Cheap Word Wars - Tiles and Tribulations on the Scrabble Game Circuit (DVD) Price

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Customer Reviews of Word Wars - Tiles and Tribulations on the Scrabble Game Circuit

Is this a study in Scrabble Play or Obsessive Compulsiveness?
I had to seriously ask myself exactly what the directors of this amazing little film were trying to accomplish when they put together "Word Wars". Although we take a myopic look at World Championship Scrabble players, the film seemed to focus on human nature and psychology more than anything else. <
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>Let me explain ... <
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>This documentary follows the Scrabble-playing-lives of four obsessed players: <
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>#1. "G.I." Joel Sherman, a dorky looking, 40-something guy with no job, sloppy clothes, and a nervous stomach that causes him to drink Mylanta by the gallon. He spends every minute of every day playing, thinking about, or studying words for Scrabble. <
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>#2. Marlon Hill is a dreadlocked black man who is unemployed, bitter about how America treats its colored countrymen and women, smokes pot, and occasionally visits grade schools to tell the kids about why he plays Scrabble and how they can become good at it, too. He also apparently loves prostitutes, as we watch him go to Tijuana and employ one (or two). This guy also has a serious anger management problem. <
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>#3. Matt Graham takes brain stimulating supplements (PILES of them!), wears sloth-like clothes with holes in them, and will play Scrabble anywhere at anytime with anyone ...especially if there are bets on the table. <
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>#4. Joe Edley is one of the few players we see who actually has a job outside of Scrabble competitions. He's also the 2001 defending national champion. But can he maintain his crown? <
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>Although Scrabble is why these men are battling to reach San Diego and play in the 2002 national tournament (Grand Prize, $25,000), it's their bizarre lifestyles and complete obsessiveness with Scrabble that really caught my interest. Living off of smaller tournament wins -- just a few thousand dollars at best -- and then, maybe, winning the $25,000 grand prize in San Diego, even the best player is living off of less than $35,000 a year! And he still has to pay for his travel, motels, meals, etc., at all of these events. Which begs the question, "How can you survive simply by winning Scrabble tournaments?" The easy answer is that they can't. <
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>Although there was never any mention of it, I'm sure that many of these players live off of the welfare system and, probably, their families. I'm sure that many of them also have regular psychiatric visits and are on appropriate medication for multiple personality problems. <
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>Interestingly, it is BECAUSE of these incredibly bizarre behaviors that you, the viewer, actually become vested in what happens to them. <
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>Because they get angry with themselves and each other. <
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>Because they smoke pot or drink medication to settle themselves down. <
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>Because they refuse to find a job and make a sustainable living outside of Scrabble play. <
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>All of these things made for a strangely interesting viewing experience. Not because of the Scrabble games, but because these are seriously flawed people playing it obsessively. <
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GREAT
If you've ever played competitive Scrabble in any form, and want to see the extent to which players commit themselves to this game, check this out!

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Too much of one thing can be unhealthy
I thought this was a very interesting documentary about the best Scrabble players in the world and what they do to foster their skills. The 4 people that the filmmakers chose to follow were all very different and unique. I agree that Marlon was only chosen because he was a poor black man. However, I didn't mind his foul-mouthed, prostitute spending, pot-smoking lifestyle. I was amazed that a person like this, with very little education, could be such a genius at Scrabble. I did not find him to be a role model at all. He is a terrible role model for young kids. <
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>Watching this film, I realized these people, who spend a vast majority of their lives playing and studying Scrabble, are obsessed to the point that it is unhealthy. Most of them are unable to keep a job and have no other skills other than being geniuses at Scrabble. Perhaps they are pioneers that are paving the road for the future of Scrabble where one can actually earn a living playing. Nonetheless, too much of one thing can be unhealthy. A brief interview with an adolescant Scrabble player provided some insight to this idea. The boy said that he would like to keep playing, but he doesn't want to get so obsessed that he can't hold a job. A little work-life balance would benefit these guys. <
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>However, the movie was great and I was thrilled when one of the guys actually won the competition. His hard work paid off and, from the expression on his face, you could tell that he was in a state of absolute happiness which was well deserved.