Dynamixor The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

CrawlerChunky In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

Chirphymium It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

Numerootno A story that's too fascinating to pass by...

gavin6942 Filmmaker Christopher Browne documents the mission of a group of middle-aged bowlers as they attempt to revitalize the sport and get the television-watching public interested in it again.In the midst of this, the Professional Bowlers Association is purchased by a trio of Microsoft programmers who hire Steve Miller, a Nike marketing guru. Can the new money and the expert bring this nostalgic game back to life? (Seeing as I am writing this in 2015 and the film is from 2004, my guess is no.) We do get to meet some interesting characters, like Walter Ray Williams who uses his knowledge of physics to excel at both bowling and horseshoes. His house is practically a mansion, and then you are left wondering: how much money is there in professional bowling? Apparently a lot.

mjs27541 I must start by saying that I'm a big bowler/bowling enthusiast. That being said, even if I wasn't that big of a fan of pro bowling, I would still like this movie a lot. But since I am a big fan of the pro tour, it made me appreciate the movie that much more. This documentary follows a couple bowlers (Walter Ray Williams, Jr., Chris Barnes, Wayne Webb, and Pete Weber) during a season on the PBA tour, which is starting to spice up their image. There are several different story lines that are followed throughout the film. Williams and Weber are the two superstars of the tour, and get the majority of the movie for themselves, but it also follows former team USA member and rising star Chris Barnes on his journey to greatness, as well as a PBA hall-of-famer with 20 career tournament wins, Wayne Webb. To me, Wayne Webb's story is the most intriguing. Williams and Weber have made millions of dollars bowling and to the bowling world, they are two of the greatest living bowlers, but you rarely see the other side. Wayne has more than $1 million in earnings in his career, but he's lost it all due to a party-heavy lifestyle, as well as gambling. He's making one last chance to make a living on the tour, and despite being a hall-of-famer, he really plays the underdog role.Overall, this is a great movie which you should take some time to watch. If you don't watch pro bowling or don't know too much about bowling in general, you might not appreciate the movie as much as us bowlers do, but it's still a good solid documentary.

dj_bassett Follows an attempt to revitalize the Professional Bowler's Association, which had fallen on hard times and was in danger of going bankrupt. The "revitalization" mainly seems to consist of a wholescale borrowing from extreme sports and the WWE and is mostly pretty silly to these eyes, although it's clear that a lot of other people dig it.The movie follows a bunch of old-time pro bowlers caught up in the transformation as they wend their way to a "world championship". Most interesting is Wayne Webb, a nice, fragile sort who devoted his life to the sport only to discover that it no longer has much use for him. Webb is a complicated guy, as much a victim of his own weaknesses as he is a victim of his world. It's nice to see that the movie doesn't cheapen him, reduce him down to a stereotypical one-dimension.The movie gets very exciting towards the end, even for this general bowling-skeptic. And it's full of sly jokes -- the best of which is a complex one: the movie begins with the assertion from some bowling fans that the movie KINGPIN presented an exaggerated, stereotypical view of bowling. By the end of the movie, though, we're well into KINGPIN's world, complete with middle-aged men doing crotch shots, cheesy introductions, and a lot of red lighting.

gsprods I saw this at the CineVegas Festival. It's about the Microsoft executives who purchased the struggling Pro Bowlers Tour and tried to turn it into a profitable sports league. Several of the players are profiled, including the 2 biggest stars (Walter Ray Williams & Pete Weber), an up and coming star (Chris Barnes) and a "has-been" (Wayne Webb) who is trying to reclaim his 70s and 80s stardom. This film shows the psychological pain that many of these players have to endure as a result of brutal travel schedules, long hours away from their families, low pay and the lack of respect they often receive in their chosen profession. It's an entertaining and heart-breaking film that will appeal to anyone who likes underdog stories about real people, it's not just for bowling fans.