Street Date April 8, 2008
C3 Images
Documentary
$29.95 two-DVD set

In the late 1990s, pinball’s once-robust business was plummeting, and Williams, then the world’s largest pinball manufacturer, set to change that by creating Pinball 2000, a sleek design with eye-catching visuals that was hailed as revolutionary.

Not even a year into Pinball 2000’s debut, Williams closed its pinball division for good. This documentary offers a timeline of pinball-related events that led to Pinball 2000. (Fun facts: flippers weren’t introduced until the 1940s; the 1980s brought the rise of narrative-driven games.) Director Greg Maletic talks to numerous Williams employees who detail the laborious creative process behind the idea, the peculiarities of dealing with George Lucas (the last game built using Pinball 2000 was based on Star Wars: Episode I), and their theories for the pinball division’s sudden closing.

In his commentary, first-time director Maletic says he strove to create the pinball version of The Kid Stays in the Picture, the documentary about film producer Robert Evans. Though Maletic doesn’t reach the transcendent levels of that excellent movie, his effort is smart and fun while never making us think that we're wasting our time on a niche subject. His enthusiasm for the story and the people involved is infectious, and it’s impossible not to stay interested. The 60-minute running time also helps.

There are plenty of extras on the two-disc set that pinball devotees will love, including extended interviews with key Williams’ personnel, and a look at some lost games. Maletic's enlightening and substantial commentary, in which he covers his filmmaking techniques and the challenges of working with limited footage, should suffice for everyone else.

– Pete Croatto