Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Sci-Fi Bri's Movies: "Word Wars"

Sci-Fi Bri's Movies: "Word Wars" (2004)

This fascinating documentary from 2004 depicts four distinctive professional Scrabble (R) players who make most if not all of their money competing in Scrabble tournaments. Sitting around watching other people play Scrabble is not necessarily fun, but these four very different men are fascinating to see. One player, known as "GI Joel" has gastrointestinal issues, another is a part time stand up comic, one is a perennial Scrabble champion, and last but not least is a foul mouth, African-American militant who seems to believe that Scrabble and/or the English language is a conspiracy against blacks. The African-American contendor is unemployed and makes all of his income from Scrabble tournaments. As a casual Scrabble enthusiast who plays at a local library Scrabble club on most Tuesdays I really enjoyed watching this video. For crossword players, people who enjoy words and word games, and even those who don't, most people will find this documentary fun and worth watching. For instance, if I remember correctly, I learned from this film that "the anagram of Eric Clapton is narcoleptic."

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