Movie Review: Wordplay (2006)

i finally got around to watching this documentary on Crossword puzzles (New York Times, specifically). Wordplay is a well-crafted and well executed piece of film making. i used to do crosswords on a daily basis every morning at school before/during my first lecture. i lost the habit toward the end of my third year as mornings got a little more sleepy and classes started later so i did not have first dibs on the newspapers. this film has reawakened that dormant desire to stretch my mind and wrack my vocabulary.

the film takes us behind the scenes of the NYT crossword puzzle making process. we see the inspiration and genius behind the boxes and the care and diligence put into editing the puzzles overall for consistency and coherence. we are introduced not only to hardcore crossword geeks (who time themselves religiously), but to celebrities or iconographic figures that also take time out of there day to sit down, strip out the Arts section and fold back the page to bare the daily Crossword.

from the brief biographies we are taken to the annual American Crossword Puzzle Tournament (ACPT) held at the Marriott Hotel in Stamford, CT (there used to be a Dunder-Mifflin branch in that city, but it was merged with the Scranton branch a few months ago), and we see how the players we were introduced to stack up to the competition. crossword players come in all stripes and walks of life, and gather together once a year to share the one slice of joy they all have in common.

like in all documentaries, the cinematography is nothing spectacular. the editing is clever, like a crossword clue in itself by segueing scenes by innocuous statements. the soundtrack is gentle and campy, much like the characters featured. special effects were used to good effect, giving viewers an over-the-shoulder view of a player's progress. the story is -- as it is with even the most banal of competitions -- dramatic.

the most notable moment was when Will Shortz, the Puzzle editor of the NYT described his favourite puzzle. he immediately recalled the genius puzzle written by Jeremiah Farrell for the American election day 1996. written before the election results were published, clue 39A 'predicted' who would win.