Link to the Past: The King Of Kong

logan j. fowler looks back at we he considers the best video game movie ever …

Two men. One game.

It’s on like Donkey Kong.

Released in 2007, The King Of Kong: A Fistful Of Quarters is a story of an epic battle between two champions of gaming. In one corner, you have Billy Mitchell, a bearded, long-haired entrepreneur who owns a chain of restaurants in Florida by the name of “Rickey’s World Famous Restaurant,” which also sells a line of hot sauce. The guy looks make him seem fit for a rock band. He has the highest Donkey Kong score on record, and everyone who knows the name in the video game record breaking industry metaphorically bows before him.

In the other corner, you have Steve Wiebe, a teacher, family man, and all around good guy. Wiebe’s inability to succeed in previous areas of his life leads him to try and dominate a new field. Once the Donkey Kong cabinet rolls into Steve’s garage, he begins mapping out the ways to successfully beat the classic game, even placing pencil points on the cabinet’s screen to help his movements and timing.

The introduction of Billy Mitchell doesn’t lead you to believe he’s such a bad guy. But as the film progresses, it’s clear that Wiebe is earnest and sincere, yet Mitchell is a stubborn, stuck up, egotistical person who is all talk and no walk. To explain, Wiebe travels all the way to New Hampshire’s arcade, called “Funspot,” to provide a live score for Twin Galaxies, the organization that created the video game record breaking business. Walter Day (decked out in a referee shirt for the whole film practically) is the founder, and he oversees Wiebe’s barrel jumping skills. Meanwhile, Brian Kuh, Mitchell’s whipping boy, is told by Billy himself to check out Wiebe’s playing, and warns of everyone of a “Donkey Kong kill screen.”This phrase is the most quotable line from the film, and what Kuh means is that the higher your score in Donkey Kong, there will eventually be a glitch that renders Mario (or jumpman, as he was known in the game) dead, without being touched by an obstacle or what not.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dpwCo4BY1Eg

The goal for Wiebe was to challenge Mitchell face to face, to prove to everyone he is up to snuff, but Mitchell doesn’t show. Instead, he sends in a VHS to show Twin Galaxies of his score: 1,047,200. This was a higher score that Wiebe earned at Funspot, which was 985, 600. However, the viewer begins to question the integrity of Mitchell’s tape, as the man said earlier in the documentary that only the live scores are credible. In addition, there’s a flicker on the tape’s high score as it resets to zero after hitting a million. Could it have been a fake?

I could go on and on about this movie, but as to not spoil the ending, I will say that as a person who doesn’t really watch documentaries (which I’ve been meaning to change), The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters is a completely engaging film using a classic video game as its core. If you have ever played a Donkey Kong game (and I mean any from the long time franchise), the difficulty is clearly apparent, and the flagship game of the series is one frustrating game, as the skill needed ramps up level after level.

I’ve only seen the film twice-the initial viewing and I watched it with a fellow fan the other night (Marcey of Supermarcey.com, who also created the meme below of Brian Kuh) via skype. Even with the brief amount of times watching it, and even though the film is based AROUND a video game, not ON it, The King Of Kong: A Fistful Of Quarters is the best video game movie ever.

I mean you have all the elements-a hero, a villain, an adventure of epic proportions. Only one man will succeed. So who will it be?

My advice is that you answer that question for yourself, as I highly recommend this film (if you have not witnessed it already). It’s one of the best documentaries I’ve seen, one of the best films I’ve seen, and it scored 99 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. You have nothing to lose. Actually, that’s not true. The only thing here to lose here possibly is a game of Donkey Kong, which you are going to want to play once the film rolls its end credits. Good luck.