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Wonderful character development!

The acting in this movie is really good.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

One has to take one's hat off to the creators of this amazing documentary. Henry Alex Rubin and Dana Adam Shapiro deserve congratulations because what they have accomplished with the material they present in the film.The men we meet could have easily accepted the lemons life got them, but instead, they decided to make lemonade by getting involved in a brand new game for handicapped people that wouldn't otherwise be involved in any kinds of sports. "Murderball" is an intense physical activity for even healthy individuals. Many would have trouble practicing this form of competitive challenge the way most of the people do in the film.Everyone one meets show a determination not to be sidetracked by the injuries, or the events that changed their lives. They are to be commended because of their desire to make do with what destiny gave them and take it to a higher level of endurance that involves probably a lot of pain. These men prove to what extent their sheer will power made them adopt the sport that kept their competitive spirits alive."Murderball" should be seen by people who are facing difficulties because these men are a true inspiration in how one can get out of a dire situation to make something out of themselves.

I would not have liked being one of the Academy voters for the 2006 Documentary Oscar. I would be prejudiced and would have voted for the eventual winner, La Marche de l'empereur, but I finally saw the last of the other entries last night, and I know that the decision was difficult.Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room, Darwin's Nightmare, and Street Fight were all superior documentaries as was this one. It was a year of superior films.I can assure you that wheelchair rugby is not my cup of tea, and I applaud the determination shown by these players as they put their lives back together after injury or disease. And, yes, we do learn everything we always wanted to know about quadriplegic sex but were afraid to ask.

The power of the mind is an amazing thing; for those possessing it, no obstacle is insurmountable; but for those lacking it, any roadblock is deterring. Fortunately, the subjects of the documentary "Murderball", are blessed with the former. It's just as well, as they are all quadraplegics.The participants featured (Mark Zupian, Joe Bishop, Andy Cohn, Scott Hogsett, David Willsie) all play "Murderball", otherwise known as Wheelchair or Quad Rugby. While there are no rucks or mauls to be seen, Murderball instead features the finesse and skill of basketball, and the brutality of Ice Hockey or American Football.With four players per team on court, they combine to transport the ball over the opposition's goal line, with each goal worth a point. This documentary focuses on the USA and Canadian teams; starting from the 2002 World Championships in Sweden, where Canada defeated the USA 25-24 in overtime (ending their run of eleven consecutive championships), and to the lead up of the 2004 Paralympics in Greece. These two dominant forces eventually meet again in the Paralympic semi-final, with the winner advancing to the gold medal playoff, while the best the loser can hope for is an inglorious bronze. The USA and Canadian teams have held a long and bitter rivalry, especially considering Bishop (a victim of childhood polio) after playing in the USA's 1996 gold medal triumph in Atlanta, was cut after a loss of form, then defected to take up the Canadian coaching job. Accused of betraying his country, Bishop shows no remorse for his decision, but, ifanything, renewed hatred for the United States. Having led Canada to a dramatic World Championship victory, then losing by a goal in the Paralympics qualifying tournament, Bishop is desperate to defeat the USA again. In other hands, "Murderball" could have been an overly sentimental film. While themes of self-belief and courage upon adversity resonate, it's done in such a matter-of-fact way, that it doesn't feel preachy. The closest the film gets to sentimentality is in recounting Zupian's accident, injured in the back of a pick-up truck by his friend Christopher Igoe, who was drunk at the time. After long periods of avoiding each other, Zupian and Igoe eventually make up. While it could have been easy for Zupian and company to succumb to a life of self-pity and financial handouts, they prove they're just as tough, if not tougher, than most able-bodied athletes. They talk frankly about their accidents and attempting to resume a normal sex life. This comes across in the Murderball matches themselves. The on-court brutality is magnified by the fact, having been to hell and back, the players have no fear about getting injured.The great thing about 'Murderball' is it avoids the usual emotional manipulation of most films about serious disabilities in favour of a more grounded view. That alone is worth watching it for.

Murderball is another name for the form of full contact rugby played by quadriplegics in strengthened chairs described as "Mad Max" style vehicles. This film follows some of the players for the various national teams as they prepare to come together to compete in the 2004 Paralympics in Athens, Greece.I must admit that seeing MTV flash up as one of the production companies didn't really make me have high hopes for this documentary and, although interesting, you can see their values stamped all through this film and sadly acting to its detriment. The film looks at the world of wheelchair rugby, a sport I don't have that much interest in, but by doing so it gets close to the characters and this is where the film tries to be. In theory this should have been fascinating but it was only OK mainly because the delivery is far too superficial and cheerful; it is typically MTV glossy fare and it prevents the documentary really getting to grips with the people. The message to the target audience seems to be no more than "quadriplegics are people too" which is worthy enough but for most viewers is hopefully not going to count as news and, like me, they may want more depth than just that.The film doesn't really "do" depth though and instead it looks at the basics of the people along with the basics of the sport. This just about does the job in terms of keeping the film moving but it is not what I consider a documentary and not that good when you consider the subject matter. Likewise the film does a bad job with the sport itself – it is not presented with excitement and it is not used well as a frame. The action is delivered in slow-motion with musical coverage and other than the odd collision I never got the feel for the sport or even an interest in it (I say this as someone who does watch parts of the Paralympics when they are on the BBC). The characters are OK but nobody really opens up that much and again the film seems happiest on the surface of their lives and doesn't want to probe at any point.Overall this is a solid documentary but not one that ever does much more than the basics. For the MTV target audience this will work but for those of us used to more substance the effect will be to produce disappointment. It is interesting but it is of limited value due to its apparent reluctance to get beneath the surface and really probe or even to do justice to the sport that it pertains to be about. Solid documentary but not much more than that.