus years in the lives of some of the game’s most colorful figures. Foremost among them are the principal protagonists — who happen to be each other’s biggest antagonists — Mark Zupan and Joe Soares. The former is the goateed, tattooed wheelchair warrior adorning the film posters who is the charismatic young leader of perennial powerhouse Team USA. Alpha-male Soares is a belligerent former American all-star who, consumed with bitterness at having been cut from his country’s squad, signed on to coach the rival Canadians.
Quad rugby is everything its menacing nickname implies. The combatants are equipped with “Road Warrior”-esque armored wheelchairs and exhibit a temerarious disregard for their physical well-being. The on-court action is intense, expertly captured at what Zupan calls an “ass-level view” by co-director/director of photography Henry Alex Rubin. But what really makes “Murderball” such a treat is the stuff that transpires away from the game, where we discover that in spite of their physical limitations, these guys are everyday people who do the things everyday people do, including doing IT! The Zupan-Soares feud makes for a fascinating principal storyline, and Rubin and codirector Dana Adam Shapiro (whose Maxim magazine article was the impetus for the project) weave in numerous other character profiles that are profoundly moving yet appreciatively devoid of overt sentimentality. The filmmakers boldly chose to handle the sensitive subject matter without using kid gloves, and the result is a true and truly uplifting plaudit to a group of jocks and their indomitable spirit. This is film that belongs on everyone’s “to see” list. (Rated R for language and sexual content. Running time: 86 minutes)
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on July 8, 2005. Read the original PDF.