Wordplay (2006)

Wordplay is a celebration of the crossword puzzle and puzzle lovers across the nation -- specifically those devoted to the New York Times daily crossword puzzle as edited by his predecessors and, for the past 25+ years, by puzzler-in-chief Will Shortz. (He has a degree in enigmatology from Indiana University!) Also central to the narrative of this documentary is the 26th crossword puzzle tournament, held annually in Stamford, Conn. Wordplay gives us a brief history of the crossword puzzle and how it came to the New York Times and developed a nationwide following. Offering their personal reflections and affections on their habit of doing the crossword puzzle every day are Jon Stewart, Bill Clinton, Ken Burns, the Indigo Girls, and others. Puzzle authors, savants, and tournament champions also weigh in and reflect on their experiences in designing and competitively solving puzzles. We get to roam the tournament halls with a dozen celebrities (in wordgeek world) and sit in as they kibbitz, compete, and ultimately win or lose in tournament play. Wordplay is a very folksy slice-of-life presentation about word nerds at play. As an attendee and presenter at literary conferences, I felt right at home with these puzzle fans' sense of camaraderie. Wordplay is to the crossword puzzle as Word Wars is to Scrabble. It's a paean to the love of language and creative problem-solving skills that has become ingrained as a daily "me time" ritual for many. Writers and librarians will love it! (Note: Only the most reactionary right-wing types would criticize Wordplay as a liberal or leftist propaganda ploy, however, those who wish to shield their children or themselves from any awareness that gay men exist would do well to skip the segment following Trip Payne's introduction in his home office. In this scene, Trip plays pinball in his home with his "partner" whom he mentions meeting then "dating" then "hitting it off" then "moving in" -- then he calls him "dear" and gives him a quick smooch. That's all -- 30 seconds -- quite understated but if you can't handle it, you have been warned.) 5 stars. (8-15-09)