Disclaimer: I’m a blind film critic. This was a film I saw from Slamdance 2026, and while it did not have audio description at the time, it could acquire it at a later date depending on the distributor.

I do not like Pickleball. I don’t even know what it is. It feels like some weird cultural phenomenon that just flew into the public conscious, like if we all started playing squash, or shuffleboard. IN fact, why not? There are so many sports out there that have existed for years, where are the tetherball communities? Why isn’t everyone taking up croquet? This film doesn’t really answer the question, but if you’re annoyed by pickleball, this film is for you.

trying to avoid too much description for a festival title, Kings Of Venice is a feature length documentary that focuses on a tight knit community in Venice Beach that has been playing Paddle Tennis for years, only to see the growing popularity of Pickleball encroaching on their space. In case you have no idea what either sport is, there is a moment where someone explains the differences between the two sports. We follow the self proclaimed GOAT of paddle ball as we learn more about the sport and the culture, ultimately leading to a tournament for respect between paddle ball players and pickleball players.Someone will win the right to stay on these courts.

I was really enjoying this lighthearted take on a sport I knew nothing about, with its colorful figures. it isn’t a deep documentary about how the world is on fire, but it is entertaining enough. It did start to lose me closer to the end, as it became more about the tournament, seemingly taking up more space than you might expect.

I’d say, for this films future, it would benefit from audio description, as not only do we get possibly some about the players, but we’d also get more about the actual gameplay, especially in the tournament. So, this is a somewhat optimistic vote of confidence, in case the film does secure proper distribution, and audio description.I could easily see Netflix picking this up.

Fresh: 7.6/10