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Review #164 of 365
Film: Wordplay [PG] 94 minutes
WIP™ Scale: $12.25
Where Viewed: Landmark Harvard Exit Seattle, WA
When 1st Seen: 25 June 2006
Time: 7:15 p.m.
Review Dedicated to: My mom, she made me play word games which I hated, but they made all the difference in my education and to the NY Times Crossword Puzzle Editor himself.
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Click for 'Review Lite' [a 150-word review of this film]
__1__ would have ever dreamed a few years ago that there would be movies about spelling __2__ and now the national crossword championships? __3__ a heady line-up of celebs from __4__ Girls and Jon __5__ to __6__ and __7__ extolling their virtues and presenting crossword puzzlers with their __8__ as the __9__ at the front of the theater goes from natural black to __10__. __11__ do most people realize that the pesky crossword puzzle editor for the New York Times, __12__ __13__, started the National Crossword Championship Tournament in __14__, CT in 1973. __15__, some say, he started it to find kindred __16__ with the same love for puzzles as that which led him to create his own major in __17__—take that Microsoft® Office® __18__!—at the University of Indiana. So look at him now. His education paid off. __19__ reality set in. Reach for the stars no more. The university did right by him; and, needless to say, the NY Times crossword puzzle came to be considered the premier puzzle in the USA. __20__ to Alpha, Mr. __13__ has a hand in every single one of them, though the puzzles are constructed originally by many different, real, live people not __21__ as I gather most people probably think. __22__, even though some viewers of the film will spend the bulk of it scratching their heads as to why people would make such a movie and why people are all fired up about the national competition in crossword puzzles, eventually, this was a documentary that needed to be made. You want to know __23__? There are millions of crossword puzzle-solvers in the USA, and by golly they deserve to be heard. I, sadly, am not one of them probably because I was regularly forced against my will to play Scrabble® and Boggle® as a child versus a parental figure with her enormous vocabulary. My mom! Every time she beat me, I liked them less and less. So, I avoided word games of any sort the rest of my life. __24__ of habit as we are, however, I admit to developing a fondness for words and writing nonetheless, so her efforts were not a total loss. Really though, this __25__ needed to be made to highlight the contributions of crossword puzzles to the daily lives of millions of people who have come to depend on them, sometimes, as __7__ indicates, they are a good lunch companion when you are on your own. Obviously, director and co-writer, __26__ Creadon had his work cut out for him in trying to find a way to captivate live audiences who might or might not be crossword puzzle __27__, adding a human dimension, and unifying the wit, wisdom, and enthusiasm of __12__ __13__ into a coherent documentary. __28__ to these problems included: interspersing mini-features on previous champions and their returns to try to win it all again with footage of the actual championships; interviewing a celebrity panel of self-proclaimed crossword __29__ including those previously mentioned and my personal favorite, Ken Burns, the acclaimed documentarian whose words regarding why he thinks people love crossword puzzles (which boiled down to the notion that we have a fascination with boxes—we live in them, get to work in them, work in them, and therefore it stands to reason we'd want to play in them) touched me and made me weep; and creating a sense of __30__ as the national tournament comes down to the wire with the potential for having the youngest national champion ever. Sadly, you know it's my rule never to give away the ending, so, you'll just have to see the film to find out who won. __12__ __13__, of course, also plays a key role in the film which is as much about crossword puzzles as it is about him and his __31__ love for the self-discipline of the puzzles. Oh, I know your thinking I mean the exact number of black vs. white squares, the rule of reflexivity in the pattern of the black squares, and that there is only one right solution—not so if you know about the famous puzzle created to work whoever won the 1996 presidential __32__ (the clues worked equally well to reveal 'CLINTON' black box 'ELECTED' and 'BOBDOLE' black box 'ELECTED'). Really though, I was thinking more about the __12__ power needed to sit down and __33__ for more than 10 minutes on just one thing—something that has become increasingly challenging for the younger __34__ addicted to their quick fixes and the rise of__35__—which challenges only the mathematical hemisphere of the brain. Do the __36__ in your life a favor and encourage them to consider picking up the routine of doing crossword puzzles. Everyday, they should form the habit at an early age. Don't believe me? __37__ had an advisee (during my high school teaching days) who did them religiously every single day of 11th grade with his best friend during __38__, and it helped bring up his __39__ scores by over 100 points. Toward that angle, there is much talk in the film about the intellectual side of crossword puzzles. Only, the thing is, that they __40__ to just about every type of __41__ that is interested in solving problems. __42__ oneself to the puzzle is the greatest feeling in the world, and seeing this film will induce a similar state of mind. !Take that, __12__ __13__!
| Across | Down |
| 1) 3-letter word music group | 2) 4-letter word for something parents use to teach kids about reproduction |
| 3) 7-letter John Lennon song | 4) 6-letter Indian flower |
| 5) 7-letter Name, He's no relation to Martha | 6) 11-letters Yankees' Favorite Candy |
| 7) 16-letter name alternate name for William Jefferson Blythe III | 8) 6-letters _____ of Might and Magic |
| 9) 6-letter alliteration for caja grande | 10) 5-letters E.B. and Barry |
| 11) 6-letters for diminutive | 12) 4-letters instructions for the living |
| 13) 6-letter word for what Mo'Nique wears to play basketball | 14) 8-letter name of Connecticut town that sounds like Western 'Ivy' |
| 15) 9-letter word for the opposite of figuratively | 16) 7-letter word from something lifted by Popes and pirates |
| 17) 12-letters the study of puzzles | 18) 10-letters for Scrabble® rule book |
| 19) 8-letter word from title of Best Picture 1980 | 20) 3-letter word for end of Canadian alphabet |
| 21) 9-letter word for binary bit manipulator | 22) 3-letter word for this moment |
| 23) 3-letter name of Abbott and Costello's left fielder | 24) 9-letter word for icky, alien things |
| 25) 5-letter word ending for films Scary, Date, and Not Another Teen | 26) 8-letter name of Goalie King |
| 27) 11-letter word for fans | 28) 9-letter word for chemical mixtures |
| 29)8-letter word for aficianodos | 30) 5-letter word for the mask to oppose comedy |
| 31) 10-letter word for diseases that spread | 32) 8-letter movie title starring Reese Witherspoon |
| 33) 11-letter word for what frozen orange juice is made from | 34) 11–letter alternate sub title for Star Trek 7 |
| 35) 6-letter word for Japanese puzzle | 36) 8-letter word for kids |
| 37) 1-letter first Roman numeral (one-letter words are not allowed in crossword puzzles…fortunately, this is not really a crossword puzzle, it's a special puzzle I created for the star of the film to make this movie review work.) | 38) 5-letter word used in rural Wisconsin to mean snack time |
| 39) 3-letter abbreviation for day of the week | 40) 6-letter word for delay of justice |
| 41) 4-letter word for what you're supposed to do with manners | 42) 13-letter word for giving up |
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Click for 'Review Lite' [a 150-word review of this film]
Click for 'Review Lite' [a 150-word review of this film]
Wordplay [DVD] (2006)
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Review-lite [150-word cap]
__1__ would have dreamed there would be movies about spelling __2__ and the national crossword championships? __11__ do most people realize that the pesky puzzle editor for the NY Times, __12__ __13__, started the Championship Tournament in __14__, CT in 1973. Director __26__ Creadon had to captivate audiences with varying interest levels in crossword puzzles and true __27__, add a human dimension, and unify the wit, wisdom, and enthusiasm of Mr. __13__ into a coherent documentary. By interspersing mini-features on previous champions and their return to win it all again with footage of the actual championships, he succeeds in creating enduring characters and a documentary that treats its subject with dignity.
| Across | Down |
| 1) 3-letters music group | 2) 4-letters used to teach kids about reproduction |
| 11) 6-letters diminutive | 12) 4-letters instructions for the living |
| 13) 6-letters what Mo'Nique wears to play basketball | 14) 8-letters Connecticut town sounds like Western 'Ivy' |
| 26) 8-letters Goalie King | 27) 11-letters fans |
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