Sympathy for Delicious follows a jaded, DJ paraplegic who mysteriously wakes up with the ability to heal others but finds that despite his amazing gift, he still can’t heal himself. It’s the definition of injustice and the main theme of a movie that was written by real life paraplegic, Christopher Thornton. Thornton also plays the paraplegic in the film. And did I mention he’s sexy? His hair and face remind me of Javier Bardem.
When I first heard about Sympathy for Delicious, I wasn’t expecting such an interesting back story on how the film came to be, but was pleasantly surprised when I read that Thornton and Ruffalo are old friends. In fact, Ruffalo knew Thornton even before his injury (which was a rock climbing accident in 1992). They’re old acting class buddies and used to hang out in LA together before hitting it big. Thornton wrote the screenplay, but only by Ruffalo’s heeding, who thought the notion of a bad boy type paraplegic who heals people for profit as fascinatingly morbid.
Many bigger name independent houses liked the script, but wanted a well-known actor (aka, someone not paralyzed) to play Thornton’s role. THANKFULLY, Ruffalo only believed in the movie if Thornton starred as Delicious (his DJ name). Ruffalo also stars in the film (as Father Joe), as well as Orlando Bloom, Juliette Lewis and Laura Linney. Orlando and Juliette play members of this crazy punk rock band that hires Delicious to heal people on stage as they perform.
So is this movie any good? It just premiered at the Sundance Film Festival this week, so only a few people have seen it. But if you check out the reviews online, they vary. Many reviews on blogs say the movie is a mess. I sure hope they’re wrong. It’s not everyday someone who’s actually paralyzed stars alongside such big names. It’d be cool if this rare occasion was capitalized upon, and that the movie was a gem.
There’s no plans for a wide release as of yet, but that’s what Sundance is for, right?
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