No Limbs, No Limits shares the story of Nick Vujicic, a man who was born without arms or legs. The documentary unpacks some of the darker thoughts that Nick and his family had while he was growing up, including suicide ideation. However, Nick ultimately learned that God had a purpose for his life, and now he tries to share God’s love with everyone he meets.
What activities do you think show up most frequently on people’s “bucket lists”? I would imagine there might be a few common answers: Learn to surf, skydive in a beautiful location, be on TV, write a best-selling novel. These are goals that many may dream of fulfilling at some point, but whether or not most people actually check those items off of their bucket list is likely a different story.
Nick Vujicic has accomplished all of those things, plus much, much more.
Oh yeah, and he did it all without arms or legs.
You may have seen a video of Nick online, or perhaps even seen him speak in person. Nick’s mindset isn’t “woe is me,” though. It’s more “If anyone can do it, I can!” Given his positive attitude and the uniqueness of his physical disability, Nick’s internet presence is vast. He has had frequent speaking engagements that shoot up into the hundreds of thousands of listeners.
But Nick didn’t just wake up one day to the opportunity to speak on Oprah. This film plays as an overview of the life (thus far) of an incredibly unique man, along with the hardships that his physical condition brought to him and his family. Nick’s journey led him to some dark places emotionally, but God had a plan for him—bigger than Nick could have ever expected.
Although it took time for Nick to see how God was going to use him, his adulthood is spent speaking to millions of people: His message is one of positivity, telling his audiences that they are worthy of love and are beautiful how they are. One kid in particular recalls that Nick was the first person to tell him that he was loved.
Nick has a family and community around him that are extremely supportive. When Nick was a child, his mom constantly looked for ways to adapt so that Nick could do as many things as possible on his own. Nick’s positive outlook clearly has an effect on those whom he comes into contact with.
While Nick’s physical limitations certainly bring him down at points throughout his life, his overarching view of life is not a defeatist one. He describes ways that he felt supported and encouraged throughout his life by family, mentors, friends and his faith.
Nick’s family raised him in the Christian faith, with frequent discussion of how God helped them through the challenges of raising and supporting him as a child. Several family members talk about how it was difficult to trust that God had a plan for their family, feeling that the situation they were put in was unfair.
Nick too struggles with these thoughts: He goes through multiple stints of depression throughout his life. Nick recalls being angry at God throughout his teen years, going as far to say there was a period where he hated God. However, with the help of his family (as well as several mentors), he came to understand that, although it wasn’t a linear one, God’s plan for him and his physical hardships would eventually point many people to Christ.
Nick’s speaking engagements feature lines of encouragement, such as “God loves you, and I love you.” Some of the gigs he gets are hosted by Christian conventions and churches. Clips from his onstage appearances typically feature a reminder to his audience that God loves them and has a plan for them.
Nick’s brother, Aaron, says that his role to Nick was to be his helper—similar to how Aaron in the Bible assisted his brother, Moses. Nick recalls feeling inspired by John 9, in which Jesus uses a blind man as an example of spiritual blindness.
Nick and his wife, Kanae, kiss several times. Nick’s sister comments that their courtship included “a lot of PDA.”
The film delves into some of the dark, unfiltered thoughts that both Nick and his family had about his physical disability growing up. His mom regrets moments where she briefly thought about “throwing him out of the hospital window” after his birth, for instance. (It’s unclear what she means by this exactly, but Nick’s parents do discuss how they worried about what his quality of life would look like.)
Nick struggles with some extended periods of deep depression, recalling one specifically dark period in his teenage years. He says he attempted to take his own life by turning over in a bathtub (which would have caused him to drown). We hear discussions about suicidal thoughts on other occasions, as well.
Nick makes a crude joke about male genitalia in front of a crowd primarily consisting of teens. He recounts hurtful names that bullies would hurl at him as a kid, such as “freak.” Nick mentions that one bully in particular used to chant “Here comes Nick, he has no …” without finishing the rhyme.
There are a few instances of people drinking beer with a meal. We hear a reference to Nick’s mom drinking a “triple shot mojito” at his wedding.
The documentary is filled with conversations about depression and suicidal thoughts. We also hear about the devastation that a cancer diagnosis has on a family. These topics may feel heavy to viewers.
Nick’s siblings recall how the opinions of others temporarily affected how they themselves viewed their brother. Nick’s family recounts that he was bossy and demanding as a child.
Outside of the specific hurtful comments that Nick has heard about his physical appearance, he also mentions the difficulty of feeling like everyone is staring at him in public.
Nick Vujicic’s story is as unique as he is. His positivity is infectious, and his refusal to be limited by his disability is likely to inspire viewers to venture out of their own comfort zones.
While sections of the film can feel a bit cursory, others contain a surprising amount of candor—specifically when it comes to Nick’s mental struggles. These segments of the film will likely be too dark for younger children, but they could be a catalyst for good conversations with teens about trusting God, even when difficult days are making Him feel further away than normal.
Like Nick’s public speaking outings, the documentary itself wants its audience to leave with one key takeaway: God loves you, and He made you intentionally with a purpose. It’s a message that everyone deserves to hear, and this film is a good overview of the life of a man intent on sharing Jesus’ love with anyone who will receive it.
Jonah Parker’s first interaction with Plugged In came when he was just five years old, after his parents read a review for The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian and deemed the content too intense for him. What started out as a contentious relationship between Jonah and a staff of reviewers who knew not of his existence would later turn into an appreciation for the site’s ability to present media content in a way that was accurate and fair. Jonah enjoys analyzing how our entertainment echoes the creativity of our Creator while finding glimpses of Biblical truths within every genre. He believes that Robert Pattinson’s Batmobile is the perfect mix of cool and practical.
