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Marwencol

2K views 27 replies 15 participants last post by  DeltaForceChung 
#1 · (Edited)
Has anyone ever watched this documentary? The guy made a huge town and tons of 1/6 figures to help him recover from a beating that almost killed him and left him brain damaged. There are plenty of Dragon figures to be found in his dios. I find it very interesting, just what he was able to do. Plus he was a Sailor once upon a time.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1391092/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marwencol

I ran a search and didn't find anything, if I missed something I apologize.
 
#3 ·
Yes I saw it and it is very cool.I know him from Greenleaders's board and even have a figure of myself in his 1/6 scale world.He is a great guy and does some pretty cool storylines and is a really good with a camera.I think it is still up on Netflix and well worth a look ......
 
#4 ·
#7 ·
That one is still on netflix [or was a week or so ago anyway]. I watched it back when if first was mentioned on this board.
Another 1:6 film [that also used to be on netflix] is Jackboots on Whitehall.
 
#14 ·
I watched it last evening with my kids.

The boy definitely has talent and some cool stuff.

The movie is really not my genre, but I appreciate it for what it is. Interestingly, people seem very tolerant of him, given the circumstance. As my younger son said, "he seems to be obsessed with women." And, indeed he does.

However, I'd much rather hang with someone obsessed with women than a raging alcoholic, which is apparently where he was before the beating.

I was mightily impressed with his abilities to get a natural looking poses out of his figures. He really is a genius at that.
 
#17 ·
We'll see if it actually happens. Ben Stiller and co were going to adapt King of Kong at one point into a film, but I believe that's mostly dead now too.

Another issue I had was the notion the flick set forth that this guy this solitary life and nobody knew about his little town, another complete fiction. He def posted (here?) and on a few other boards for a year or so, and shopped from the same dealers we all do. People were aware of his work, which is how the filmmakers found out about his stuff as I recall. Again, minor point, but I'm not a fan of a documentary having an agenda in overly sympathizing the protagonist by altering facts. I don't need a good vs evil scenario in what is supposed to be a display of actual life stuff. How many of us actually deal with good vs evil in such black and white frames in our day to day lives? It's all about subtlety, the struggles and triumphs of life, redemption, comfort and understanding, those issues ring more true than the notions of you know, a lone misunderstood hero vs his arch enemy or whatever.

Blah, I ragged about this a lot when it came out, sure I could go on more. Ultimately it was an interesting story, and in ways uplifting, but the lack of awareness of the 1/6th hobby and cost etc the filmmakers presented sort of cast his hobby in an additionally pathetic light, like lookit this weirdo who plays with dolls (although honestly, Mark didn't help much to dispel that idea with stuff he said/did) which is just dumb. They do that stuff with comics, and to artists, and anyone considered nerdy or whatever. As if liking Star Trek/Wars makes you some kind of outcast, yes you like some of the highest grossing most profitable franchises in the history of America, what a strange outsider you are *rolls eyes*.

ETC.
 
#19 ·
And yet nobody considers people who collect stamps, or coins, or baseball cards to be outcasts, yeah? I mean, it's just the slanting of perspective a bit, and I felt like instead of understanding it more, the filmmakers accentuated the preconceived notions about it.

I mean, they advertise collector plates and ships in bottles in TV Guide, People magazine etc. Collecting is just that. Shrug. Just my take.
 
#20 ·
Oh I agree with you completely! I mean, anytime I bring up 1/6th in a conversation, which is not too often, unless its with someone who is a history buff. The subject almost ALWAYS goes to Marwencol.

"So its like Marwencol?"

"Do you have a town with women?"

I think that most people just don't understand collecting that aren't into it. I'm not just talking about collecting vinyl or sneakers. We, as model makers, and history enthusiasts have an attention to detail that most people do not have.
 
#22 ·
Kinda funny some of the comments, from some people who really dont know Marks story, your entitled to your opinions, but maybe you should keep them to yourself until they are "Informed" opinions.
 
#24 ·
Well, the some people thing seems directed at some people named me, I guess, since nobody else really talked about his story. Since you've got a horse in the race apparently, I will clarify and apologize to you, and Mark I guess, and say my opinions are based only on the movie and what was presented there. Don't have a personal opinion about him outside of what was in the movie, and temper that even with the knowledge that stuff like this can blow things out of proportion also.

That said, I paid my 12 bucks to see the flick, and as long as this forum is going to have a topic about it, and I'm still interested in discussing it, I'll have to continue to share my opinions about it unfortunately, uninformed as they are. I am however totally open to being enlightened about it, and think that would be a welcome thing to the discussion honestly, since so many different people have walked away with so many different takes on the guy and his situation based on seeing the movie. Shed some light on it, please.
 
#23 ·
Since no one actually read my review I will write a shorten version here.

THIS MOVIE IS NOT ABOUT 1/6 SCALE FIGURES.

THIS MOVIE WILL DO NOTHING FOR THE 1/6 SCALE HOBBY

IT JUST HAPPENS TO HAVE 1/6 SCALE FIGURES IN IT, BUT ITS NOT ABOUT THEM.

There I said it....you can now go back to watching the Walking Dead...
 
#25 · (Edited by Moderator)
Maybe I can add a few points, as I've had the pleasure of meeting Mark. The biggest point is just as Crusader1xxx said, it's not about 1/6. Mark was a talented modeler (1/16 & 1/35) before the incident. As the movie shows, he turned to 1/6 because his motor skills wouldn't allow him to do small scale work. The film also points out that doing 1/6 figures became his physical (and mental) thereapy when the insurance ran out. It also shows how a neighbor saw him walking in WWII regalia pulling his jeep full of figures (so the tires had real road wear) and finally talked to him. He was associated with an art magazine, and the film's director saw the magazine article. I don't believe Mark has posted anywhere but Greenleader's site, which he did before the magazine, and still does today.

I showed Mark some of my figures and mods, and he was very interested, but he is immersed in his world. He appreciates other's 1/6 talents and techniques, but it's safe to say he is obsessed with his own. I'm sure he does not feel he represents the rest of the hobby - anymore than I do. If we're going to be displeased with the fact that people lump us all together based on their only exposure to the hobby (a movie they saw, for instance), then our displeasure should be aimed at the people who assume we're all like Mark. When I was a little kid in the early '60s, by the late '60s I figured out that most of my friends had given up on their GI Joes and I didn't discuss them much.

As for the poverty angle, I think the film portrayed it fairly. The guy didn't have the proverbial pot. And whether it was figures or women's shoes, he fed his addictions slowly and with the help of a lot of people. The fact of the matter is, he is a very likable guy and people respond to that. Besides financial support from his family, a lot of 1/6 hobbyists have given him TONS of stuff. In the last four years, I've lost track of all the stuff other hobbyists have given me, just out of camaraderie. Add his situation, and people have responded in a huge way. And he has given back - it's what we do. And he talked about doing without just so he could buy a particular figure he needed for a scene. How many of us would rather our significant others don't find out how we finance some of our purchases? Reading the posts on GL's site, it is filled with comments thanking each other for this Care Package or that. And since the film, he says total strangers have sent him stuff, too. One of the most amazing things about Mark's story is how he built the bar and the town from junk. His ingenuity in salvaging stuff is great to see.

As for the view of the film, it is just that - the view of the director. It isn't investigative reporting trying to expose something, it's what the director came out with after spending a lot of time with Mark over a period of years. I can see how you can compare it with reality tv, but this is the way the guy lives. What I didn't get from Mark was the reality tv "playing to the camera" to keep it interesting. He was a cross-dresser before the incident, and that is why he got stomped into the pavement. He did his stories long before there was any thought of a film (check GL's archive, it's impressive), and I'm convinced he'll continue long after the spotlight fades.

Do I like the guy? Absolutely. Are we going to share wardrobe tips? Not likely. My take on him is he is very genuine and his attitude is "take me or leave me". I'm curious to see what the feature film does with it (they say a mix reality and fantasy), but that can go in any direction they chose.

erechoveraker, forums are for expressing opinions. Maybe something I said will affect yours, maybe something you said will affect mine. This is just my take on it and I hope it helps.
 
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