The two men end up travelling to "The Fun Stop" for a showdown of epic ape proportions. This "Fun Stop" is a video arcade that actually looks like a leftover set from a Kevin Smith slacker movie, complete with an onsite, sixty-something referee who officiates video game standoffs. Does he do it for a living or just for kicks? Either way, he must be a real hit with the ladies.
Sadly, the DVD extras do very little to add to the lackluster drama of Kong, with the exception of the wonderful animated short, "The Really, Really, Brief History of Donkey Kong" which is a wacky little nugget about Nintendo and the creation of our big bad ape (that was more entertaining than anything in the actual movie. Too bad).
The rest of the extras are just more "bios" about two bozos obsessed over being good at something that most of us left behind in our best friend's basement, years ago (In a story recounted by his elderly parents, Billy Mitchell's first video game that he ever played as a small child was - gasp! - Pong - STOP THE PRESSES! That little tidbit of information is about as mind-blowing as Pong itself).
The King of Kong, in the end, is as harmless as these man-children playing a video game and trying to recapture some past "middle school magic." But is it truly worthy of being touted as “Best Picture of the Year” by movie critics when such haunting pleasures as No Country For Old Men currently exist? I think not.
As the years keep rolling by us like so many barrels, and current pressures of adulthood abundantly persist, there is surely no harm in picking up the joystick of your old Atari 2600 once in a while to help relieve a little tension - and reflect upon better days. But, when it comes at the expense of neglecting the ones you love, or even changing a dirty diaper once in a while, it ultimately seems rather shallow in the end.
For the record, this comes from the guy who currently holds the high score of Activision’s “Pitfall Harry” - in his own mind. Where’s the justice, I ask? Not in this movie (for the audience, anyway) - but it does give you the chance to hit the “Pause" button and mull it over like Mario, for whatever that’s worth, right?
GAME OVER.
Article comments
1 - Tan The Man
I was surprised by how entertaining and intriguing this documentary was.
2 - Chris McVetta
Like a giant ape, lost, alone, and confused in the big city ...I seem to be in the minority on this one.
3 - grasshopper
I am so jealous of Steve Wiebe ... I would love to get paid 10k for all the time i've spent practicing video games