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Reviews provided by RottenTomatoes
Rene Rodriguez, Miami Herald: It manages to turn an internal, solitary activity into fodder for an engaging, even exciting movie. Read more
Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune: It's a simple tribute to a smart man [Shortz], an elite, who knew what he wanted. Read more
Phillip Lopate, New York Times: Whatever the documentary's flaws, the filmmakers should be saluted for giving us a rare glimpse of life in these trenches. Read more
Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal: What's an eight-letter word for a non-fiction feature that is witty, wise and wonderful? Read more
Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times: An exhilarating celebration of a national pastime. Read more
Ruthe Stein, San Francisco Chronicle: Engaging documentary that opens up a world of words. Read more
Richard Roeper, Ebert & Roeper: A sincere, comprehensive look at the inside world of hardcore crossword puzzling. Read more
Bob Longino, Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Dramatic, especially for those moviegoers who tax their brains working crosswords. Read more
Nathan Rabin, AV Club: There are seemingly few subjects less cinematic than poindexters filling out grids and boxes, but the filmmakers create a palpable sense of excitement by dividing the screen into split screens that invite audiences to fill out puzzles alongside the film's Read more
Kerry Lengel, Arizona Republic: Thankfully, just when you're ready to nod off, Stewart comes back. Watching him attack the Times with his pen and screaming 'Bring it!' is worth the price of admission. Read more
Ty Burr, Boston Globe: The most minor entry in the brainiac-doc genre to date, it's nevertheless a perfectly entertaining hour and a half for crossword adepts. Read more
Kevin Crust, Los Angeles Times: Even if you've never done a crossword in your life or been frustrated by the attempt, you will likely be drawn into this intriguing world through the enthusiasm expressed by its adherents. Read more
Peter Rainer, Christian Science Monitor: Here is yet another documentary built around a competition -- in this case the 28th Annual Crossword Puzzle Tournament in Stamford, Conn. Read more
Michael Booth, Denver Post: A film so crammed with characters and quirks that you'll smile all the way home. Read more
Tom Long, Detroit News: There's a surface satisfaction to Wordplay that's absolutely undeniable. But there are also just enough smarts here to make you wish for something more. Read more
Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly: [An] amiable brainiacs-are-cool documentary. Read more
Terry Lawson, Detroit Free Press: Manages to present lively and entertaining portraits of men and women who think in boxes while working outside of them. Read more
Rick Groen, Globe and Mail: Oh, Beckham can bend it and Shaq can dunk, but, in the annals of spectator sports, nothing can compare with the sight of rugged down-and-acrossers strutting their stuff on the vast playing field of words. Read more
Chris Vognar, Dallas Morning News: Writer and director Patrick Creadon makes us care about this passionate cast and finds visually inventive ways to illustrate the players' thought processes. Read more
Chuck Wilson, L.A. Weekly: [A] charming documentary from first-time director Patrick Creadon. Read more
Gene Seymour, Newsday: First, spelling bees, then, penguins and now ... crossword puzzles? Unlikely as it seems, this warm-hearted, star-flecked inquiry into the word-game habit could very well be this summer's hit documentary. Read more
David Edelstein, New York Magazine/Vulture: Niceness... takes the edge off Patrick Creadon's otherwise revitalizing documentary. Read more
Stephen Whitty, Newark Star-Ledger: What's an 11-letter phrase for fellowship? The answer is 'camaraderie' -- and it's on view in every scene in this film. Read more
Jack Mathews, New York Daily News: Affectionate, smartly done promo for puzzling. Read more
Andrew Sarris, New York Observer: [Wordplay] cheerfully and winningly celebrates the passionate practitioners of crossword puzzles. Read more
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel: A playful, informative and very sweet documentary about the world of words 'across' or 'down.' Read more
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: The film is made with a lot of style and visual ingenuity. Read more
Stephanie Zacharek, Salon.com: Even though these puzzles are mapped out with utmost precision -- and even though logic is an extremely useful tool for solving them -- they're still, somehow, objects of intrigue and mystery. Read more
Peter Howell, Toronto Star: It's entertaining, brainy and eye opening. Read more
Richard Corliss, TIME Magazine: Every bit as smart as the Times puzzles, puzzlemakers and puzzle solvers. Read more
Claudia Puig, USA Today: Wordplay captures the exhilaration that comes from navigating the ins and outs of complex puzzles. It also celebrates the English language in a way that is stimulating and immensely entertaining. Read more
Justin Chang, Variety: Punsters, linguists and crossword puzzle fanatics everywhere couldn't ask for a more bracing tribute than helmer Patrick Creadon's buoyant and exhilaratingly brainy docudocu Wordplay. Read more
Michael Atkinson, Village Voice: Wordplay has no subject, finally, besides the puzzle you could be solving instead. Read more
Ann Hornaday, Washington Post: Warm, lively and organized around an ingenious structural conceit. Read more