Movie REview

★★★

GLEASON

Written and directed by Clay Tweel. At Kendall Square. 110 minutes.

R (language).

Like other recent, powerful documentaries — Lucia Small and Ed Pincus’s “One Life, One Cut’’ (2014), about the pioneering documentarian Pincus; Steve James’s “Life Itself’’ (2014), about film critic Roger Ebert; and James Keach’s “Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me’’ (2014), about the singer — Clay Tweel’s powerfully affecting and expertly crafted “Gleason’’ immerses the viewer in the ordeal of incurable illness. Not just that of the sufferer, but of family, friends, and loved ones as well, because, as these films make clear, such misfortunes are not just personal, but communal. They are crucibles distilling the dynamics of relationships into an intimate, excruciating essence.

Adding irony to the tragedy, each of these individuals had previously achieved excellence and renown in his field. Each had much more to lose than the average individual in terms of ability and promise. And acclaim. Steve Gleason, in Tweel’s film, had been a charismatic, hard-hitting safety for the New Orleans Saints. In 2006, during the Saints’ first return to the Superdome after Hurricane Katrina, Gleason blocked a punt that resulted in a touchdown, sparking a victory that inspired a storm-ravaged city struggling to recovery. A statue of the play now stands outside the stadium.

Three years after he retired, in 2008, Gleason learned he had ALS. He also learned that his wife, Michel, was expecting their first child, a boy whom they would name Rivers. Knowing that any relationship he would have with his son would be limited and brief, Gleason and his wife determined to make a video blog in which he could share his wisdom and confess his pain, a diary for Rivers to watch in the years to come.

Tweel has edited this material into a complex and emotionally exhausting vérité-like tapestry. Some of the film consists of the remarkable projects Gleason has pursued since his diagnosis, such as Team Gleason, a foundation to help other ALS victims obtain medical equipment and other resources.

That is the public face of Gleason. The private scenes of him weeping with despair, or together with his amazing, funny, and resolutely supportive wife, or his painfully awkward attempts to reconcile with his distant, disciplinarian father — these we all can identify with and are those that make this a true tale of heroism.

★★★ GLEASON

Written and directed by Clay Tweel. At Kendall Square. 110 minutes. Rated R (for language).

Peter Keough can be reached at petervkeough@gmail.com.