''The Terry Fox Story'' is a 1983 Canadian-American

biographical film A biographical film or biopic () is a film that dramatizes the life of a non-fictional or historically-based person or people. Such films show the life of a historical person and the central character's real name is used. They differ from docudra ...

of Canadian

amputee Amputation is the removal of a limb by trauma, medical illness, or surgery. As a surgical measure, it is used to control pain or a disease process in the affected limb, such as malignancy or gangrene. In some cases, it is carried out on indiv ...

and

runner Running is a method of terrestrial locomotion allowing humans and other animals to move rapidly on foot. Running is a type of gait characterized by an aerial phase in which all feet are above the ground (though there are exceptions). This is ...

Terry Fox Terrance Stanley Fox (July 28, 1958 June 28, 1981) was a Canadian athlete, humanitarian, and cancer research activist. In 1980, with one leg having been amputated due to cancer, he embarked on an east-to-west cross-Canada run to raise money ...

. It was written by Howard Hume,

John Kastner Jean-Guy "John" Kastner (born 12 August 1969) is a Canadian musician and composer born in Beaconsfield, Quebec. He is the singer for Montreal hardcore punk band the Asexuals as well as singer-guitarist for Montreal alternative band Doughboys an ...

and Rose Kastner, and directed by

Ralph L. Thomas Ralph L. Thomas (born September 8, 1939) is a Brazilian-born Canadian film director and screenwriter. He was born in São Luís, Maranhão to Canadian Baptist missionary parents and grew up there and in Canada. He attended the University of Toro ...

. The film stars Eric Fryer as Fox,

Chris Makepeace Christopher Makepeace (born April 22, 1964) is a Canadian former actor, known for his starring roles in the coming-of-age film ''My Bodyguard'' (1980) and comedy horror ''Vamp'' (1986), and supporting roles in the screwball comedy '' Meatballs'' ...

as his brother Darrell, and

Robert Duvall Robert Selden Duvall (; born January 5, 1931) is an American actor and filmmaker. His career spans more than seven decades and he is considered one of the greatest American actors of all time. He is the recipient of an Academy Award, four Gold ...

as Fox's publicist, Bill Vigars. The cast also includes

Rosalind Chao Rosalind Chao (; born September 23, 1957) is an American actress. Chao's best-known roles have been Soon-Lee Klinger in the mid-1980s CBS show ''AfterMASH'', Rose Hsu Jordan in the 1993 movie ''The Joy Luck Club (film), The Joy Luck Club'', the ...

, R. H. Thomson,

Elva Mai Hoover Elva Mai Hoover is a Canadian actress. She is best known for her performance as Betty Fox in ''The Terry Fox Story'', for which she garnered a Genie Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress at the 5th Genie Awards, in 1984, and her televisio ...

Michael Zelniker Michael Zelniker is a Canadian actor, director, and screenwriter. He is best known for his performance as Red Rodney in Clint Eastwood's Academy Award-winning film ''Bird'' (1988) and as Doug Alward in ''The Terry Fox Story'' (1983), for which he ...

Saul Rubinek Saul Hersh Rubinek (born July 2, 1948) is a German-born Canadian actor, director, producer, and playwright. He is widely known for his television roles, notably Artie Nielsen on '' Warehouse 13,'' Donny Douglas on ''Frasier'', Lon Cohen on ''A N ...

and Patrick Watson. The film was produced for

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

with Canadian

co-producer A film producer is a person who oversees film production. Either employed by a production company or working Independent film, independently, producers plan and coordinate various aspects of film production, such as selecting the script, coordina ...

s. Although it was also released in Canadian and British theatres, it was the first

television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

ever made for a

cable Cable may refer to: Mechanical * Nautical cable, an assembly of three or more ropes woven against the weave of the ropes, rendering it virtually waterproof * Wire rope, a type of rope that consists of several strands of metal wire laid into a hel ...

network. The movie included the song "

Runner Running is a method of terrestrial locomotion allowing humans and other animals to move rapidly on foot. Running is a type of gait characterized by an aerial phase in which all feet are above the ground (though there are exceptions). This is ...

", which was written by rock artist Ian Thomas in response to the coverage of Terry Fox's efforts.

Plot synopsis

Terry Fox, aspiring young Canadian athlete, learns that the pain in his right knee is due to a cancerous tumour, and his sporting career sadly comes to an end once he receives news that his leg has to be amputated. After a period of lengthy self-reflection, Terry falls in love with Rike Noda, played by

, a Christian teacher for mentally disabled children, who helps Terry in his quest to regain his self-confidence. Despite his mother's disapproval, on April 12, 1980 Terry dips his artificial limb into the Atlantic Ocean in St. John's, Newfoundland, and sets off on a Marathon of Hope across Canada to raise money for cancer research - the disease he has been battling for three years. That summer, the young man hobbles triumphantly into Toronto, cheered by over 10,000 Canadians who have adopted the 22-year-old as a national hero. On September 1, after over 3,000 miles, he collapses in Thunder Bay, Ontario and was hospitalized. Fox is accompanied on his journey by his friend, Doug Alward, played by

, who has to bear the burden of Fox's disappointment and anger when the marathon does not meet his expectations.

, starring as Bill Vigars, public relations officer for the Cancer Society of Canada, also accompanies Terry on his journey, and masterminds a publicity campaign which results in mass support for Terry's Marathon of Hope.

Cast

* Eric Fryer as

as Bill Vigars *

as Darrell Fox *

as Rika Noda *

as Doug Alward *

Betty Fox Betty Lou Fox (née Wark; November 15, 1937 – June 17, 2011) was a Canadian cancer research activist, the mother of Terry Fox and founder of the Terry Fox Foundation. She was the most prominent figure in Terry Fox's legacy. Biography Fox w ...

*Frank Adamson as Rolly Fox *Marie McCann as Judith Fox

Production

The film was shot from August 23, 1982, to October 14, 1982, on a budget of $2,400,000 ().

Release

The rights to the film were pre-sold to the

and the

CTV Television Network The CTV Television Network, commonly known as CTV, is a Canadian English-language terrestrial television network. Launched in 1961 and acquired by BCE Inc. in 2000, CTV is Canada's largest privately owned television network and is now a divis ...

and aired on HBO on 22 May 1983. The film was theatrically released in 100 theatres on 27 May 1983.

Reception and awards

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' wrote, "The opening section suffers slightly as a result of brevity and awkward dramatics. However, once the film moves into the actual run, it never loses its emotional grip or falters in pacing and involvement." Ron Base of the ''

Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part ...

'' wrote, "That the Toronto producer Robert Cooper, director R. L. Thomas, and the screenwriter Ed Hume have been able to get truth onto the screen with so much life and intelligence is, to put it mildly, one of the season's most unexpected and refreshing surprises."

David Macfarlane David Macfarlane (born 1952 in Hamilton, Ontario) is a Canadian journalist, playwright and novelist. His debut novel, 1999's '' Summer Gone'', was shortlisted for the Giller Prize and was a winner of the Books in Canada First Novel Award. His New ...

wrote in ''

Maclean's ''Maclean's'', founded in 1905, is a Canadian news magazine reporting on Canadian issues such as politics, pop culture, and current events. Its founder, publisher John Bayne Maclean, established the magazine to provide a uniquely Canadian perspe ...

'' that director Ralph Thomas "has chosen to avoid the risk of mystery; instead, he portrays the legend at its most obvious and simplistic level. Courage is a windswept sky. Tragedy is a swirl of violins. Banking on the cheap but correct assumption that tears already cried are waiting to be cried again, ''The Terry Fox Story'' is neither more nor less than a newspaper story that moves." Philip Wuntch wrote in ''

The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...

'' that the film was "well-acted and nicely directed" and "a solid piece of craftsmanship, but it still seems like a made-for-TV movie ... The long shots are not too expansive, and there's an awareness of the natural boundaries of the small screen." ''

Halliwell's Film Guide Robert James Leslie Halliwell (23 February 1929 – 21 January 1989) was a British film critic, encyclopaedist and television rights buyer for ITV, the British commercial network, and Channel 4. He is best known for his reference guides, '' Fil ...

'' said of the film: "True it may be, but dramatically this is a one-note film with endless pretty pictures of the countryside and in the foreground signs of failing health." ''The Terry Fox Story'' won six awards, including

Best Picture This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...

, at the 5th Genie Awards ceremony for Canadian film in 1984. Eric Fryer, the Scarborough amputee who played Fox, won Best Actor, and Michael Zelniker, won Best Supporting Actor for his role in playing Terry's best friend, Doug Alward. *

* Best Actor: Eric Fryer * Best Supporting Actor:

* Best Sound (Joe Grimaldi, Bruce Carwardine, Austin Grimaldi and Glen Gauthier) * Best Sound Editing: (same as above; tied with ''

The Wars ''The Wars'' is a 1977 novel by Timothy Findley that follows Robert Ross, a nineteen-year-old Canadian who enlists in World War I after the death of his beloved older sister in an attempt to escape both his grief and the social norms of oppressiv ...

'') * Best Film Editing: (Ron Wisman) The film was also nominated for Best Cinematography (Richard Ciupka) and Best Supporting Actress (Hoover). Duvall was nominated for Best Actor at the 1983

CableACE Awards The CableACE Award (earlier known as the ACE Awards; ACE was an acronym for "Award for Cable Excellence") is a defunct award that was given by what was then the National Cable Television Association from 1978 to 1997 to honor excellence in Ame ...

, but did not win. Despite its awards, the film was criticized by Fox's family for depicting him as ill-tempered.

Company Credits

Home Box Office (HBO) Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is bas ...

* Robert Cooper Productions

Distributors

(1983) (USA) (TV) *

Twentieth Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film studio, film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm o ...

(1983) (Canada) (theatrical) * Roadshow Home Video (1984) (Australia) (video) * Video Network (Brazil) (VHS)

Film Rights Owner

References

Works cited

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Terry Fox Story 1983 films 1983 drama films 1983 television films 1980s biographical drama films American track and field films Athletics films American biographical drama films English-language Canadian films Canadian biographical drama films Biographical films about sportspeople Biographical television films Canadian drama television films Cultural depictions of track and field athletes Cultural depictions of Canadian men Films about amputees Drama films based on actual events Best Picture Genie and Canadian Screen Award winners Terry Fox Films directed by Ralph L. Thomas Films scored by Bill Conti HBO Films films 1980s American films 1980s Canadian films Films about disability