Spoilers because…I’m not sure how to review a documentary otherwise…
KidPoker is the inspiring story of top poker professional Daniel Negreanu. The short version of this review is that this is a great documentary that has me wanting more. Even if you aren’t a poker fan, there’s a lot to be learned from KidPoker.
KidPoker establishes early Negreanu’s super close relationship with his parents…and how Negreanu was a bit of a wild child who seemed to say whatever came out of his mouth with a lack of respect for anyone he thought was wrong. Both points really define the person Negreanu is today for better or for worse (and mostly it is for better). Negreanu telling his teacher that he’s bored in class as he decided to lay down in the back of the class isn’t that different than Negreanu telling a tournament director that his structure isn’t good or blinding himself out as a form of protest. Negreanu also is one to be proud of his accomplishments and his framing of a letter he got from school where his teacher wrote that she basically couldn’t deal with him anymore is definitely a high point.
Negreanu’s background in regards to schooling also justifies a personal belief of mine in regards to the education system. While Negreanu’s in an extreme case (I would never recommend someone dropout of school or not finish to play poker), his success proves that not everyone is going to benefit from learning about Biology or History in the classroom. If I were a parent I’d personally want my student to excel in one area than be above average in all. Give me an A+, C, C, C, C student over a B+, B+, B, B, B student any day. That A+ should be pushed. I sense Negreanu would be an A+ in math and to no surprise at all he excelled in something that required him to be good at numbers. The public education system should take note.
Anyway, back to the documentary we learn about how Negreanu began going back and forth to Vegas, going broke each time. It didn’t take him that long to figure the games out and soon his mother was in 100% support of his career (his father already was) (story about how another parent told Negreanu’s mother that she would be ashamed of him even though her son was selling drugs and stolen radios is also a highlight. You see that every day). This arrives me at point #2, when your parents are in full support of what you do it can only strengthen you. It’s obvious Negreanu drew that support from his parents throughout his career. Negreanu’s relationship with his parents, especially his mother, is the strongest point of the documentary.
Another strong point about the documentary: many of Daniel’s friends and fellow professionals being honest about the pros and cons of Negreanu himself. Jennifer Harman details how after Negreanu broke through with a surprising WSOP bracelet in 1998 he made awful financial decisions. Later in the doc Antonio Esfandiari says there’s something that to this day he still disagrees with Negreanu about but that doesn’t change how much respect he has for him. John Duthie pointed out that sometimes Negreanu said things that may have been over the line…even if he was right. Overall it was nice to see that the entire documentary wasn’t just something to soothe Negreanu’s ego.
After we see Negreanu tear up the poker scene through 2004, disappointingly we jump ahead to Negreanu’s high roller successes of 2013. I do wish there was some more focus on Negreanu’s struggles after 2004 (like his “poor” 2005 tournament results) and how he refocused and captured the Limit Hold’em title in 2008. I’m also curious how a myriad of near misses affected him, such as 2nd places in the WSOP in 2002 and 2003, and especially the 2nd place in the 2009 WSOPE Main Event. We don’t even go over his WSOP-A Main Event title in 2013 either. In fact, we don’t hear anything about his WSOP Main Event shortcomings, especially the 2001 one. Maybe these are unnecessary to the story, but I guess as a poker fan I just want to know everything (I wanted to know how his World Poker Finals run in 1997 helped him too).
Moreso about the missing period as that we don’t explore some of what seems to be significant personal relationships. We see Evelyn Ng multiple times in the documentary but we don’t get one story about her, surprising as it seems considering they are great friends and knew each other since they were about 16 (they were pool hustlers together, and pool is a part of KidPoker). We also don’t hear anything about Daniel being married in 2005, although perhaps when he’s speaking about a relationship in the Choice Center that’s what it’s in reference to (no idea). Also the biggest example of him getting doused with controversy because of his mouth is his feud with Annie Duke. Then again, why would we want her to be publicized through this documentary? So I take it back. Less Annie Duke the better.
Lastly, I’m surprised that I don’t hear the word “Pokerstars” in the entire documentary. We see the software on screen and such, but that relationship surprisingly isn’t explored.
What KidPoker does well though is it makes this larger than life poker World Champion relatable to the normal person. I too used to write sports stats and such just like Negreanu when I was a kid. Who hasn’t had success get to their head a bit and as a result made mistakes (like Negreanu lost 98 bracelet win) and assumed success would be guaranteed year after year? Who hasn’t lost an inspiring figure in their lives? Who hasn’t been criticized and as a result needed to prove themselves (I can’t help but shake my head at the 2+2 Forums references in KidPoker. While I guess it’s the best place for poker discussion most of 2+2 is an embarrassment. Hell I just read today what a fish Phil Hellmuth is in tournament poker as he took down another $1,000,000+ prize. What a joke.)
KidPoker does a great job of explaining how a wild Canadian like Negreanu became a spokesperson and ambassador for the game of poker (Phil Ivey calling it “the game of poker” and not just “poker” is awesome, but that’s another discussion). It’s well done. Sure I wish there were some more stories here…but isn’t that a sign it was a great doc in the first place?
Grade: A-