Roger Sharpe, the closest thing to a real life pinball wizard, is the titular subject of “Pinball: The Man Who Saved the Game,” a charming and entertaining new film about the overturn of the NYC ban on pinball in the 1970s.
Presented as a faux-documentary and scripted narrative hybrid, the movie opens with an aged Roger Sharpe, played by Dennis Boutsikaris, sitting down in front of the camera for an interview. He’s told by the documentarian, “tell us everything about the greatest shot you ever took.” Roger tells him some background is needed, and he takes us back to 1971 where we meet a young Roger Sharpe, played by Mike Faist (who might be recognized as Riff from Steven Spielberg’s 2021 film West Side Story).
It’s at this point that brothers Austin and Meredith Bragg, the directors and writers of the film, offer up some fresh cheekiness to subvert expectations. When the film flashes back to 1971 and John Lennon’s “Imagine” begins to play, there’s a record scratch, and the documentarian tells Roger the song is a little slow for what they’re going for and the rights to use it would be way too expensive. It cuts to a bar at the University of Wisconsin, where older Roger narrates and watches his younger self play pinball but has to stand on an apple box to match his younger counterpart’s height. It’s clear the Braggs want to have fun with their storytelling, and there are just enough of these hat-tip moments to keep them enjoyable versus overstaying their welcome.
The personal history older Roger covers pertains to his first divorce and subsequent move from Wisconsin to New York City, where he discovers pinball machines in an adult bookstore. He spends all of his spare time there, shown mostly playing Gottlieb’s Subway, and also lands a job as a writer at Gentleman's Quarterly (GQ) and begins to woo a woman named Ellen, played by Crystal Reed.
With the faux documentary element, the Braggs are able to lay out an organic dose of pinball history. Older Roger discusses the earliest designs, and the scene in which we learn about the history of Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia’s pinball ban is fascinating. For instance, the police used the legs of destroyed pinball machines to make billy clubs.
Many notable icons in pinball make appearances in the story, such as designer Sam Gensberg (founded Chicago Coin), Herb Jones from Bally, Alvin Gottlieb of Gottlieb, and Sam Stern and Harry Williams of Williams (before Sam’s son Gary started Stern Pinball).
Even two of Roger Sharpe's adult sons, Zach Sharpe and Josh Sharpe, grace the screen for brief seconds (though perhaps the casting for those roles leaves something to be desired).
In addition to the aforementioned Subway machine by Gottlieb, the other heavily featured machine is Gottlieb’s Cow Poke.
Pinball: The Man Who Saved the Game is available now to rent or buy on Vudu, Google Play, Amazon Prime, and iTunes. And, hey, it’s a tight 94 minutes! More movies should take note.
Editors nitpick: Would Roger Sharpe really put drinks on the glass of a pinball machine?? We certainty hope not.
Cast of Pinball: The Man Who Saved the Game
- Mike Faist: Roger (young)
- Crystal Reed (Ellen)
- Dennis Boutsikaris: Roger (old)
- Christopher Convery: Seth
- Connor Ratliff: Jimmy
- Mike Doyle: Jack Haber
- Bryan Batt: Harry Coulianos
Where to Watch Pinball: The Man Who Saved the Game
- Available now to rent or buy on Vudu, Google Play, Amazon Prime, and iTunes
Brad is a copywriter at Kineticist. His most vivid pinball memory is playing the Playboy pinball machine at his friends’ house when he was a kid. He loves the arcade, open world video games, and hosting board game nights. When not writing about gaming, Brad writes screenplays, acts, and produces creative and comedic content in Los Angeles (follow him @bradmilison).
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