Jason Crigler, an accomplished 34-year-old New York singer and songwriter, suffered a brain hemorrhage during a concert and was taken to the hospital. Doctors told his family that his condition was grave and that, if he did wake up, he would probably be a vegetable. His wife Monica, who was three months pregnant, refused to believe what she was hearing.
Jason beat the odds and seven months later was transferred to the Spaulding Memorial Hospital in Boston where he was given therapy on his insurance and Medicaid benefits. He received excellent care and assistance with movement, speech, and handling simple tasks. After seeing a nursing home, his wife, sister, father, and mother decided to take responsibility for his rehabilitation at home. Of course, by this time there was an additional member of the clan, a baby girl.
Writer and director Eric Daniel Metzgar has made a remarkable documentary about the healing power of family love, creativity, and the soul of a young man who refuses to retreat from the land of the living. We are drawn into this inspiring story through the skillful use of home movies, readings from the journal of Jason's sister, photographs, and footage shot at Spaulding Hospital. His family tries desperately to stimulate his brain and to draw him back into the regular rhythms of daily life.
Eventually, Jason returns to his guitar. Musician friends including Teddy Thompson, Norah Jones, Marshall Crenshaw, and others support their friend through a benefit concert and then a New York City concert on his 36th birthday where he plays. Jason says that he feels like he's lost a year of his life but we know that what he has gained is the assurance of the nurturing love of his family; they devote considerable time, energy, and emotional resources to his recovery. Life. Support. Music also makes it clear that creativity can be a lifeline to those with life-altering injuries.
