MUST SEE
Several years ago I happened across a little movie that instantly became one of my perennial favorites. It was a documentary from 1997 called Trekkies. That film was about the Star Trek phenomenon and it's rabid group of followers who devote their time, money and entire life force to their favorite television show. In short, it was terrifying and entertaining all at the same time. They even made a sequel several years later that didn't quite have the charm or originality of the first one but was still watchable. I'll say it now. I love Star Trek. I am partial to the original series mainly but I grew up watching the first 4 feature films over and over until every line of dialogue was stored somewhere in my subconscious. It's a part of my psyche. However, I do not consider my love of those shows and original cast movies to be anywhere near as rabid or intense as the folks on display in the Trekkies films. They belong to a large, yet select group of people that is open to just about anyone who has the time or the love for that stuff. I watched a new film the other night that instantly just replaced Trekkies as my "favorite little movie" of all-time. And it's about an even smaller, MORE select group of obsessed, intense people that to my knowledge have never before been infiltrated to this degree. They call themselves classic gamers. They play original arcade video games mainly from the 1980's. Things like: Pacman, Centipede, Space Invaders and the pièce de résistance, Donkey Kong.
I'm not going to begin to describe the inner workings of these small bands of gamers nor the history of the games and gaming (I'll leave that for this enormously entertaining and engrossing film) but I will tell you that the people on display in this documentary are 100% real, just as dedicated and probably more rabid than those who proudly wear the moniker of "Trekkie". You couldn't have made these people up if you wanted. Some of it is so goddamn funny and twisted it almost seems scripted. But it's not. In a way, it's too real. I know, I'm getting ahead of myself. You probably don't even know what this film is about. Or what it is called. The title is The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters and as I hinted at before, it mainly centers on the select few gamers in the world (mostly middle-aged white males) who devote their lives to playing Donkey Kong. To be honest, the film is about two of these men. The two greatest men who have ever played the game. One, Billy Mitchell, was a skinny 17 year old who set the Donkey Kong record back in the early 80's and held it for nearly 25 years. He went on to become a hot sauce entrepreneur who still looks and dresses like he never left 1982. He acts like a rock star diva and is shown as the true Machiavellian villain of the film. His opponent couldn't be more opposite. Steve Wiebe (pronounced: Wee-bee) was a down-on-his-luck family man who discovered he had an uncanny knack for the game after he was laid-off for several months from a previous job. He went on to topple Mitchell's unbeatable score but that's where the controversy starts. It's almost like something out of an Oliver Stone movie. Wiebe sent in the video tape of him beating the game (something that up until recently was an acceptable form of proof) and the next thing his wife knew was there were strange men showing up at his house uninvited wanting to see his Donkey Kong machine. They were there to uncover whether it was rigged or not. And that's just the beginning. Steve Wiebe ends up being the real-life Rocky Balboa of the film and an instant rivalry is formed between the two champs that continues on and even off the film.
If this is starting to sound like something you've never seen or heard of before -- that's because it probably is. Trust me, by the end of this film, I was sitting up in front of the TV yelling at some of the people in the film while rooting for my favorite player to come through. It was an unbelievable experience. I don't remember the last movie that made me feel or act this way. It simply must be seen to be believed. This is more than a cult film. It's a real-life Revenge of the Nerds meets Rocky with more heart than any film I have seen in the past several years. And don't forget: it's all REAL. Once you watch Mitchell and his countless minions spying on Wiebe and scheming to shut him down (he even manipulates an old woman) you will never want to eat hot sauce ever again. At least the brand made by Mitchell. And once a man known as "Mr. Awesome" (Roy Shildt) shows up, you wont know whether to laugh out loud or run screaming. Ultimately, this was probably the second best film from last year that I have seen. Zodiac is still my favorite. Sweeney Todd is also on the short list. Don't pass up King of Kong. I'm tellin' ya, it's an instant classic that's sure to become one of your all-time favorites. Of any genre.
5 stars
Several years ago I happened across a little movie that instantly became one of my perennial favorites. It was a documentary from 1997 called Trekkies. That film was about the Star Trek phenomenon and it's rabid group of followers who devote their time, money and entire life force to their favorite television show. In short, it was terrifying and entertaining all at the same time. They even made a sequel several years later that didn't quite have the charm or originality of the first one but was still watchable. I'll say it now. I love Star Trek. I am partial to the original series mainly but I grew up watching the first 4 feature films over and over until every line of dialogue was stored somewhere in my subconscious. It's a part of my psyche. However, I do not consider my love of those shows and original cast movies to be anywhere near as rabid or intense as the folks on display in the Trekkies films. They belong to a large, yet select group of people that is open to just about anyone who has the time or the love for that stuff. I watched a new film the other night that instantly just replaced Trekkies as my "favorite little movie" of all-time. And it's about an even smaller, MORE select group of obsessed, intense people that to my knowledge have never before been infiltrated to this degree. They call themselves classic gamers. They play original arcade video games mainly from the 1980's. Things like: Pacman, Centipede, Space Invaders and the pièce de résistance, Donkey Kong.
I'm not going to begin to describe the inner workings of these small bands of gamers nor the history of the games and gaming (I'll leave that for this enormously entertaining and engrossing film) but I will tell you that the people on display in this documentary are 100% real, just as dedicated and probably more rabid than those who proudly wear the moniker of "Trekkie". You couldn't have made these people up if you wanted. Some of it is so goddamn funny and twisted it almost seems scripted. But it's not. In a way, it's too real. I know, I'm getting ahead of myself. You probably don't even know what this film is about. Or what it is called. The title is The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters and as I hinted at before, it mainly centers on the select few gamers in the world (mostly middle-aged white males) who devote their lives to playing Donkey Kong. To be honest, the film is about two of these men. The two greatest men who have ever played the game. One, Billy Mitchell, was a skinny 17 year old who set the Donkey Kong record back in the early 80's and held it for nearly 25 years. He went on to become a hot sauce entrepreneur who still looks and dresses like he never left 1982. He acts like a rock star diva and is shown as the true Machiavellian villain of the film. His opponent couldn't be more opposite. Steve Wiebe (pronounced: Wee-bee) was a down-on-his-luck family man who discovered he had an uncanny knack for the game after he was laid-off for several months from a previous job. He went on to topple Mitchell's unbeatable score but that's where the controversy starts. It's almost like something out of an Oliver Stone movie. Wiebe sent in the video tape of him beating the game (something that up until recently was an acceptable form of proof) and the next thing his wife knew was there were strange men showing up at his house uninvited wanting to see his Donkey Kong machine. They were there to uncover whether it was rigged or not. And that's just the beginning. Steve Wiebe ends up being the real-life Rocky Balboa of the film and an instant rivalry is formed between the two champs that continues on and even off the film.
If this is starting to sound like something you've never seen or heard of before -- that's because it probably is. Trust me, by the end of this film, I was sitting up in front of the TV yelling at some of the people in the film while rooting for my favorite player to come through. It was an unbelievable experience. I don't remember the last movie that made me feel or act this way. It simply must be seen to be believed. This is more than a cult film. It's a real-life Revenge of the Nerds meets Rocky with more heart than any film I have seen in the past several years. And don't forget: it's all REAL. Once you watch Mitchell and his countless minions spying on Wiebe and scheming to shut him down (he even manipulates an old woman) you will never want to eat hot sauce ever again. At least the brand made by Mitchell. And once a man known as "Mr. Awesome" (Roy Shildt) shows up, you wont know whether to laugh out loud or run screaming. Ultimately, this was probably the second best film from last year that I have seen. Zodiac is still my favorite. Sweeney Todd is also on the short list. Don't pass up King of Kong. I'm tellin' ya, it's an instant classic that's sure to become one of your all-time favorites. Of any genre.
5 stars
