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Batkid Begins (2015) Reviewed By Jay

United States, 04 April 2014

 

Jay´s Review

A little boy from the tiny farming community of Tulelake, California wishes that he could be Batman. He has just completed a round of chemo in his three-year battle with leukemia; his wish reaches the ears of a local Make-a-Wish organizer.

This PG-rated documentary illustrates the jaw-dropping power of social media as it follows this 5-year-old cancer patient as he gets his wish courtesy of the Make-A-Wish Foundation in San Francisco. The idea caught fire on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc., and resulted in a phenomenal day in his life, the life of the Make-a-Wish personnel and the happy citizens of San Francisco. In addition, this excellent documentary became a film festival favorite.

We see:

  • * Miles Scott is our central character who has been battling leukemia. This was very much on my mind when he had to climb up that daunting flight of stairs near the end of his long, long day....
  • * Patricia Wilson is the Make-a-Wish spark-plug behind the event. She was hoping for "maybe 20 people to pretend to be a crowd."
  • * Ama Daetz is the newscaster who broadcast an appeal for help and asked Batkid to watch for a message from the Chief of Police.
  • * Eric Johnston is the creative genius who designed the tools and choreographed the "rescues." He taught Batkid the secret handshake and also filled in as Batman.
  • * Sue Graham Johnston is the Damsel in Distress saved by Batkid. Watch what happens to her leather jacket and purse.
  • * Mike Jutan works for Industrial Light and Magic. He is The Penguin. Hear what happens to him when he goes to China.

The awesome effect of one small boy's wish reverberates through the Police Department, the Mayor's Office, the costume department of the San Francisco Opera, San Francisco Cable Cars, AT&T Park and countless other local contributors. It also generated national and international cards, letters, emails, etc., from well-wishers and all of the actors who had portrayed Batman, plus greetings from both the President and Mrs. Obama.

I'm just naming some of the participants, you have to see the documentary to see what they do! Just the astonishing size of the crowd alone and its amazing behavior is worth the price of admission. There are times it's an honor to be a human being. This is one of them....

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