Review of Wordplay (2006) by Ben F — 21 Jul 2007

[i]Wordplay [/i]is a tight, well-done documentary about crossword puzzles and the annual tournament that pits the nation's top puzzlers against each other in timed, excruciating rounds. The movie isn't terribly informative, and it focuses almost entirely on the puzzle from [u]The New York Times[/u], but considering that the [u]Times[/u] puzzle is the definitive puzzle, that doesn't really matter much.

The movie spends a fair amount of time letting notable people talk about their love for crossword puzzles, with fun appearances by Jon Stewart and Bill Clinton (who gets a little too "philosophical" despite still making sense) and some dull bits with the Indigo Girls.

The much more interesting parts are those that revolve around the contestants of the tournament. It's really amazing to see these people at work; their dedication to their hobby is astounding. Often they can complete a whole puzzle in two or three minutes, while one man has been recording his times in a notebook for decades. It's scary but also very cool.

My favorite scene showed the creation of a crossword puzzle, and seeing the thought proccess behind it was quite fascinating. It's sort of like controlled madness, and I'm hoping to try my hand at it at some point. Who knows, maybe I'll have a puzzle in the [u]Times[/u] soon...