The King of Kong (2007)

User Rating:

8.3/10   

Director:

Seth Gordon

Release Date:

28 February 2008 (Australia)

Genre:

Documentary | Sport

Tagline:

Don't get chumpatized.

Plot:

Diehard video game fans compete to break World Records on classic arcade games.

Plot Keywords:

World Record | Video | Arcade Game | Florida | Guinness

Awards:

4 wins & 3 nominations

Cast

Steve Wiebe	...	Himself (also archive footage)
Billy Mitchell	...	Himself (also archive footage)
Walter Day	...	Himself (also archive footage)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Mark Alpiger	...	Himself
Greg Bond	...	Himself
Craig Glenday	...	Himself
Brian Kuh	...	Himself
Robert Mruczek	...	Himself
Todd Rogers	...	Himself
Steve Sanders	...	Himself (also archive footage)
Doris Self	...	Herself
Roy Shildt	...	Himself - 'Mr. Awesome' (also archive footage)
Mike Thompson	...	Himself
Derek Wiebe	...	Himself
Jillian Wiebe	...	Herself
Nicole Wiebe	...	Herself
Adam Wood	...	Himself

Also Known As:

The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters (USA) (new title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for a brief sexual reference.

Runtime:

79 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

USA:PG-13 (A Brief Sexual Reference) | Australia:PG

Filming Locations:

Hollywood, Florida, USA

Company:

LargeLab

Trivia:

Several of those depicted in the documentary, including Wiebe and Mitchell themselves, claim that it does not accurately depict events. For example, Wiebe and Mitchell were, and still are, on much friendlier terms than is suggested, and another player's record was in place during some of the events but is omitted. The director has conceded to many of these claims in statements, arguing that the fictionalized account is more entertaining.

Goofs:

Incorrectly regarded as goofs: The Donkey Kong cabinet that Steve Wiebe installs in his garage is a combo Donkey Kong/Donkey Kong Jr. cabinet, however the markings on the cabinet are those of a stand-alone Donkey Kong Jr. cabinet. Wiebe specially purchases and installs the "brains" (PCB) of the combo game into his Donkey Kong Jr. cabinet in the course of the movie.

Quotes:

Derek Wiebe: [crying] Stop playin' Donkey Kongggggg!

Movie Connections:

Features Pong (1972) (VG)

Soundtrack:

Are You Ready

Transcendent

KING OF KONG is one of the greatest movies I've seen in a while - not documentaries, movies. The film-making here is nothing short of extraordinary - building suspense, creating anticipation, and playing with the archetypes like the best Hollywood movies.

If you have ever played the original Donkey Kong arcade game, or on the original Nintendo, you have to see this movie. I have never beaten Level 3 on the third cycle - the spring on the elevator stage, if you know what I'm talking about, is going extremely fast. These guys get beyond 20 cycles.

I don't want to give anything away...I heard they are going to make this a feature movie with actors, but I think that eliminates the main draw of this concept - these guys are in their forties, in some freak cases have wives and children, and they play Donkey Kong with as much heart as Lance Armstrong rode bikes. They are some of the strongest characters I've seen in a movie since STAR WARS. To best summarize how enjoyable this movie is, after watching the DVD for the first time, I immediately restarted it from the beginning, and watched it again.