Murderball (film)

Murderball
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Henry Alex Rubin Dana Adam Shapiro
Produced by	Jeffrey V. Mandel Dana Adam Shapiro
Starring	Keith Cavill Andy Cohn Scott Hogsett Christopher Igoe Mark Zupan Bob Lujano Joe Soares
Music by	Jamie Saft
Cinematography	Henry Alex Rubin
Editing by	Conor O'Neill Geoffrey Richman
Studio	MTV Films Participant Media 1More Film
Distributed by	ThinkFilm
Release date(s)	July 8, 2005 (2005-07-08) (Limited) July 22, 2005 (2005-07-22)
Running time	88 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Box office	$1,750,211

Murderball is a 2005 American documentary film about tetraplegic athletes with partial arm function who play wheelchair rugby. It centers on the rivalry between the Canadian and U.S. teams leading up to the 2004 Paralympic Games. It was directed by Henry Alex Rubin and Dana Adam Shapiro, and produced by Jeffrey V. Mandel and Shapiro. It was nominated for Best Documentary Feature for the 78th Academy Awards.Murderball was the very first MTV film released through ThinkFilm as well as Participant Media.

UN screening

The film was screened at the United Nations uncut. One of its stars, Mark Zupan, winced when describing how embarrassed he was to have his mother hear his remarks on the sex lives of persons with quadriplegia.

Equipment

Murderball is notable for shooting with a very low budget. The main camera used was a Panasonic DVX100; a Sony PD150 was used to shoot some of the early interviews. The crew rigged a Sennheiser shotgun microphone to use as a boom, and relied heavily on Lavaliere wireless microphones as well. Available lighting was used almost exclusively. Additional light was provided using an inexpensive china ball. In one example of on-the-spot lighting, a flashlight was diffused using only a napkin.

Campaign

"Get Into the Game" is a social action campaign that uses Murderball to increase public awareness about people with disabilities and to raise funds for the U.S. Paralympics. Funds raised provide sports wheelchairs for athletes in need.

Reception

Murderball garnered almost universally positive reviews; it currently holds a 98% 'fresh' rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with the consensus "An entertaining and gripping documentary that shows being confined to a wheelchair doesn't mean the fun has to end." This film is also #1 on the Rotten Tomatoes countdown of the top sports movies. Murderball also received positive reviews from Hollywood.com and Roger Ebert, who said "This is one of those rare docs, like "Hoop Dreams," where life provides a better ending than the filmmakers could have hoped for."

Awards

Award	Category	Recipient	Result
Sundance Film Festival Audience Award	Best Documentary Feature		Won
78th Academy Awards	Best Documentary Feature		Nominated
Full Frame Documentary Film Festival Audience Award	Best Feature		Won
Indianapolis International Film Festival Audience Award	Best Feature Film		Won
	Best Non-Fiction Film		Won

See also

• Joe Soares, coach who first led Team Canada to victory against the United States
• Mark Zupan, captain of the U.S. Quad rugby team

External links

• Murderball at the Internet Movie Database
• Murderball at AllRovi
• Murderball at Box Office Mojo
• Murderball at Rotten Tomatoes
• Mark Zupan's Murderball Journal from 2005, at MTV.com