batkid begins

It’s as if Kurt Kuenne has set a personal goal of making audiences weep. The narrator-writer-director of Dear Zachary hasn’t been heard from much since that film’s 2008 run, save for a little-seen 2011 narrative feature entitled Shuffle, but it turns out he was busy documenting an event that earned international attention: “Batkid,” in which a leukemia-stricken child named Miles Scott, taking-up the promise of the Make-A-Wish Foundation, managed to have San Francisco transformed into a make-up of Gotham City for a day when he could pretend to be Batman. He had the support of the city, the country, and the country’s leader.

Kuenne, serving as editor and co-writer, and Dana Nachman, serving as director, turned this too-good-to-be-true story into a documentary. Before Julia Roberts stars in a narrative version of the same story, get a preview of the real thing in a first trailer, which is likely to break even the hardest of cynics just a little bit — through emotion, that is, not Batman’s usual method of fascistic violence. (I don’t think we should expect much of that here, but I’m willing to be surprised.) Coupled with the positive reviews from its Slamdance appearance, this trailer indicates that a fine moment was done justice.

Have a look below (via Film School Rejects):

Batkid begins poster

Synopsis:

5-year old Miles Scott spent half his life battling leukemia. Now, it’s his wish to transform into BatKid. San Francisco’s Make-a-Wish thinks bigger. Why not turn San Francisco into Gotham City. Then the idea goes viral. Will it overwhelm Miles, Make-a-Wish, and the city or will the good of humanity make this into a day to remember for millions?

Batkid Begins will enter a limited release on June 26.

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