BLOBBY'S BLOG

WORDY RAPPINGHOOD

Words to tell you what to do
Words are working hard for you

Yes, it's the big 4th of July movie weekend. Did we go see 'Uberman'? No. 'Xmen'? No. Last night we went to go see Wordplay. One of the biggest movie weekends of the year and we see a pseudo-documentary on crossword puzzles. More specifically focusing in on the NYT crossword puzzle and an annual tournament for people who do them.

We thought about the former movie - but thought maybe seeing it in Imax might be cool. Seeing the Devil Wears Prada seemed like the other option. Yes, I want to see it - almost 100% for Meryl Streep (the same and only reason I'd see Prairie Home Companion).

Garkawe had mentioned he had seen Wordplay to me earlier in the week - him saying that the audience was a geek-fest (himself included in that statement....his words, not mine!). I can't say our viewing had the same geek-quotient, but the demographics clearly skewed OLD. I know I've said this in a number of posts w/in the last year or so, but once again, we were the youngest people in the audience. ...and we're not young! I will say this - for a Sunday evening (hell, for any evening!), the theatre had a good sized crowd. I'm guessing 70% full. For a movie about crossword puzzles!!!

But we are (or can be) geeks. Oh, how we laughed at comments about a Tuesday puzzle vs a Saturday one!!!! If you don't do the Times' puzzle, you might not know that they get progressively harder as the week goes on.

Denton does tackle the NYT crossword and is good at them. He's not finish them in under three minutes good.....but still.... I usually end up w/the New York one. The ones I do are challenging enough and doable. I can complete them and have some sense of accomplishment and it's not like I'm doing the TV Guide version (43 Down: The Love ____). The NYT is just a verification of how dumb Will Shortz can make me feel.

The 84 minute movie was fun - but maybe that's just geek-speak. They do throw in a number of well-known folks who do crosswords: Clinton, Jon Stewart (who I love, but was just a tad over the top each and every time the camera was on him), and the Indigo Girls among others. Of the 'regular' folk - it did kind of shine a light on puzzle nerds. ...and save for one or two of said nerds - not a wedding ring among them. Shock!