Murderball and Rory O'Shea….OT movie night

Keith wrote me the following, which I think sounds like a great idea. I want to look into these two movies asap.

I have an idea for an activity your OT class might like – movie night. There are two films with disability related themes The first is “Murderball.” You might have heard of it. It's a documentary about the U.S. paralympic rugby team and was nominated for an Academy Award. Those guys are brutal, disability or not! I had a student lunchtime attendant a few years ago who was on the school girl's rugby team and I went to two games. All of a sudden, it was like seeing a totally different person. I used to kid her that if I didn't finish my lunch some day, she'd probably put my head through a wall!

 
The other movie didn't get the same attention, but it's equally good. “Rory O'Shea Was Here” is about a young guy with M.D. who gets placed in a nursing home. He's the youngest person there and a rebel.  He and a guy with C.P. eventually move into an apartment. It touches on themes of attendant care, accessibility, and most important, consumer control. Rory is sometimes a jerk, but it shows that people with disabilities are like everyone else.
 
Both films are cool because they don't sugar coat people with disabilities or use “cutesy” language. They explore real world issues that much of society never considers.
Feb 18, 2008 | Category: Occupational Therapy | Comments: 2