David Willsie is featured in the Oscar-nominated documentary 'Murderball.'

'Murderball' challenges perception of paralysis

Updated Thu. Feb. 2 2006 12:58 PM ET

Saira Peesker, CTV.ca News

Whatever your thoughts on what life must be like as a quadriplegic, you'll probably change your mind if you see Murderball.

The Oscar-nominated documentary follows members of the Canadian and American wheelchair rugby teams in a blunt portrayal of life as a disabled but hardcore athlete -- from bashing armoured wheelchairs into one another on the court to talking frankly off-court about how quadriplegics have sex.

"These guys followed us around for three years and they got the bare bones," David Willsie, a Canadian player profiled in the film, told Canada AM on Wednesday.

"They got our everyday lives and it's honest and it's how we feel. We really enjoy living and we live it to the fullest."

The sport is full-contact and the athletes don't wear helmets -- hence the nickname "Murderball."

The number of players on the floor at a time is based on a scale rating their level of disability. Many quadriplegics have some degree of mobility in some of their limbs, so a team with more severely impaired players can have more on at once.

The goal is to get the ball over the end line, but plenty of bodies, heads and chairs get thrown down and bashed along the way. Needless to say, these guys are disabled jocks who have found their calling.

"We get along great off the floor, but when we play against each other, we're really trying to hurt each other," Willsie said. "It's almost like when brothers go at it. We want it hard."

Directed by Henry Alex Rubin and Dana Adam Shapiro, Murderball was released a year after Hillary Swank earned accolades for Million Dollar Baby, where she played a paralyzed boxer who chose death over quadriplegia.

Murderball however, focuses on how players created successful lives as athletes after tragic events limited their motor skills.

"(Wheelchair rugby is) something that opened a lot of doors for me and it's just so much fun," he said.

Willsie hails from London, Ont., and still plays on the national team. He was paralyzed from the chest down and in his hands after flying head-first into the boards in a hockey game. He got into the sport when some murderball players came to visit him in rehab.

"I thought they were crazy. (Then) I watched it, so I knew they were crazy," he said. "I fit right in."

He is currently gearing up for world championships in September, where he will help Team Canada defend its gold medal win against the United States. The two teams are ranked number one and two in the world and their rivalry drives Murderball's plot.

The film has already earned plenty of praise from quadriplegics, critics and sports fans.

Roger Ebert called Murderball "an astonishing sports documentary." Readers of the web's quintessential movie guide, the Internet Movie Database, give it 8.3 stars out of 10 and the Sundance Film Festival's Audience Award for favourite documentary went to Murderball last year.

Just like in the game, Murderball is up against some heavyweights in the race for Best Feature Documentary including March of the Penguins, Darwin's Nightmare, Enron: the Smartest Guys in the Room and Street Fight.

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