Review: 'Gamestop: Rise of the Players' is too inside for its own good

Neon, 2022.

If you know the difference between a bear and a bull market, when to go YOLO with a stock or what a short squeeze is...the difference between having diamond or paper hands...or if you can identify a "smurf" from a "killer bee," then "Gamestop: Rise of the Players" may give you all the tendies you'd ever want.

For the rest of us "non-initiated" on the world of stock trading, "Gamestop: Rise of the Players" is a rapid-fire headache...a film that confuses more than it clarifies, and leaves you feeling even more intimidated that you exist in a world where - clearly - so many others have a better understanding of just how our economy works, or how the Gamestop phenomenon of 2021 could even happen...or what to make of it.

Grade: C

You need to have a business degree in order to appreciate the film's story, but even those with no knowledge of stocks or trading have probably heard about something that happened with Gamestop stock that apparently almost took down Wall Street. In January of 2021 a short squeeze of Gamestop stock led to major financial losses for certain hedge funds, while returning over 30-times the investment of those who bought into Gamestop.

Impressive, I guess?

The documentary does include some definitions of the terms that are thrown around so loosely, but they are presented so fast and furious that it's clear this documentary is not for those without at least an intermediate understanding about how all of this works. The film's editing doesn't allow it breath...comments immediately follow comments and the result is a dizzying array of information that not only is hard to make sense of, but undercuts any sort of "wow" factor we're supposed to feel. We hear from several presumably "normal" people who bet on Gamestop and won, but the doc does a poor job not only of explaining what went on, but putting this phenomenon in any sort of historical context.

If you're interested in finding out more about what exactly went on with the Gamestop stock in 2021, unless you know your shit when it comes to this topic, it might be best to avoid this film and do some Googling. At least then, if you come across words, phrases or concepts that you are not aware of, you can spend some time digesting what you're learning.

Relying on "Gamestop: Rise of the Players" is like attending an all-you-can-eat buffet while walking on a speeding conveyor belt where food is thrown in your general direction. Unless you fancy yourself an expert at that sort of thing, it will leave you hungry for more.

Grade: C

Genre: Documentary.
Run Time: 1 hour 34 minutes.
Not  Rated.

Directed by Jonah Tulis ("Console Wars").

"Gamestop: Rise of the Players" is in theaters on Friday, January 28th, 2022.