The Remarkable Life of Ibelin (2024) – Review

Quick Thoughts – Grade – A – The Remarkable Life of Ibelin is a sensitive and intimate look into the remarkable life of a young man who found a community of friends while playing World of Warcraft

The best thing about documentaries is how they are able to explore secret worlds and focus on the legacy that a young man from Norway left behind. They can focus on a very specific piece of humanity and dive deep into special lives that would probably never be explored. When Mats Steen passed away at the age of 25, he left behind a secret legacy that was soon to be uncovered by his parents Robert and Trude. Mats was born with Duchenne muscular dystrophy, which left him unable to walk, play sports or participate in any type of outdoor activity. Because of this, he retreated into video games and spent thousands of hours playing World of Warcraft under the name “Ibelin.” His parents were supportive, but they never thought that their lonely child had cultivated a group of friends online. This changed when Robert discovered Mats blog after he had passed away, and he decided to write a blog post to let Mats’ gaming friends know that his son had died. What followed was totally unexpected as Robert and Trude received dozens of responses letting them know how much “Ibelin” had meant to them.

The Benjamin Ree documentary (which you can watch on Netflix) does a fine job exploring Mats’ life and it will also make tears explode from your eyes. One of the most tragic moments of the documentary occurs when Robert and Trude wish they would have talked to Mats more about the game and how they should’ve played World of Warcraft so they could’ve spent more time with their son. It’s tragic stuff, the story is told through interviews and game recreations that rely on transcripts to show what Mats was up to during the 15,000 to 20,000 hours he was online. Mats was a part of a guild called Starlight, and they provided the transcripts which gives the audience an interesting look into why Mats loved WoW so much. On his blog, Mats wrote “”There my handicap doesn’t matter, my chains are broken and I can be whoever I want to be. In there I feel normal.” Another tear-inducing moment comes when one of his online friends talks about how whenever Mats logged in he would spend at least 30 minutes running around the forests, towns, and cities that populate the Eastern Kingdom of the game that he loved so much. In his later years, Mats was isolated in his wheelchair, so the freedom of the open world of WoW must’ve felt like a release as he could walk, talk and flirt with pretty elves. 

The Remarkable life of Ibelin is loaded with humanity and does a fine job explaining why parents and friends should be interested and curious about what their family and friends enjoy.