Word Wars (2004)

89% of critics liked it
(35 reviews)
63% of users liked it
(3,007 ratings)

The directorial debut of filmmakers Eric Chaikin and Julian Petrillo, Word Wars: Tiles and Tribulations on the Scrabble Circuit is a humorous documentary look at the culture surrounding the National Scrabble Tournament. Focusing on four players in particular, the film details the intense… More The directorial debut of filmmakers Eric Chaikin and Julian Petrillo, Word Wars: Tiles and Tribulations on the Scrabble Circuit is a humorous documentary look at the culture surrounding the National Scrabble Tournament. Focusing on four players in particular, the film details the intense competitions that lead up to the finals in San Diego, where each of the competitors hopes to take home the 25,000-dollar prize. Premiering at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival, Word Wars screened as part of the documentary competition. ~ Matthew Tobey, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 17 min.
Directed By: Eric Chaikin, Julian Petrillo
Genres: Documentary, Drama, Special Interest

In Theaters: Jan 1, 2004 Wide
On DVD: Apr 5, 2005
Studio: Seventh Art Releasing

Critic Reviews

Kevin Crust, Los Angeles Times
Chaikin and Petrillo have crafted an empathetic and revealing portrait of four men whose obsession is both a little bit sad and more than a little bit recognizable.
Joe Leydon, Variety
There's a pronounced lack of emotional pay-off that likely will derail any attempts to position Word Wars as an aud-friendly crowd-pleaser with breakout potential comparable to Spellbound.
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
Compellingly watchable.
Lisa Rose, Newark Star-Ledger
A surprisingly entertaining documentary that captures the triumph, the heartbreak and the consonants of the competitive Scrabble circuit.
Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star Tribune
Sly, smart and delightful.
Richard Roeper, Ebert & Roeper
... it's not quite as endearing as Spellbound, because we are looking at thirty-five year olds instead of twelve-year-olds, but it's still very interesting.
Brent Simon, Now Playing Magazine
More notable for the fascinating quirks of its subjects than its filmmaking prowess.
David Cornelius, eFilmCritic.com
Even with so much information lacking, Word Wars is still quite a treat.
, E! Online
Mostly lighthearted, yet somewhat unnerving.
Kim Morgan, L.A. Weekly
The picture offers a funny but frequently sad portrait of four world-class gamesters in serious need of the $25,000 in prize money.
Shirley Sealy, Film Journal International
You'll be on the edge of your seat to find out who wins, and how the losers take it.
JoBlo, JoBlo's Movie Emporium
...if you're a fan of films that concentrate on lesser known ingredients of our society...
Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times
The film fairly skips along as it introduces us to this strange world.
Sean Axmaker, Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Think of it as the eccentric cousin to Spellbound...
Jeanne Aufmuth, Palo Alto Weekly
The human element is kept endearingly rich a la detailed background info and flaring tempers that are the hallmark of the low-budget tournament circuit.
Marc Mohan, Oregonian
A highly entertaining look at these bizarre personalities and an insight into their obsession with Scrabble.
Chris Hewitt (St. Paul), St. Paul Pioneer Press
Lively documentary.

Read all 17 critic reviews

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Featured Audience Ratings

Luke B

An extraordinary band of misfits embark on trying to win a Scrabble tournament. I love seeing people with such eccentricities. I enjoy a good game of Scrabble, but these guys are obsessed. This also damages them as characters. Most don't have jobs, instead deciding to focus on… More
An extraordinary band of misfits embark on trying to win a Scrabble tournament. I love seeing people with such eccentricities. I enjoy a good game of Scrabble, but these guys are obsessed. This also damages them as characters. Most don't have jobs, instead deciding to focus on Scrabble. Also, they don't tend to be that smart. They simply memorize what's allowed and what isn't The film takes us to a number of places and events, but never gets exceptionally interesting. It also doesn't build up the tension of the games, just simple notes on who's winning pop up on screen. A nice piece as a simple observation of a strange world, but doesn't explore the subject.
Nani V

My boyfriend is weird, so he makes me watch all these documentaries with him...which I tend to enjoy for the most part. Word Wars is about a group of guys who participate in a Scrabble competition. They are obsessed with winning and the documentary follows them as they play. They… More
My boyfriend is weird, so he makes me watch all these documentaries with him...which I tend to enjoy for the most part. Word Wars is about a group of guys who participate in a Scrabble competition. They are obsessed with winning and the documentary follows them as they play. They are crazy guys, but it's still interesting to watch.
James A

A sad yet interesting look into the world of Scrabble and the people who try to make a living winning small cash prizes.
Megan S

This was pretty cool. It was presented in a more interesting way than the spelling video with cool little visual effects and stuff. The guy from Baltimore was amusing with his hatred of the English language and all yet he competes in Scrabble tournaments (he was in it for the… More
This was pretty cool. It was presented in a more interesting way than the spelling video with cool little visual effects and stuff. The guy from Baltimore was amusing with his hatred of the English language and all yet he competes in Scrabble tournaments (he was in it for the money). And his "friendship" with the other guy was funny since they really didn't like each other and they each talked separately about how they didn't understand why they were friends.
Wu C

If you're a fan of scrabble, you will like this doc. The subjects are obsessed with the popular board game.
Sarah P

Surprisngly interesting and unexpected look into the world of competitive scrabble.