I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.

It is encouraging that the film ends so strongly.Otherwise, it wouldn't have been a particularly memorable film

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

"Video Games: The Movie" is not a bad documentary. Unfortunately, it isn't a great one either. The main problem here is that it tries to tackle "the history of video games" in a sub two-hour documentary. In essence, the subject matter is just broad enough to appeal to pretty much everyone, but not specific enough to appeal to anyone in particular.The general format of this movie is to look at the creation of video games all the way through the "current generation" (PS4, XBOX One, Wii U, etc.). It looks at pretty much all areas of the industry, from its initial creators (the guys in white shirts and skinny ties monkeying around with circuits) to its ever-improving technology, and even delves into the philosophical underpinnings of why people enjoy being "gamers".Like I said, though, this is a very general look at the industry. If you know nothing about gaming industry/innovation, you'll probably get something out of this. But, if you've been at all paying attention over the last, say, 30 years or so, there is nothing new here. Again, not to say that it is bad...just rather bland. The epitome of a three-star rating.When it comes right down to it, I like to appeal my own personal principle for documentaries: Does it cover a subject that A. Someone cares about; and B. Shows something in a new light. "Video Games: The Movie" nails "Part A", but completely fails on "Part B". It got me to watch, though, so the strategy must be working to a certain extent (!). Just don't expect anything deep and you'll enjoy it.

The film completely ignores the co-development of PC games. A gaping hole as far as I'm concerned as the superior capabilities of the PC allowed the development of more sophisticated games(e.g. Wolfenstein 3D, Civilization etc.). The film also does not detail the corresponding improvement in microprocessor technology which completely dictated the advancements in graphics and game speed. Otherwise the film is well put together and for the most part touches on the major milestones of game history. Personally I would have enjoyed more emphasis on the early mainframe computer game development. For instance the origins of Colossal Cave Adventure and it's subsequent genesis into the RPG games of today

"Video Games: The Movie" aims to educate and entertain audiences about how video games are made, marketed, and consumed by looking back at gaming history and culture through the eyes of game developers, publishers, and consumers.Immediately there are some concerns: the intro runs a bit too long (but the use of Queen is a good choice). And then we have the necessary interview of Wil Wheaton (who is less annoying than usual here), but also some nice unexpected gems like the creator of "Metal Gear Solid" and the president of Nintendo. And then there is Chris Hardwick, who comes across far more dorky than he does on television.There are some interesting statistics on ages, genders of those who play and purchase video games. As people generally know, the ages have been increasing and more women are getting into the gaming scene.The film goes somewhat into history, with Nolan Bushnell of Atari widely thought of as the father of video games. Yes, they tracked down Bushnell for an interview, and he in turn gives the "father" title to MIT scientists. We also get a nice description of pixels and "bits" for those not familiar. The history is, perhaps, too brief, with many systems getting no coverage at all, and much of it in no particular order.We have the legendary tale of the E.T. game made in five weeks in the fall of 1982, which helped launch the term shovelware, and indirectly killed off the Atari.If this was re-edited to be more in chronological order, it would be a stronger film, but it is not a bad one.

What is presented to us as a documentary is in fact a propaganda film that consists mostly in a series self satisfactory interviews of people of the industry who tries to convince you that video games is the greatest, most sophisticated, most advanced form of art. They will tell you that you can get married and form a family by playing world of warcraft, that if you are at the edge of death at the hospital, playing a Nintendo DS can save your life and that your kid will become the greatest artist if you let him play Candy Crush. I am exaggerating a little bit but not so much.In between, this moments of galactic void, a few uninteresting statistics and facts of common knowledge are quickly presented.Another controversial aspect of the movie, is the presentation of video game as the ultimate evolution in storytelling experience. In my personal experience, a story is almost never what makes a game interesting. I have played hundreds if not thousands of games in my life, and I can count less that 20 games with decent story-lines. One of the most still played and loved game in the world, Tetris, has no story at all.I think this really demonstrate the failure of the director to understand his subject and to really capture what separate video games from other forms of media.