KING OF KONG
KING OF KONG |
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A documentary about the Donkey Kong gaming champion of the world, and a 37 year old upstart who challenges for his title. | score 3+ |
moviereview rates films from 1 (unwatchable) to 5 (unmissable) |
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| Cast Steve Wiebe, Billy Mitchell, Walter Day, Mark Alpiger Director Seth Gordon Screenwriter Documentary Country USA Rating / Running Time PG / 79 minutes Australian Release February 2008 Official Site (c) moviereview
2006-2008
ABN 72 775 390 361 |
The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters
has nothing to do with gorillas or Clint Eastwood, but everything to do
with the classic 80’s arcade game Donkey Kong. It’s an
hilarious doco about the geeks and freaks who take gaming, and this
particular game, very, very seriously. Two men are fighting for the
championship title, a battle likened with just a touch of irony to
Saleri’s encounter with Mozart. Steve Wiebe, 37, is a dweeb with OCD. And he always comes second. Always. Between careers, he buys an arcade version of Donkey Kong and goes on to beat the machine. His score breaks a twenty-five year old record set by then 17-year-old Billy Mitchell. Billy has since become a legend in the world of Kong, a ‘video-game Jedi’, and he’s not about to let this upstart take his crown. The most startling thing about The King of Kong is the bewildering support cast. Gordon’s documentary digs deep into this subset of the gaming community and what he unearths is alarming at best. They all make the peculiar, obsessional behaviour of Wiebe and Mitchell seem positively normal. Although it would be easy to send these people sky-high, Gordon normalises his subjects (as best one can) to explore the real story: how vanity, fear and pride can ruin a man. The King of Kong is foremost tremendous fun, hilarious in fact, though seldom at the expense of the gamers despite the ammunition they throw at Gordon. As the title challenge goes down to the wire, you’ll learn more about Kong, Twin Galaxies and Nick Cave’s nerdy alter-ego than you ever thought possible. You’ll be scared and amused, but mostly scared. // COLIN FRASER |