SLIFF 2009 Review: GAME OF THE YEAR

GAME OF THE YEAR is a mockumentary written and directed by local filmmaker Chris Grega (AMPHETAMINE, RHINELAND). The film follows a rag-tag group of guys who put together a team to compete on the reality TV show called “Game of the Year” in which teams square off against each other in role-playing games. The winning team gets to run the host’s new gaming company for one year. What ensues is a special brand of humor and a film that is either ridiculously revealing and hilariously nostalgic, depending on the viewer’s own history with role-playing.

The cast of character’s developed for the film are perfect. The game master, or in other words the living breathing rule book of the role-playing game, is a British ex-pat named Richard who is both arrogant and lacking any actual control of his players. The remainder of the team consists of the hopeless, socially inept nerd, the “cool” guy who doesn’t want anyone to know he’s a gamer, the loud mouth aggressive jock and the guy with zero attention span who doesn’t take the game seriously.

The actors involved in this film were extremely successful in maintaining interest, creating a natural fluidity in the character interactions while pulling off some absurdly funny tangents like the argue about whether Leonard Nimoy was British or not and how this applies to the structure of their role-playing team’s leadership. Mark, the hopeless nerd, is perhaps the most entertaining character, especially after an unexpected female participant is injected into their game despite objections.

The humor in GAME OF THE YEAR is dry and sometimes a bit “inside” but it works well. The approach and humor of the film is very much along the vein of early mockumentary films like THIS IS SPINAL TAP. Grega has clearly, or at least appears to be, heavily influenced by the films of Christopher Guest, seeking subtlety over shock value as is the current trend in films like BORAT and BRUNO.

Grega clearly did his research for this film. As a former player of RPGs (role-playing games) as a kid, I was fascinated by how much of the film felt familiar, even reminiscent and slightly embarrassing. The film takes place heavily in the basement of one character’s house, which is fitting as many gamers spend hours if not days secluded in their gaming caves, becoming fully immersed in their hobbies.

GAME OF THE YEAR begins with a very well constructed mock-up of the typical intro seen of Survivor-style reality TV shows, then quickly throws the audience into the world of role-playing. The film has a clear and solid three-act structure, leading the audience gradually up to a near-melt down of the team as the tension of the game and preparation for the show begins to spill out into the players’ real lives with devastating results.

As for the overall feel of the film, the only criticism I have is that the tripod is used too much. The film interlaces static interview shots which appropriately implement a tripod, with shots capturing the events as they unfold. These are the segments that would have benefited ever more from a hand-held style of shooting. By keeping the camera on the tripod, the scenes lose much of their spontaneity.

Regardless of this, every other element of the film falls damn near perfectly into place, creating a compelling non-fiction style story. What becomes of the group of gaming friends, their lives and relationships and do they get on the Game of the Year TV show? That’s for you, the audience to experience for yourselves.

I highly encourage seeing GAME OF THE YEAR, not just as a fun and accomplished film, but also in support of local filmmaking. For those who may find the subject matter intimidating, fear not, because it’s good for a laugh and a thrill even if you’ve never been a part of the role-playing culture.

GAME OF THE YEAR will screen at the Tivoli on Sunday, November 15th at 9:30pm during the 18th Annual Whitaker Saint Louis International Film Festival.

Shown with “Donnie Baker and the Pork Pistols: Live” (Jay Kanzler, U.S., 2009, 25 min.), a behind-the-scenes look at “carport band” Donnie Baker and the Pork Pistols, who perform live at the Pageant.