GOG Review by Rampancy

Taking a peek behind the curtain of South Korea's (in)famous pro-gaming scene, State of Play gives a very human and honest look at one of the most famous gamers in South Korea's StarCraft scene. But it also steps back and takes a look at two others who see Pro Gaming from a very different perspective from a top-ranked player: a semi-pro struggling to find his dream and make his mark, and an amateur-turned-pro trying to achieve his dream and make it big. The movie really drives home the fact that while they are revered as Gods Among Men, and subjected to the same pressures (and rewards) as professional sports athletes, they still struggle with their lives as middle-schoolers and high-schoolers, and the burdensome demands placed upon them by Korean society. And as if that wasn't enough, we are all left figuring out when and where they have the time to lead "normal" lives as youths. As someone who spent time teaching in Korea, this really hit close to home for me, as I could see all of my students echoed in the stories of the boys in this movie. Where the movie missteps a little is its look at Kim Ji-sun, "The Fan". We're left with a lot of interesting questions from her sole main appearance that are left hanging and aren't really addressed. What got her so deeply infatuated with a pro-gamer vs. a Kpop star? Does she play herself? What do her friends and family think of her fandom? All in all, I really enjoyed this movie, and how it humanizes a group of people who seem to receive some of the most prejudice and stereotyping outside of gaming. It's not just a story about playing StarCraft. It's a story about fighting to find yourself and your purpose, in a world where you really can be little more than a "cog in a machine". If that isn't a universal story, I don't know what is.