Film Review: Wizard Mode
Wizard Mode
Directors: Nathan Drillot and Jeff Petry
Country/Year: Canada, 2016
Production: Salazar Films
Runtime: 1:22:00
Review by Fiona Whittington-Walsh
Kwantlen Polytechnic University
Wizard Mode is a Canadian documentary about
Pinball World Champion, Robert Gagnon. The
film documents Robert’s rise to fame in the pinball
world as well as his day-to-day life in Burnaby, British Columbia (B.C.) where, at 26, he lives in his
family home with his parents. Living with one’s
parents well into one's adult years is not an unusual
phenomenon in B.C. where housing is among the
most expensive in the world. However, the focus
of the film and why the filmmakers wanted to tell
Robert’s story rather than stories of other champions is the fact that Robert is autistic.
Through the use of home videos, Robert’s parents tell us that they knew when he was a baby that,
despite being “very cute,” he was different. He had
tantrums for no apparent reason, was uninterested
in toys, choosing to play with light fixtures instead,
and he liked to spin and roll down steep hills. At
the age of three, Robert was diagnosed with “autism and mild mental handicap” (Wizard Mode). His
parents were informed that their son would most
likely never talk, read, or write. With the assistance
of a speech therapist, Robert was speaking by the
age of seven, and the viewer can clearly see that today he can read and write. The viewer does not see
any of the other behaviours other than in home videos leaving them to believe that perhaps Robert no
longer has these behaviours.1
When Robert was five, his father introduced
him to his first pinball machine, Twilight Zone, in a
local burger place. By the age of 10, Robert had his
own machine. His mother tells us that Robert playing pinball or other games such as Nintendo, provided relief for the family. They knew that as long
as Robert was playing they did not have to worry
about him running away. His father informs the audience that a large part of Robert’s success with
Pinball is the fact that he “doesn’t like to be a loser.
He wants to win” (Wizard Mode). This desire to win
also involves studying dozens of pages of rules that
accompany some of the machines in order to figure
out the game. All of this has paid off for Robert.
Fig. 1: "I wish I had close friends…I feel like I’m stranded in one place. I have no one else to turn to outside
of pinball since I never give myself a chance to socialize outside of it." - Robert Gagnon: Wizard Mode.
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Fiona Whittington-Walsh
Robert has been competing in world championships since he was 19, won the PAPA Championship in 2016, and is currently ranked seventh in the
world (International Pinball Association, 2016).
When thinking about a young man with autism
who is a pinball champion, it is hard not to conjure
up images of the ultimate pinball wizard from The
Who’s 1969 rock opera, Tommy.2 Also made into a
movie in 1975, Tommy is the story of a young man
who is deaf, blind, non-verbal, and a pinball champion. Pete Townsend, lead guitarist for The Who
and creator of Tommy, explains in his 2012 autobiography that he always envisioned Tommy as autistic.
This idea of people with autism being isolated
by their own senses and cut off from social contact
is one of the prevailing stereotypes about autism. In
fact, most people think about autism by referring
to numerous stereotypes that are supported in popular culture including films such as: Being There
(1979), Rain Man (1988), Forrest Gump (1994), and
Nell (1994); and Sheldon from the TV show, The
Big Bang Theory. Some of the stereotypes include the
belief that people with autism:
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are incapable of forming close relationships with people and are happier if alone
do not like to be touched
are fixated on physical stimulation such as
spinning, swinging, and jumping
have violent aggressive behaviours
are emotionless
are easily over stimulated with noise and
lights
are fixated on routine
have remarkable talents due to their fixation tendencies, this is referred to as being
a savant
cannot make eye contact
are asexual
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When I first heard about Wizard Mode, I immediately assumed it would be showcasing many stereotypes, most significantly the savant stereotype.
This is the widely perpetuated stereotype of autism.
Dustin Hoffman’s Rain Man character, Raymond
Babbitt, is a perfect example. While unable to have
an emotional connection to people, he is obsessed
with routine, including watching The People’s Court,
eating pancakes with toothpicks, and having tapioca pudding for dessert with the main meal of fish
fingers. Despite these everyday “difficulties,” Raymond is also a savant. He has an uncanny memory;
he remembers the address and phone number of a
waitress after having read the phone book the night
before. His memory skills also make it possible for
him to be able to count cards in Vegas and win
thousands of dollars. He subsequently rescues his
brother both financially and emotionally. Temple
Grandin is perhaps the most famous actual person
with autism. She is a professor of animal science at
Harvard University, author of several books, an internationally known public speaker, and the subject
of an Emmy award-winning made-for-TV biopic
starring Clare Danes. Her story is received as a triumph and inspiration, and she is recognized by
non-autistic audiences around the world as the
quintessential autistic savant.3
While the savant stereotype seems as though it
is showcasing positive traits, traits that our society
highly values, it is none-the-less a negative stereotype for people with autism. Generally, this is the
stereotype that is represented so often that it is assumed that all people with autism are savants. If a
person with autism does not have remarkable talent, they are assumed to be “low functioning.” Autism, however, is a spectrum and not everyone on
the spectrum acts the same way. There is no “high
functioning” or “low functioning.” Each person
has their own strengths and weakness just like everyone else. While some people on the spectrum do
Film Review: Wizard Mode
have behaviours that seem stereotypical, it is a spectrum because no two people are exactly the same.
Further, using the term “spectrum” means that
while there may be some aspects of the person that
are typical of someone with autism, they also may
be no different than anyone else in other aspects.
The spectrum consists of many different ways that
the brain processes information and can create
some difficulties in everyday life while at the same
time creating traits that are useful in everyday life
(Burgess 2016).
Wizard Mode successfully steers away from representing Robert as a stereotype by highlighting
other aspects of his day-to-day life that allow the
audience to see him as a whole person. Robert
shares his life goals, which include getting a job, living on his own, being a father, getting his driver’s
licence, and dating. This helps the audience make a
connection with Robert which is central to shattering stereotypes and stigma. Most significantly, directors Jeff Petry and Nathan Drillot allow Robert
to explain what his autism means to him: “Autism
to me is nothing. It just impairs my words and social cues like body language and facial expressions.
Like why is he smiling; why is he waving when it
wasn’t needed; what expression is on his or her
face” (Wizard Mode).
Since 1990 in B.C., children with autism and
other developmental and/or intellectual disabilities
have been included in their neighbourhood
schools. Despite this inclusion, people with disabilities experience high rates of isolation, loneliness,
and stigma. For children who display difficult behaviours, seclusion in isolation rooms, closets, and
even being expelled have all been documented
throughout the province (Inclusion BC and Family
Support Institute of B.C. 2013). For the students
who remain in school, curriculum is often adapted
or students are not given the opportunity to do academic work. For the most part, the few existing
post-secondary opportunities are focused on segregated pre-employment based programs that generally fail to lead to viable and meaningful employment opportunities (Turcotte 2014).
These lack of opportunities and experiences
with stigma and isolation are subtly shown in the
film. Robert talks about the difficulty making
friends and says that in school he “didn’t fit in with
regular kids…they will think I’m freaky but I’m
not” (Wizard Mode). We also see Robert’s difficulties with finding meaningful and permanent employment. This is demonstrated when Robert is discussing his future with his parents and Amy, his
support worker. Amy is reading out a list of potential employment options including a training workshop on being a clown. Despite an interest in gymnastics, Robert firmly states, “I don’t want to be a
clown” (Wizard Mode).
The first time I watched Wizard Mode was with
my film club, The Bodies of Film Club.4 Wizard
Mode was the first documentary we watched together. While the members enjoyed the film and
Robert’s success with pinball (many of the club
members are also avid gamers), they picked up on
Robert’s experiences with isolation and stigma.
Most significantly, there is a scene during the 2015
PAPA 18 World Championships where Robert is
alone and trying to find someone to talk to about a
frustratingly bad game. Robert approaches random
gamers, desperate to find someone who watched
his poor game and with whom he could connect.
The club resonated with some of his struggles to
find someone to interact with and all said they had
similar experiences in their lives. As one club member, Katie, comments on the film and the 2015
World Championship scene: “I have an emotional
understanding of Robert. They didn’t edit, they put
him in real life scenarios. Some people talked to
him, some people didn’t. It’s realistic…I understand the stress…he feels isolated.” Another club
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Fiona Whittington-Walsh
member, Emma, also found similarities between
Robert’s experiences and her own. When Robert
loses at the 2015 Championship and swears loudly,
receiving a warning, Emma thought that his reaction was realistic: “I can relate to him. Sometimes
when people don’t understand me I get frustrated.”
Most significantly, both Robert and his parents
dispel the stereotype that his autism gives him an
advantage with pinball. His mother tells us that they
“didn’t make the connection…never once did I
think he was good at Nintendo or pinball because
of his autism.” Robert furthers this by stating that,
rather than autism helping his game, it is pinball
that is helping him with his autism: “Pinball has
helped me socialize. Pinball has helped me communicate more openly. Pinball has helped me find
people that have the same passion as me and I feel
we all have a passion we can share with someone.
Pinball helps relax me” (Wizard Mode).
While the film avoids deliberately representing
Robert as a stereotype, it nonetheless reinforces the
belief that people with autism or other developmental, intellectual, or physical disabilities have just
as many opportunities to reach their full potential
as anyone else in society. Robert travels around the
world playing at various tournaments and has an
incredibly supportive family that appears to be able
to financially support many of his dreams. Robert’s
struggle to create connections with people and have
friends recedes into the background as we watch
him travel to New York to hang out with a fan and
forge a potential new friendship. We also see him
find employment working in an office doing random administrative tasks such as shredding paper
and delivering mail.
The opportunities that Robert has, however,
are very rare for people with disabilities. In fact,
many of the dreams that he has for himself, dreams
that most of us share, are denied to people with disabilities. With the high rates of unemployment5,
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many people with disabilities survive on B.C.’s Persons with Disabilities Income Program (PWD),
which currently sits at $906.00 per month. People
with disabilities are twice as likely to live in poverty
in B.C. than their non-disabled peers (Canada
Without Poverty). Rates double if the person is female or aboriginal. Despite being the first province
in Canada to close all of its institutions for people
with disabilities, institutionalization (in various
forms) continues to be a threat in Canada including
B.C. Further, people with disabilities are routinely
denied rights regarding sexual and reproductive
health as well as reproductive planning and choices.
Up until the 1970s, B.C. had the Sexual Sterilization
Act that authorized the routine sterilization of people with disabilities and other members of marginalized groups including aboriginal people. Today,
there are countless stories of children being taken
away from their disabled parents (Bellrichard,
2015). According to the National Centre for Disability, the removal rate is 80%. While Canada has
few statistics documenting this removal rate, experts maintain it is similar to America’s (Track,
2014).
Wizard Mode ends with images of Robert, surrounded by fellow gamers, basking in the glory of
inclusion and acceptance. We are left with the belief
that everything will be OK for Robert. He will be
able to attain all his goals and dreams. Robert Gagnon’s story is a success story and, while this on its
own does not make the film a bad film, stories
about the successful savant6 are generally the only
stories of autism we see in popular culture. Missing
from these narratives is the reality that the majority
of people with disabilities face. Most people with
disabilities will be denied basic rights and freedoms
on par with their non-disabled peers. Despite this
reality, most film narratives make the audience feel
good thinking that all people “like Robert” are
Film Review: Wizard Mode
looked after and can realize their dreams just like
the rest of “us.”
Notes
1. He has one outburst at Pinburg 2015 when he
is eliminated from the competition. He swears out
loud and receives an official warning. Because
we do not see any other outburst from Robert, we
assume this outburst reflects his frustration from
being eliminated from the competition and not
part of his autistic tendencies; this is not a tantrum
for no reason.
2. In the song, “Pinball Wizard,” the main character, Tommy, is described as “that deaf, dumb, and
blind kid.” During the closing credits to Wizard
Mode, “Pinball Wizard” is used as the backdrop to
psychedelic images of Robert playing. The song
is performed by David Hartley’s band, Nightlands.
The descriptor for Tommy is changed to what
sounds like a pinball name: “half check whiskey.”
David is also a pinball enthusiast and even played
at the 2013 Professional and Amateur Pinball Associations (PAPA) world tournament, Pinburg, in
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. All attempts at trying to
find the actual lyric change have not been successful.
3. Grandin has been criticized by some members
of the autistic community, including Public Interest Law Scholar at Northeastern University
School of Law and disability rights activist Lydia
Brown. See Lydia’s blog, Autistic Hoya, and in
particular the post, “Critiquing Temple Grandin,”
August 10, 2013: http://www.autistichoya.com/
2013/08/critiquing-temple-grandin.html.
Accessed September 15, 2016.
4. There are eight members of the club, including
five young adults with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities. Together, we are researching
disability representation in motion pictures and
have written a chapter for an International Text on
Disability and the Media and have presented at
numerous conferences in B.C., Canada, where
we live. The club includes Kya Bezanson, Christian Burton, Katie Miller, Jacklyn McKendrick,
Emma Sawatzky, and Colton Turner.
5. Currently the unemployment rate for working
aged adults with disabilities is 400,000 in Canada.
See: Prince (2014).
6. According to the media stereotypes, the “successful savant” is also almost always white and
male. Temple Grandin is an exception to this. A
full analysis of the intersection of disability, social
class, race, and gender is beyond the scope of
this review.
Works Cited
Bellrichard, Chantelle. “Mother sues B.C. Ministry of
Children after baby dies in foster care.” CBC News,
March 24, 2015, www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ british-columbia/mother-sues-b-c-ministry-of-children-after-baby-dies-in-foster-care-1.3008289. Accessed August 23, 2016.
Brown, Lydia. “Critiquing Temple Grandin.” Autistic
Hoya, August 10, 2013, www.autistichoya.com/
2013/08/critiquing-temple-grandin.html.
Accessed August 23, 2016.
Burgess, Rebecca. “Understanding the Spectrum.” The
Oraah,
2016,
theoraah.tumblr.com/post/
142300214156/understanding-the-spectrum. Accessed August 23, 2016.
“Canada without Poverty: Just the facts.” Canada Without
Poverty, www.cwp-csp.ca/poverty/just-the-facts.
Accessed August 23, 2016.
Drillot, Nathan, and Jeff Petry, Wizard Mode. Salazar
Film Production Company, 2016.
Inclusion BC and Family Support Institute of B.C. Stop
Hurting Kids: Restraint and Seclusion in B.C. Schools –
Survey Results and Recommendations. November 21,
2013, www.inclusionbc.org/sites/default/files/
StopHurtingKids-Report.pdf. Accessed August
23, 2016.
International Flipper Pinball Association. “World Pinball Player Rankings.” International Flipper Pinball
Association,
www.ifpapinball.com/rankings/
overall.php. Accessed August 23, 2016.
Prince, Michael. “Canadians with Disabilities Need Real
Work, Real Pay, Real Leadership.” The Globe and
Mail, August 29, 2016, www.theglobe-
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andmail.com/report-on-business/rob-commentary/canadians-with-disabilities-need-real-workreal-pay-real-leadership/article31587898/.
Accessed September 17, 2016.
Track, Laura. Able Mothers: The intersection of parenting, disability, and law. West Coast Women’s Legal Education and Action Fund, 2014.
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Townsend, Pete. Who I Am: A Memoir. HarperCollins,
2012.
Turcotte, Martin. Insights on Canadian Society: Persons
with disabilities and employment. Statistics Canada, December 3, 2014.