Score: 4 stars out of 5.
In The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters, underdog Steve Wiebe attempts to break world records and beat the long standing score of Billy Mitchell on the arcade game Donkey Kong. When the score from the video tape of his play in his garage is challenged, he is determined to prove himself. He gains the world’s top score in a public establishment, overcoming the slander of naysayers and despite the fact that no one else had ever even come close to beating the score of nemesis Billy Mitchell. But it’s more than just a movie about Donkey Kong and winning scores. It’s a story of personal triumph. It’s a competition between these two people with the highest scores – one the hero (the underdog, and a person with integrity and a friendly guy who’s a ”good sport”) and the villain (who repeatedly refuses offers to play in public or head to head, and who projects an arrogant demeanor and is rude to his competitors). According to the filmmakers, Billy Mitchell is not happy with the movie, and I’m not at all surprised, because it exposes him as a poor sport, coward, and ego-maniac. But this is live taping – there is no actor or script for Billy – so he has no one to blame but himself for how he comes across. You end up with some emotional investment in the story, as you route for Steve and hope he takes Billy down. This makes the story engaging, and you’re eager to see what happens next. Some interesting people are interviewed, each with their own agenda, and how they play off each other is interesting. You might find you can relate to certain characters. Steve Wiebe’s determination is truly inspiring.
At times the movie can be slow, and you won’t see any big special effects, explosions, or high speed chases. But it is gripping nonetheless. Anyone could enjoy this film as a feel-good movie about an underdog and nice guy who acheives his dream. But gamers will be especially interested, because we understand the intensity, the feelings that come with defeat, the anxiety of having people watching you, and the triumph when you can prove yourself to others as a personal affirmation (Steve), not as showing-off (Billy).
Another thing I liked about this movie is that there is interesting stuff to be learned from it. Gamers will be interested to know more about the Kill Screen and million+ scores. But this movie will educate those who are not familiar with gaming to see that it requires thought, strategy, coordination, concentration, and even a grasp of math and physics sometimes. Perhaps some people will be able to take gaming more seriously, and give gamers the credit they deserve.
The bonus features on the disc are excellent. I usually am not very interested in the bonus features on a movie and rarely watch them. I usually put the disc away, tell myself I’ll watch them some other time, and never do. But I was very curious about the features on here and I watched them immediately after the film ended. Especially interesting was the way you could watch Steve and Billy’s gameplay side by side and compare their strategy. I also particularly enjoyed Steve’s tips for playing the game. In fact, there was insight given that could help a gamer in general and may even be useful on other games.
This is a movie every gamer should watch, and anyone who belittles gaming and gamers should be FORCED to watch. We can all learn something, and we can all enjoy it.
