Pinball: The Man Who Saved the Game (2022)

Pinball: The Man Who Saved the Game review by Mark McPherson - Cinema Paradiso

Pinball is one of those reflexive biopics that struggles to be true but also wants to dabble in the theatrics of it all. It attempts to have its cake and eat it by featuring pinball wizard Roger Sharpe, who made a case for legalizing the game, commenting on adapting this story. He dips in and out of the story, occasionally getting lost in telling his own story and chiming in when something seems to exaggerated, often directly entering the scene. It’s the American Splendor approach, except Roger is no Harvey Pekar, and his life seems only mildly worthy of a movie.

Roger Sharpe is portrayed in the narrative by Mike Faist with a comically large mustache, which Roger later points out in photographs as fairly accurate. There’s a breezy montage of how the Chicago-born man of the 1970s was trying to become a writer but having a tough time with it in New York City. Seeking an outlet and some comfort, he hears the familiar pings of a pinball machine lurking in the corner of an adult bookstore. Having played pinball many times in college, he finds the game is the only thing that makes sense in his life. He starts playing, and life starts coming together. He gets a job at GQ, forms a romantic bond with Ellen (Crystal Reed), and gets a sweet publishing deal for a book on the history of pinball.

There’s a lot of material to evoke from that story. When Roger introduces Ellen to the game, it’s posed with a romantic Ghost-style coming-together moment. It’s a ridiculous moment that Roger directly challenges, questioning if the film being made here is really going to go for such a cliche. That’s how much of the film functions; it’ll make a cliche of biopics and try to correct it from the source. Once or twice, it’s funny, but when it keeps happening, it feels more like an excuse to stage those predictable moments of exaggerating this tale.

The story does become more intriguing once Roger’s interest in pinball is called upon to make a case that it should be legal. A trial is held to determine whether or not the game is one of skill or chance. If it’s a skill, the game could be legalized. All Roger has to do is prove he’s an expert player. Thankfully, most of the film isn’t staged as some tense pinball game for the fate of the arcade staple’s future. Once more, it tries to make the final shot a triumphant one, but Roger chimes in yet again to state how the politician grilling him more reluctantly agreed with the pinball player rather than celebrate his victory with grand astonishment.

The conflict grows a bit aggravating at times, considering how it’s either lifting everything with too many cliches or downplaying it to such a degree that it doesn’t feel all that unique. It’s a shame because there are some genuinely solid moments, such as when Roger connects with Ellen’s son over bowling and pinball. The romance between Roger and Ellen is pretty cute with how it unfolds, with Ellen being upfront about her life and Roger being cautiously aware of the territory he’s venturing. Faist’s performance has hills and valleys. His dorky nature comes through in a few scenes but comes off a little hollow in other scenes; it's debatable whether or not it was intentional as another dose of biopic satire. But the best moments are easily when Roger takes center stage to tell his own story, making one question why there wasn’t just a full documentary about him.

Pinball: The Man Who Saved the Game does a decent job depicting a notable arcade history aspect. It moves well enough, the performances are fine, and there’s a knowing enough nature where it rarely feels like the film is lamenting too much on one aspect. That being said, it also has an inconsistent tone and meta humor that doesn’t always hit as well as it should, making for a more amusingly astute film than vibrantly bringing its true story to life. As Roger might describe his legacy, it’s a good story, but not THAT great.