Review of The Crash Reel (2013) by Sarfaraz A — 18 Jan 2014

The Crash Reel - HBO documentary film co-produced, co-written and directed by Academy Award nominated Lucy Walker (Waste Land). The documentary was premiered at Sundance Film Festival as Opening Night Gala. Nick Higgins worked on its cinematography. Walker touches upon the dramatic life-changing course of Snowboard champion Kevin Pearce (1988- ). It was shown at 63rd Berlin International Film Festival (Special).

Park City, Utah (Dec 31, 2009): Film opens 59-days before the 2009 Olympics - with Kevin practicing. Sooner, he crashes as he is about to do his double-cork practicing. Film then flashbacks to 11-month old Kevin (home-footages) born to caring family of parents Irish-American glass-manufacturing Simon Pearce (whose glasses are considered top-class in the United States) and mother Pia Pearce; his siblings Adams Pearce and younger brother David Pearce, who is living with down-syndrome. After recovering to be stable but with permanent cerebral-injury, which also has affected his vision - Kevin embarks on the mission to actively persuade youngsters and his fans to wear helmet or opt different career.

Powerful and educational documentary, that truly and significantly defines the very meaning of what documentary has got to be. Walker makes the documentary in chronological-order, showing us the childhood days of Kevin, and how he come of the age to be competitive snowboard athlete - winning US Open 2000, New Zealand Open 2006, Nippon Open 2007, Nokia Air Style 2007, Toyota Big Air 2007, Burton European Open 2008, TTR World Snowboard Champion 2008, X Games 2009 (2nd place behind Kevin's friend-turned-foe Shaun White).

Walker is going to accomplish in this documentary what feature-length movies have barely been able to convey the soar-message - that of what guts, it takes for family to see their loved ones in condition, in which he/she is neither dead nor alive.

Sports games have always been about physical-exercise, since when have (some) people thought of lethal sports to give you strength - instead, these dangerous games leave you permanently disabled. Just like the director has put segment about the unexpected death of athlete Sarah Burke, and other local kids (whom Kevin visits to advice about their stubbornness to continue on the path after recovering - also, to be fair and polite toward her mother).

It is quite inspiring to see that Kevin calmly and patiently listens to his family, who have (now) become firm and critical about his post-hospitalization decision to go-back to sports that almost took him away from them. Pearces get-together over Thanksgiving Day and try to eliminate all pertaining differences, the result is 'change' and 'reincarnation' of another Kevin Pearce; a kind of change that Walker saw as, film-style turning-point.

An excellent and overlooked documentary that I believe, I need to spread through word-of-mouth - to save would-be tears of parents and families, who often see their loved ones paralyzed for life.