I just saw a highly emotional film based on the memoir of All Blacks great and my great friend John Kirwan. “JK” was an All Black winger for 96 matches between 1984 and 1994. Despite his enormous success on the field, for years John suffered from crippling depression. In JK’s words, “there’s no reason for it, it just is.” It wasn’t until he sought help from friends, family, and professionals that he was able to battle his illness, and live a full, satisfying life.
The memoir is an enlightening and uplifting story about how, even those people who seem to have it all are sometimes secretly dealing with overwhelming adversity. The film version of All Blacks Don’t Cry was made by actor, director, and friend Julian Shaw. It’s a deeply emotional dramatization of John’s struggle, and an effective tool for raising awareness of this serious, and frequently neglected illness.
You can stream the film for free at www.allblacksdontcry.com, and I highly recommend that you do. For my New Zealand brethren out there who are suffering from depression or know somebody who is, pay a visit to http://www.depression.org.nz/, and join JK in his effort to spread the word.
