Review of Word Wars (2004) by Ernest K — 25 Jan 2012

Word Wars (Eric Chaikin and Julian Petrillo, 2004).

Given the subject matter and its release date, I was hoping for another movie-this one centers around competitive Scrabble players-that would be as fun, absorbing, and likable as Wordplay, Patrick Creadon's 2006 doco about the New York Times crossword puzzle, or Spellbound, Jeffrey Blitz' captivating 2002 look at contestants working up to the Scripps-Howard National Spelling Bee. That I hadn't heard about this one before stumbling upon it on Netflix Instant should probably have told me something. It didn't, more fool me. The main problem with Chaikin and Petrillo's documentary (which has more in common with something like Darkon than it does with the aforementioned films) is that there is not a single likable character in this. Knowing what little I know about making films and interviewing people, I know that there is a 99% chance this was a conscious choice by the filmmakers to present these people not as offbeat-but-likable characters, but to present them as sideshow freaks. Because of this, however, we don't get the sense of anticipation that comes from the youngsters training up to the spelling bee, or obsessive NYT puzzle-hounds trying to get better and better; instead, this movie captures the grind, the mind-numbing tedium, the obsession required to become an elite Scrabble player. Which, if that's what they were trying to do, means it succeeded-but that doesn't make it compelling watching at all. **.