The film we need right now’ is the type of moniker given to so many films these days for how they grant us the permission to escape from the real world. I thought that that description had become cliche, but that was until I saw Adam Oppenheim and Sam Mirpoorian’s documentary short film, Saving Superman. With the DC Comics’ legendary hero’s name right there in the title, I was curious what this film, about an ordinary man, was posing to the audience. What I realized, though, was that cynicism falls away when in the presence of true humanity.
Oppenheim and Mirpoorian’s film centers on Jonathan Charbonneau, a man in the Midwest living with autism. His mother, Sandra, briefly explains how, when her son was a child, she thought that he might be special needs, but no one had the language to identify it back then. She speaks about stigma without pointing it out, and Jonathan later describes the bullying he endured as a young student. We meet Jonathan as he is preparing for the next Fourth of July parade, and we learn that he used to be afraid of parades but not he enjoys participating.
Mirpoorian and Oppenheim invite you to meet Jonathan as he learns that the building he has lived in for decades has been sold and the new owner has jacked up the rent. These filmmakers have introduced us to such a safe environment that we feel safe entering. There are documentaries or pieces of non-fiction where you feel uncomfortable invading their space, but Saving Superman avoids that entirely. Once they told me that they were familiar with Jonathan’s story before they began filming, it became glaringly evident that they took that respect and affection and infuse that into their documentary.
There is something patriotic about filming a documentary on our nation’s birthday while having Jonathan as the subject. Saving Superman, the winner of the Critics Choice Award for Doc Short this year, emphasizes that our best qualities are still within us–we are entirely capable of compassion and loving our fellow man even if the world seems dire. We might think that we’re holding out for a hero, but Oppenheim and Mirpoorian turn our eyes towards one living among us.
