RISING PHOENIX

An original Netflix documentary, RISING PHOENIX highlights the stories of Paralympic athletes from all over the world, while also providing information on how the Paralympics games began and where they are now. The documentary is emotionally powerful and inspiring, but there’s some foul language and a little violence, so MOVIEGUIDE® advises caution for older children.

The movie opens with dialogue about Paralympic athletes. The athletes are compared to The Avengers, trying to help save the world. It’s also said that the Olympics are where heroes are made, but the Paralympics are where heroes go to compete.

Next, the movie jumps to the 2012 Paralympic games in London. Interviews with former and current members of the International Paralympic Committee are shown throughout the move. These men talk about what they do, how they organize the games and their admiration for the athletes who compete.

However, the real emotion and inspiration come from the stories of the Paralympic athletes. The movie introduces audiences to a handful of athletes from around the world. The athletes sit down and are able to tell their stories. These stories range from being born with their disability and learning to adapt, getting sick and having to go through amputations, and one story about an athlete surviving the Burundi Civil War.

Along with the incredible stories about the athletes and how they got to where they are today, viewers also get the backstory on how the Paralympics started. Eva Loeffler, the daughter of Sir Ludwig Guttmann, speaks on behalf of her father, the creator of the Paralympic games. There are also some voiceovers from previous interviews with him.

The movie also talks about other years of the Paralympic games and concludes with the 2016 Rio Olympics, and how the Paralympics almost didn’t happen that year.

RISING PHOENIX is an emotionally powerful, inspiring documentary about the athletes of the Paralympic games and the struggles they’ve faced to get to where they are today. The stories, told by the athletes themselves, are incredible to hear. It also shows that the athletes, and the Paralympic games, deserve just as much attention as the Olympic games. The cinematography and music add to the already heart-touching documentary.

RISING PHOENIX has a light humanist worldview as the athletes talk about trying to save the world. Other comments about sports saving their life and bringing them back from dark places are also heard. The movie also has some moral, redemptive elements encouraging cheering for others, being there for others, hope, adoption, believing in yourself, and prayer. However, RISING PHOENIX has some foul language, some violence in some of the sports played at the games, and some conversations about past civil wars and the Holocaust. So, MOVIEGUIDE® advises caution for teenagers.