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The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

post #1 of 45
1/1/08 at 3:22pm
Thread Starter 
I can't wait to pick this up. It never made it to theaters anywhere near me, and believe me I checked.

This documentary about the worlds best Donkey Kong player, and the challenge of a high school science teacher has been strongly compared to the first Rocky movie. On many film critics best of the year list, I seriously can't wait to watch this. There is even rumors of a big studio picking up the rights of this film to make an adaptation of it. Looks like Hollywood is picking up on something I have known was cool for a long time:Old School video games, and arcades!
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post #2 of 45
1/1/08 at 8:44pm

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

It was released in the Dallas area for one week and even then I really had to hunt it down (the one theater showing it kept changing the release week). It's a really good documentary. Over Christmas dinner my family was going around the table talking about our favorite films of the year and I couldn't keep from saying King of Kong.

I highly encourage everyone to at least give it a rental. Even if you're not a video game fan (or never played a video game in your life) this really is a great film about a very deep personal struggle to prove one's self. You won't be disappointed.
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post #3 of 45
1/1/08 at 9:24pm

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

This is one of those great documentaries that I always think of whenever someone says that some turn of events in a fiction film is wrong, because "that couldn't happen in real life". Documentaries like this one remind us that "real life" is a lot bigger and stranger than any of us can even begin to imagine. Who could invent characters like these -- not just the two main characters, but the supporting "cast"? Whether or not you're a gamer (and I'm not), you watch the film in amazement at the intensity of these players' competitive drive, which is all the more impressive for being focused on something to which there's not a lot of fame and fortune attached. The film is beautifully put together; without being obviously intrusive, the editing is smart in the way it gives the audience information, builds tension and, finally, delivers a satisfying pay-off.

It's one of the most memorable films I saw in 2007.

M.
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post #4 of 45
1/2/08 at 4:01pm

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

Only downside is there won't be any deals on such an obscure release...(?)
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post #5 of 45
1/2/08 at 9:41pm
Thread Starter 

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Frank@N
Only downside is there won't be any deals on such an obscure release...(?)

I don't mind paying $20 for a dvd I really want.
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post #6 of 45
1/3/08 at 9:55am

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Frank@N
Only downside is there won't be any deals on such an obscure release...(?)

Actually, it is a Time Warner / New Line release. It is sure to make the Best Buy and Circuit City circulars.
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post #7 of 45
1/3/08 at 6:48pm

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

If game retailers were smart they would carry it in their stores as a loss leader or break even sale.
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post #8 of 45
1/3/08 at 7:41pm

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

This didn't play anywhere near where I live- on the movie's message board I asked the producers if I could have an early DVD copy since I have my own Donkey Kong arcade game, but they said no I've had the game for almost 20 years but my high score isn't too impressive.
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post #9 of 45
1/27/08 at 9:58pm
Thread Starter 

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

It's featured in Best Buy's ad for this week. $19.99 on Tuesday. I can't wait
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post #10 of 45
1/27/08 at 10:09pm

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

great movie.
i didnt see any rocky similarity.
this guy wanted to win not just go the distance.

movie shows you how even a guy who's fame mostly is gained from a video game can still think his poop don't stink.

how much time does he spend on his hair.



the movie makes him into a bit of a jerk.
he does have his loyal disciples who continued to be in shock whenever Steve Wiebe gets near mitchell's record scores.
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post #11 of 45
1/30/08 at 7:38am

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

Watched this last night.

Loved it.

"We're going to have a Donkey Kong Kill Screen coming up! We're going to have a Donkey Kong Kill Screen coming up!"
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post #12 of 45
1/30/08 at 7:59am

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

The best part is when Billy uses his wife to distract Steve.

most addictive documentary since Dogtown and Z-Boys.
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post #13 of 45
2/1/08 at 1:42pm
Thread Starter 

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

Great movie!!

I don't think it showed Billy Mitchell play Donkey Kong once. What a creep, you think if he was that good, he could keep in practice, and at least have the guts to face Steve Weibe. There was one point that Mitchell was explaining you have to prove yourself if your good at something, so I wonder Why he didn't practice what he preached.
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post #14 of 45
2/1/08 at 1:45pm
Thread Starter 

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Jon Martin
Watched this last night.

Loved it.

"We're going to have a Donkey Kong Kill Screen coming up! We're going to have a Donkey Kong Kill Screen coming up!"


The Kill Screen part was funny I used to think I was geeky when it came to classic video games, but after seeing those goofballs, I have nothing to worry about!
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post #15 of 45
2/1/08 at 2:31pm

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

Big BIG Thumbs up for this film which I watched Tuesday night.

I haven't checked, but did this get an Academy nomination for best picture? I don't think it did, but it should have. I know "Sicko" did, which while I liked it, is no more a documentary than "The Daily Show".

"King of Kong" is a true documentary. Very interesting film.
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post #16 of 45
2/2/08 at 3:07pm

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

Unfortunately not, but it really should have been. The Academy Nomination process for Best Documentary is probably one of the most contraversal of all the categories. This year's nominees are:

* No End in Sight
* Operation Homecoming: Writing the Wartime Experience
* Sicko
* Taxi to the Dark Side
* War/Dance
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post #17 of 45
2/3/08 at 7:32am

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

I picked this up last night and was really happy I did!
What a great doc!

I enjoyed every second of this movie and I'm shocked it didn't get more attention in the awards shows. Guess it just shows how political stuff gets more attention that good quality entertaining stuff.
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post #18 of 45
2/3/08 at 11:03pm

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

Great film! Loved the cast of characters--from the sympathetic and endearing to the downright kooky. The Rocky comparisons were spot-on and the ending literally brought us to our feet! I can only imagine the electric experience it must have been to see it theatrically with a packed house.

I understand Mr. Mitchell was not happy with his portrayal in the film, but I think audiences understand that most real people are complex individuals with plenty of good to go along with the bad. His extensive charity work was highlighted in the special features, and I thought he made a perfect foil.

BTW, the DVD includes a nice set of extras to boot!
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post #19 of 45
2/4/08 at 10:01am

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

Quote:
Originally Posted by DaveB

I understand Mr. Mitchell was not happy with his portrayal in the film, but I think audiences understand that most real people are complex individuals with plenty of good to go along with the bad. His extensive charity work was highlighted in the special features, and I thought he made a perfect foil.

BTW, the DVD includes a nice set of extras to boot!

I thought that Billy came off better in the extras, showing he had more of a sense of humor.
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post #20 of 45
2/5/08 at 4:58am

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

It's a bit out of date though. Billy Mitchel took back the Donkey Kong record on June 26, 2007. He got to 1.050.200 points then he stopped playing.
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post #21 of 45
2/5/08 at 11:12am

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

Yeah, this is acknowledged in the special features. The film had already been locked by the time that happened. The DVD was locked in September.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Stephen A
It's a bit out of date though. Billy Mitchel took back the Donkey Kong record on June 26, 2007. He got to 1.050.200 points then he stopped playing.
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post #22 of 45
2/5/08 at 12:19pm

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

I watched this last night and it's certainly one of the greatest documenaties I've ever seen. So much comedy, suspense and gut turning drama.

One question though. When Billy sent in his "video record", the guy who watches all the videos said he would take it and make sure there wasn't anything fake on it. I don't recall this ever happening since the doc says the record was made official ten minutes later. There were questions about the left side of the screen but I don't think they ever said anything else about it.
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post #23 of 45
2/5/08 at 1:26pm

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

Quote:
When Billy sent in his "video record", the guy who watches all the videos said he would take it and make sure there wasn't anything fake on it. I don't recall this ever happening since the doc says the record was made official ten minutes later. There were questions about the left side of the screen but I don't think they ever said anything else about it.

I think one of the things that the documentary showed was that Twin Galaxies was extremely loyal to Mitchell and as a result of this there were a lot of shady rulings and incidents that favored him. For example, disqualifying Wiebe's original record breaking score over a petty technicality and accepting Mitchell's almost immediately even though there were occaisions where the score was fuzzed over. Also there was the shady break in to inspect Wiebe's machine. It seems like Walter Day loosely acknowledged some of this by publicly apologizing to Wiebe for past treatment by Twin Galaxies at the Guiness tournament.
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post #24 of 45
2/5/08 at 2:19pm

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

Yes, that's a good point. It was obvious that Billy was running everyone there. I kept expecting someone to bump into Steve as he was playing to kill a man when he neared the record.
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post #25 of 45
2/7/08 at 11:40am

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Michael Elliott
I watched this last night and it's certainly one of the greatest documenaties I've ever seen. So much comedy, suspense and gut turning drama.

One question though. When Billy sent in his "video record", the guy who watches all the videos said he would take it and make sure there wasn't anything fake on it. I don't recall this ever happening since the doc says the record was made official ten minutes later. There were questions about the left side of the screen but I don't think they ever said anything else about it.

During the credits they noted that shortly after the Funstop tournament he resigned as a judge for Twin Galaxies. Does anyone know the reasons behind this? Could it be because he was upset with Twin Galaxies' blindly accepting Billy's questionable video without proper analysis?
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post #26 of 45
2/7/08 at 4:59pm

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

That's what is obviously implied but I've never seen an actual reason for the resignation.
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post #27 of 45
2/7/08 at 8:55pm

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Haden
During the credits they noted that shortly after the Funstop tournament he resigned as a judge for Twin Galaxies. Does anyone know the reasons behind this? Could it be because he was upset with Twin Galaxies' blindly accepting Billy's questionable video without proper analysis?

He might have found a girlfriend
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post #28 of 45
2/8/08 at 2:44pm

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

It's rather funny that this movie could hardly get shown everywhere yet since people are getting to see it all sides are going crazy. The controversy heats up with this interview with Billy:

The King Of Kong, continued: Donkey Kong champ Billy Mitchell calls The A.V. Club out of the blue | The A.V. Club
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post #29 of 45
2/26/09 at 4:54pm

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

Hello. This is probably old news but I wanted to see what other forumers thought about it. After being told to watch this film by a friend I went and bought the DVD instead. Then I Googled the title and read Walter Day's "statements" about the film. After reading one specific screen (Issue #4) I had to check the DVD again. The quote that clicked for me was

"Interestingly, this means that Billy Mitchell's score was only published for 48 hours, and then the world title reverted back to Steve Wiebe's score of 985,600 points. Steve Wiebe's score of 985,600 points would remain the world record for the next 240 days. The movie does not reveal the fact that Twin Galaxies immediately reversed the decision to accept Billy's score and that Steve reigned as the champion for nearly three straight years (June 30,2003 - January 30, 2006)."

I have two questions:
1)What happened January 30th 2006?
2)More importantly, why was Billy's videotaped score of 1,047,200 sent to Guinness, if it was taken down?

Twin Galaxies Forums :: View topic - Issue #4 - Why Billy Mitchell's Videotape score was Accepted

Sounds like more TG bs if you asked me. Sorry about the thread resurrection.
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post #30 of 45
2/26/09 at 7:53pm

Re: The King Of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters coming Jan. 29!

I had a store credit at FYE/Coconuts and asked about KoK.

Never had one...this is a rare DVD. But I'll find one eventually.
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