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The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters
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Seth Gordon's documentary King of Kong follows the exploits of the two best Donkey Kong players in America. Billy Mitchell has held the world record for the popular video game for over twenty years. The film covers his rise to prominence, and the circle of associates he keeps at the Twin Galaxies arcade, a place where he is revered for his prowess at a number of games. Eventually Steve Wiebe, with time on his ends now that he finds himself without a job, decides to seriously hunker down and challenge Mitchell's record. Gordon gets close to both men, and shows how the passionate subculture surrounding these two have very powerful feelings toward both men. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
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NakedLunchRadioShowNakedLunchRadioShow King of Kong: A fistful of quar ...
by NakedLunchRadioShow in Naked Lunch Radio
loved it.
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"King of Kong: A fistful of quarters Christians have Jesus Christ, Islam has Allah and classic video gamers have Billy Mitchell. The man who held the Donkey Kong record for almost twenty five years is the subject of a documentary in which an unknown newcomer in the classic gaming circle, Steve Wiebe, poses a serious threat to Mitchell's ancient record and the subsequent mind games that ensues between both men. Mitchell is a character unlike any other. Not only does he compare himself to the Red Baron, the most prolific World War II fighter pilot, he also models his life around the idea that he is leaps and bounds ahead of the pack when it comes to classic gaming. Although the community is so small and otherwise insignificant, he revels in the fact that he sits atop a virtual throne and praised by his followers. He exudes a level of confidence so unhealthy that it borders megalomania. His ties are decked in American colors and his trophy wife follows him around with a fa ... " [More]
CinemaRianCinemaRian The King of Kong: A Fistfull of ...
by CinemaRian in CinemaRian Blog
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"Someone is currently making a fiction version of The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters, and that's a mistake. This is the sort material that only reality could have convincingly written. It depicts one of the strangest sub-cultures I've even seen- the one of classic arcade gaming. If you know what a Donkey Kong kill screen is, you won't find this movie funny, but everyone else will. If you have spent every day of you life hoping and praying you might one day behold a Donkey Kong kill screen, you will find this movie suspenseful- also like everyone else. The film depicts a rivalry between Billy Mitchell, who is based on the film is one of the worst human beings since Joseph Stalin, and all-American everyman Steve Weibe, as they attempt to win the world's record for the highest score of a Donkey Kong game. Donkey Kong, you will recall, was the first hit from master game designer Shigeru Miyamoto, and the first game to feature the character of Mario, who by this time has assumed ... " [More]
SpoutBlogSpoutBlog Errol Morris to Make Fiction Film
by SpoutBlog in SpoutBlog on spout.com
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"It didn’t work out so well for Michael Moore, but who is to say other documentarians can’t succeed in fiction filmmaking? Recent notables to make the switch have included Nick Broomfield (whose unscripted yet dramatized Battle for Haditha opens at New York’s Film Forum next month), Barbara Kopple, Andrew Jarecki and Seth Gordon, who originally seemed to be crossing the line to remake his own The King of Kong as a narrative feature but has instead become attached to other fiction projects. The latest, though, is a bit of a shocker, even if he is famous for making a dramatization-heavy doc. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Errol Morris’ next project is a comedy, which he’s currently writing. Titled The End of Everything, the script is at least based on a true story and Morris says the film will be, “a new idea of how to blend drama with reality.” Fortunately, Morris isn’t simply whoring himself out to some Hollywood romcom, as his other quote would suggest: “I’m a funny guy, and ... " [More]
KarinaKarina Blog Nosh 02/04/07
by Karina in Karina on SpoutBlog
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"“If the personalities of The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters weren’t real, Christopher Guest would have invented them.” So begins a gushing review of Seth Gordon’s doc from FourFour. “It made me believe that video game scores matter, and I don’t think that anything matters, really.” Kristin at E! Online says she has “exclusive” information that the Arrested Development movie is going forward. No word yet on whether or not they’re taking any of our plot suggestions. If Kenneth the Page says the strike is almost over, it’s probably true. I think the entire internet must be hungover, because those are pretty much the only blog posts I could find in two hours of combing through and refreshing my feed reader that weren’t about the Super Bowl, Super Bowl ads, or Heidi Montag. Sorry. I’m sure it’ll be better tomorrow. Originally posted on:SpoutBlog » karina " [More]
SpoutBlogSpoutBlog Blog Nosh 02/04/07
by SpoutBlog in SpoutBlog on spout.com
hasn't rated it.
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"“If the personalities of The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters weren’t real, Christopher Guest would have invented them.” So begins a gushing review of Seth Gordon’s doc from FourFour. “It made me believe that video game scores matter, and I don’t think that anything matters, really.” Kristin at E! Online says she has “exclusive” information that the Arrested Development movie is going forward. No word yet on whether or not they’re taking any of our plot suggestions. If Kenneth the Page says the strike is almost over, it’s probably true. I think the entire internet must be hungover, because those are pretty much the only blog posts I could find in two hours of combing through and refreshing my feed reader that weren’t about the Super Bowl, Super Bowl ads, or Heidi Montag. Sorry. I’m sure it’ll be better tomorrow. Originally posted on:SpoutBlog " [More]
KarinaKarina Trade Roughage 01/10/08
by Karina in Karina on SpoutBlog
hasn't rated it.
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"In a piece that reads like AMPTP damage control, Variety quotes a number of sources who burst the bubble on the interim side deals the WGA has been brokering with independent producers. A former TV exec sniffs that the UA deal “isn’t generating much in terms of employment” asmidst predictions that instead of brokering deals to produce new content, studios would rather go to Sundance and buy up anything half-way releasable that’s available. The Online Film Critics Society broke from convention by awarding their Best Documentary prize to Seth Gordon’s The King of Kong, which was one of the best reviewed non-fiction films of 2007 but has failed to drum up much end-of-year awards attention. Other than that, the OFCS bestowed awards on the usual suspects: No Country For Old Men, Daniel Day-Lewis, Julie Christie and Diablo Cody. HBO may back out of their day-to-day participation in Picturehouse, the indie arm that currently operates as a joint venture between the cable giant and Time War ... " [More]
SpoutBlogSpoutBlog Trade Roughage 01/10/08
by SpoutBlog in SpoutBlog on spout.com
hasn't rated it.
Was this review helpful? [Be the first to tell us!]
"In a piece that reads like AMPTP damage control, Variety quotes a number of sources who burst the bubble on the interim side deals the WGA has been brokering with independent producers. A former TV exec sniffs that the UA deal “isn’t generating much in terms of employment” asmidst predictions that instead of brokering deals to produce new content, studios would rather go to Sundance and buy up anything half-way releasable that’s available. The Online Film Critics Society broke from convention by awarding their Best Documentary prize to Seth Gordon’s The King of Kong, which was one of the best reviewed non-fiction films of 2007 but has failed to drum up much end-of-year awards attention. Other than that, the OFCS bestowed awards on the usual suspects: No Country For Old Men, Daniel Day-Lewis, Julie Christie and Diablo Cody. HBO may back out of their day-to-day participation in Picturehouse, the indie arm that currently operates as a joint venture between the cable giant and Time War ... " [More]
SpoutBlogSpoutBlog Trade Roughage 12/26/07
by SpoutBlog in SpoutBlog on spout.com
hasn't rated it.
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"Over the weekend, a few??critic groups??united in naming No Country for Old Men the best??movie of 2007.??St. Louis, Utah and Florida all love the Coen Bros. movie, as well as Ellen Page, Amy Ryan,??Daniel Day-Lewis and Ratatouille. They managed to mix it up a little bit, though, so as not to be completely identical/redundant/unnecessar y. I’d give the most hugs to the gang in Utah for honoring The King of Kong if only they hadn’t disappointed me with their choice for best actress runner-up: Amy Adams. If I was booked to attend that little film festival of theirs next month, I’d totally change my mind and boycott. People just don’t know the lengths I’ll go to complain about this Enchanted kudos crap. Not surprisingly, National Treasure: Book of Secrets topped the holiday weekend box office with $65 million. I would have gone to see it, but instead I hung out at JFK airport for hours on end Sunday night and watched parts of Con Air on my iPod. I’ve decided that Nic Cage is a lot bet ... " [More]
SpoutBlogSpoutBlog Oscars: Critics vs. Voters on Docs
by SpoutBlog in SpoutBlog on spout.com
hasn't rated it.
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"On the eve of the release of the documentary shortlist, the Academy’s list of semi-finalists for the Best Documentary Feature Oscar nomination, AJ Schnack does the math to rank the 30 best reviewed documentaries of the year. His findings might surprise you. Although the race’s obvious heavyweights (particularly Michael Moore’s Sicko, and the two Iraq docs produced by Alex Gibney No End in Sight and Taxi to the Dark Side), do make the cut, data provided by Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic reveals that the most critically beloved documentary of the year is none other than The King of Kong, directed by Seth Gordon, who we interviewed back in August. Gordon’s video game rivalry doc certainly has come a long way since opening at Slamdance, where it competed for the attention of Park City with Chasing Ghosts, a Sundance entry covering some of the same ground and featuring some of the arcade all-stars. But Kong’s eventual dominance over that film by way of critical reception (99% on Rotten ... " [More]
peter-nosterpeter-noster Microcosm
by peter-noster in peter-noster Blog
liked it.
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"Being a video game enthusiast since Pong it wasn't hard for me to get sucked in to the microcosm of the Donkey Kong competition. But as every subculture this one shows some basic themes of human interaction. And it was very exciting too. I recommend it to people who liked "American Movie". " [More]
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