Reeve Foundation Paralysis Community

Between Artie on Glee, sideways Locke on Lost, and the Marine in Avatar, there has been a lot of talk about wheelchairs on TV and in films lately. We thought it might be a good time to make the Ultimate List of the Best and Worst Wheelchair Films and TV Shows. Tell us yours?

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Rob Gerth
Director Digital Media
Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation
(800) 225-0292 ext. 7123
"Nothing good is a miracle, nothing lovely is a dream."

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I've come across a number of really good movies involving disabilities lately but the two that really stand out are "Music Within" & "Butterfly Circus". Neither is technically about a specific wheelchair user and Butterfly Circus doesn't even have a wheelchair user in it but its message is truly powerful.

Music Within is about Richard Pimentel, played by Ron Livingston, and how his life goes from "normal" to disabled (hearing impairment) and how that guided the rest of his life. But the character that really steals the show is Art, he's in a wheelchair because of cerebral palsy and is really hard to understand what he's saying. This is how he and Richard become best friends because only Richard can understand what he's saying. Their journey through a world of prejudice is comical at times but when you look at the whole story of where they began and where are they ended up, it is truly a moving experience.

Butterfly Circus is all about not giving up and finding your place in this world. It's a short film, I think only about 20 minutes but by the end of that 20 minutes you'll be moved by tears of sorrow and tears of joy.

Music Within
http://www.mgm.com/view/Movie/1318/Music-Within/

Butterfly Circus
http://www.thedoorpost.com/hope/film/?film=4dd298f102c77b625cf37a9e7744ac68

A contender for worst wheelchair movie: Blood Salvage. Features a young female wheelchair user kept hostage at a salvage yard. It is by far one of the worst movies I've ever seen--with or without wheelchair users in it.

Good subject.

I find Artie's character to be less than ideal. It's not clear cut. I've puzzled through some of the issues at my blog.

Two recent TV shows that dealt with disability in humorous and insightful ways are "My Name Is Earl" and "Southpark." Probably the best episode for Earl is "Cost Dad the Election" costarring Tracy Ashton as Didi, a reoccurring character, and Cameron Clapp. Both are amputees. Also good is "Killerball" which involves wheelchair users.

"Southpark's" most famous disability episode is "Killer Krips" satirizing Christopher Reeve. The disabled Timmy and Jimmy are regular characters on the show. The episode, like most Southpark shows, pulls no punches and some might find most of the episode offensive.