What Tickled is all about without spoiling the show
Tickled has one of the strangest premises of any documentary in any category. A journalist and filmmaker goes into the world of competitive tickling. Who knew this was a thing? Do they make trading cards?
What he discovers is as strange as one might think. Is this really a sport or is there something more sinister? Without spoiling everything, the latter is the answer.
Did you know anything about the Tickled story before watching?
I had heard of Tickled but didn’t really know much about it other than it involved, well, tickling. We’ve all been tickled at some point. Not many of us have competed in a tickling contest. The exact story was new. In fact, I had to do a little research to see if it was actually real and not a fake documentary disguised as a real one. It seems real from what I’ve read. Wow!
Will Tickled make people feel uncomfortable?
There is no blood or gore at all in Tickled. The most major crimes committed and practically proven are different yet not so clear. There are scenes of men tickling each other. That’s certainly enough to make a few people uncomfortable. Others might feel something different. Hey, it’s all good. Just don’t cross any boundaries.
What was good about Tickled?
The story was too much to not give Tickled a chance. It’s the kind of documentary you can only make once. While we don’t get all of the answers in the end, Tickled stands out.
We do get some sort of a conclusion out of the information uncovered. From early on, the audience knows this is going to be a bit of a mystery. This isn’t a true crime documentary where we know who the bad guy is from the start. When we do find out, it’s a huge surprise, too.
Tickled is entertaining enough to keep the audience’s attention. You want to find out why competitive tickling is even a thing. Is this some sort of BASEketball sport invented by unathletic people? We don’t actually get the exact answer but we do have at least one person who leaves nefarious bread crumbs.
What could have made Tickled better?
In some true crime documentaries, we don’t get to know enough about the perpetrator. In this case, we learn very little about the supposed villains. There is more than one and we do see them all on screen. It seems as if only the tip is touched on what’s truly going on in the world of competitive tickling.
Tickled could have been made in a slightly lighter tone. Even though multiple crimes were committed and this is certainly not a light topic, it is a documentary about tickling. Plenty of darker documentaries have told their stories with a softer tone. Tickled is a little too serious at times or at least didn’t sprinkle in enough nuttiness that we should all look for in some of our favorite true crime documentaries.
Is Tickled worth watching?
Tickled is worth watching if only because it’s such an outlier compared to so many other documentaries of any genre. There will never be anything quite like it although the issues tackled in Tickled do seem to extend beyond just what’s covered in this film.
Overall Score: 7 out of 10
The premise helps carry tickled. We enter such a strange world, but only go in a little bit. Surer conclusions would have taken Tickled to a whole different level and notoriety.
Interested in watching Tickled or learning more about the case? Below you will find affiliate links to the series as well as other information about this case. By using this links, I may receive a small commission of any purchase you may make.
If you have a series or film you want to know my opinion on, please leave a comment below. I may have already written about it. I can save you some time from watching a dud.
Practically Trouble 
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