The Blogtastic Blogfest That Is Getmeoutofthis.net!

While I was sick, I moved the PS3 into my room in order to actually have something to do. I played inFamous for awhile (which I’ll talk about later, I’m sure) but then wanted something a bit more hands-off to do. That’s when I remembered that CJ, who sold me the PS3, had left a copy of The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters on the machine for some reason. I had always meant to watch it, and this seemed like a great excuse, so I started it up.

This is a pretty amazing documentary, and deserves all the praise it got. There are a lot of weird people in the documentary, sure, and there are definitely some things that you will probably laugh, or at least grin at for being so absurd. At the same time, it tells a really great story. It’s all about Steve Wiebe attempting to attain the international top score in, what else, Donkey Kong. There’s this almost hilarious sequence when people are talking about how Donkey Kong is “the hardest game ever” which just seemed so surreal, even if I didn’t doubt that, in the context of these kind of competitions, it very well might be. Wiebe’s quest is fraught with problems, though, as it paints the man who held the top score since the 80’s, and who is famous for being the first person to “beat” Pac-Man, Billy Mitchell, as being a huge douche and a complete villain. I know it’s possible that he wasn’t QUITE as much of an ass as the movie paints him. Editing can do some amazing things. But man, it makes for a compelling story, seeing him snub, refuse to face, and embarrass Wiebe from a distance the entire time. It is one of the best put-together documentaries I’ve ever seen. It does a really good job of establishing what’s important, and why it’s important. It also does a great job of drawing these weird-ass “professional old-school gamer politics” lines, where some people are Billy’s henchmen, almost, and some just want to take him down. Lines are drawn. It’s just… really way more dramatic than a movie about playing Donkey Kong has any right to be, and does it without being forced the majority of the time.

The only downside to the movie is that the ending is a bit anti-climatic. I mean, I’m sure they couldn’t do anything about it. It seemed like the circumstances of the ending came about after they had basically finished, and they felt it important to tack on this extra bit of information, but it’s certainly less powerful than the rest of the film, and leaves you with a weird feeling.
Still, the overall experience is excellent. I feel like I’ve done an awful job of explaining it, though. But oh well. You should watch it anyway. It would be a great rental, and a great time. Go for it.
And thanks, CJ, for putting that somewhere where I could enjoy it.