Wordplay (2006)

Popularity:

Down 61% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.

Director:

Patrick Creadon

Writers:

Patrick Creadon
Christine O'Malley

Release Date:

21 July 2006 (USA)

Genre:

Documentary

Tagline:

Discover a world that thinks inside the box

Plot:

An in-depth look at The New York Times' long-time crossword puzzle editor Will Shortz and his loyal fan base.

Plot Keywords:

Puzzle | New York Times | Crossword Puzzle | Editor | Comedian

Awards:

2 wins & 6 nominations

Cast

Will Shortz	...	Himself
Merl Reagle	...	Himself
Tyler Hinman	...	Himself
Trip Payne	...	Himself
Al Sanders	...	Himself
Ellen Ripstein	...	Herself
Jon Delfin	...	Himself
Jon Stewart	...	Himself
Ken Burns	...	Himself
Amy Ray	...	Herself
Emily Saliers	...	Herself
Daniel Okrent	...	Himself
Mike Mussina	...	Himself
Bob Dole	...	Himself
Bill Clinton	...	Himself (as William Jefferson Clinton)
Miriam Raphael	...	Herself
Liane Hansen	...	Herself
Alex Ripitsky	...	Himself
Nancy Ellwood Fasulo	...	Herself (as nancy Ellwood)
Marc Romano	...	Himself
Eileen Mogan	...	Herself
Patrick Jordan	...	Himself
Joy Dewing	...	Herself
Selmer Bringsjord	...	Himself (as Dr. Selmer Bringsjord)
Brian Dominy	...	Himself
Vic Fleming	...	Himself
Stella Daily	...	Herself
Ben Tausig	...	Himself
Fred Piscop	...	Himself
Byron Walden	...	Himself
Amy Reynaldo	...	Herself
Kiran Kedlaya	...	Himself
Lloyd Mazer	...	Himself
Katherine Bryant	...	Herself
Jim Jenista	...	Himself
Dan Katz	...	Himself
Norma Mindell	...	Herself
Judie Berger	...	Herself
Leslie Billig	...	Herself
Doug Heller	...	Himself
Mel Rosen	...	Himself
Neal Conan	...	Himself
Stanley Newman	...	Himself
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Susan Hoffman	...	Herself
Julia Royter	...	Herself
Chris Astoyan	...	Himself (uncredited)

Directed by
Patrick Creadon

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Patrick Creadon
Christine O'Malley

Produced by
Michael Creadon	....	associate producer
Christine O'Malley	....	producer
Patrick Walsh	....	associate producer

Original Music by
Peter Golub

Cinematography by
Patrick Creadon		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Douglas Blush		(as Doug Blush)

Art Department
Bob Wilson	....	artist: oil painting

Sound Department
Joseph Adorisio II	....	audio layback
Larry Ellis	....	sound designer
Larry Ellis	....	sound mixer
Andy Potvin	....	sound consultant: Dolby

Visual Effects by
Brian Oakes	....	title sequence and motion graphics

Camera and Electrical Department
Matthew Beals	....	additional camera operator (as Matt Beals)
Skip Blumberg	....	additional camera operator
Donald Christensen	....	still photographer
Alex Kobbs	....	additional camera operator
Alexis Martino	....	still photographer
Emily Shur	....	still photographer

Editorial Department
Jeff Garcia	....	assistant editor
Adrian Guedin	....	colorist
Adrian Guedin	....	on-line editor
Steve Lemley	....	color timer
Darla Marasco	....	director of post-production

Music Department
Stewart Clark	....	musician: clarinet
Jeremy Drake	....	musician: guitar
Aram Goldberg	....	music coordinator
Peter Golub	....	conductor
Peter Golub	....	music arranger
Peter Golub	....	musician: piano
Matt Havron	....	music coordinator
Alexei Helenius	....	musician: harp
Jeff Levine	....	musician: bass
Tracy McKnight	....	music supervisor
Monte Namadio	....	musician: bassoon
Adam Rudolph	....	musician: percussion
Roger Sorkin	....	musician: marimba
Derek Syverud	....	musician: percussion
Mark Wheaton	....	music recording engineer

Other crew
P.F. Bentley	....	archival photographs
Donald Christensen	....	archival photographs
Jon Delfin	....	archival photographs
Winston Emano	....	publicist: David Magdael & Associates Inc.
Erin Heidenreich	....	sales agent
Theodore James	....	production assistant (as T.J. Hemleben)
David Magdael	....	publicist: David Magdael & Associates Inc.
Julia McMorrow	....	production assistant
Dana O'Keefe	....	sales agent
Caitlin O'Malley	....	production assistant
Trip Payne	....	archival photographs
Christopher Powers	....	production associate
Miriam Raphael	....	archival photographs
Ellen Ripstein	....	archival photographs
Al Sanders	....	archival photographs
Nancy Shack	....	provider: archival footage
Will Shortz	....	archival photographs
Ashley Simpson	....	production assistant
Robert Stein	....	legal counsel
Anne Stulz	....	publicist: David Magdael & Associates Inc.
Steven Wallace	....	publicist: David Magdael & Associates Inc.

Thanks
Nancy Shack	....	acknowledgment: archival footage provided by

Production Companies

• Grinder Productions
• O'Malley Creadon Productions
• Weinstein Company, The

Distributors

• Senator Home Entertainment (2008) (Germany) (DVD)

Other Companies

• ABC News Video Source  archival footage (as ABC NewsSource)
• BBC Motion Gallery  archival footage
• Brian Oakes Design  graphics
• Catasonic Studios  music recorded and mixed at (as Catasonic)
• Cinetic Media  distribution advisory services
• Crawfordsville Journal Review  archive photo
• David Magdael and Associates  publicity
• DeWitt Stern Insurance Services  production insurance
• EFilm  laser film recording provided by
• Farrar Family, The  archive photo
• Getty Images  archival footage
• Getty Images  archive photo
• Jeremy Walker + Associates  publicity (uncredited)
• MAX Post  post production services (as Max Post)
• MLB Productions  archival footage
• Marabou Productions  camera services

Also Known As:

MPAA:

Rated PG for some language and mild thematic elements

Runtime:

USA:94 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Australia:PG | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

Central Park, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Grinder Productions

Quotes:

Merl Reagle:[driving by a Dunkin' Donuts shop] Dunkin' Donuts... put the D at the end, you get Unkind Donuts... which I've had a few of, in my day.

Movie Connections:

References "The Daily Show" (1996)

Soundtrack:

If You Don't Come Across

a delight for linguists and fans of words, not bad for everyone else

Crossword puzzles, and the many people who make them popular, are the focus in Wordplay, including the editor of the NY Times puzzle (the most notorious of them in the USA), celebrities and politicians, and the general public obsessed with them. As a documentary Wordplay is good, not great, film-making about its subject with a couple of montages and interlocking scenes that are weak. But the subject matter, and usually how its presented, sparks a fine interest even in a non-crossword puzzle player like myself. As words are all that we have to work with in communication and just everyday discourse, it's also attached here to the idea of testing, of competition, and how different and varying crosswords can get. Like the documentary Spellbound from a few years back, the director is also after the kind of irony of making such an isolated experience of finishing a puzzle into an event with hundreds of players once a year with friendships and acquaintances- a social event as much as a match-up.

Many parts are amusing as well; we get interviews from Jon Stewart, Bill Clinton, Bob Dole, and the editor of NY Times Crossword himself, Will Shortz, and they all give some insightful, funny little bits of interest into making the puzzles and playing them. But for the most part we're into the mind-set of several key players, real people whom will all come together for the tournament in Jaunary. What makes all of this work, and what actually makes crossword puzzles become good enough for cinema, is watching smart people, un-cluttered for the most part with problems, who can focus all of their attentions on this one activity, to the point of obsessive compulsive behavior. It's really fun, in a nerdy way, trying to guess some of these words (or rather watching them guessing the words) along with the players. And the way the puzzles are created sparks a little interest too, as it's one of those parts of life I myself could never, ever accomplish. Worth a look, though probably more so for fans of the activity.