Word Wars

2004 "This Is NOT Your Grandmother's Game Of Scrabble."
6.9| 1h20m| en
Details

The classic board game, Scrabble, has been popular for decades. In addition, there are fanatics who devote heart and soul to this game to the expense of everything else. This film profiles a group of these enthusiasts as they converge for a Scrabble convention where the word game is almost a bloodsport.

Director

Producted By

E-Wolf

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Reviews

BootDigest Such a frustrating disappointment
Chirphymium It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional
FirstWitch A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.
Kien Navarro Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.
Mr Dead I really love these documentaries about people with weird obsessive hobbies or bizarre jobs - especially the ones about people that maybe never quite make it but just keep trying. This one's an absolute cracker because the half of the people featured in this film are just total A* fruit cakes. The scrabble itself it fairly interesting but it's much more entertaining watching these freaks battle their rampaging neurotic disorders. Yes dude, you just got SLAYED at the international championships because you didn't get acupuncture first to balance your chi. Nothing to do with it being a game of chance or anything. Seriously, who dedicates their life to a game that's half logic and half chance. Gotta love these lunatics. Great film
mbnx Anyone who has enjoyed a game of Scrabble will enjoy this movie. The Scrabble champions depicted in the movie (real people, not actors) play a game unlike any you're likely to find in the family living room. Words you've never heard of are so common in their games that you almost want to have a dictionary by your side while viewing the film. The only thing stranger than the words are the contenders themselves. "Neurotic", "self-centered", and "compulsive" are a few of the words that can be used to describe them. But, you can't help but watch them--kinda like watching a train wreck in some ways.If you are in the category of "Scrabble enjoyers", you will also like the book "Word Freak" by Stefan Fatsis (the book, in fact, is the genesis for the idea of the film).
calryn I saw this film during the 2nd Annual Independent Film Festival in Cambridge, MA. I like documentaries and enjoyed this one very much. This film was a great representation of the cliche' "truth is stranger than fiction." The characters were very funny - not realizing how funny they actually are (which for me makes it even funnier). I'm amazed at how far some people will go to maintain their passion for Scrabble. I thought the film was put together well and was amused by certain scenes. One where 2 players say they are not friends, wouldn't consider each other friends, but room together and in one scene you see one shaving the back of the other's neck. It was those scenes of contradiction that worked well. I would add this film to my Indie collection.
turnip-7 This film is without a doubt the best Scrabble® Documentary film yet made. The story follows the efforts of four very different top-level Scrabble® players in their attempt to win the title of 2002 National Scrabble Champion. The directors highlight the disparate backgrounds and approaches to the game of the four principles, from the Tai Chi of 3 time champion Joe Edley to the mind-enhancing pharmaceuticals of Matt Graham. The film uses engaging graphics to explain how Scrabble® is played at the pro-level, and to highlight brilliant plays and anagrams. The audience gets a chance to "play along" with many plays of the main characters and many others on the tournament circuit. In addition, the story takes a foray into the subculture of "the parkies", the serious Scrabble®-playing denizens of Washington Square Park, NYC, and the history of the controversy that created the two dictionaries in use for Scrabble® today, one for the tournament players, and one for the general public.By focusing on the people and not history of the game, Word Wars shows the tournament Scrabble® scene at its most human.