10 movies about chess, after which you will love this game

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

What to watch for those who are crazy about Queen's Move.

10. Cold play

• Poland, USA, 2019.
• Thriller, history, sports.
• Duration: 102 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 1.

Joshua Manski was once the US chess champion. Now he is a forgotten hero and alcoholic. The US government encourages him to participate in a major chess match against the champion of Russia. This assignment drags him into the abyss of espionage and conflict. The military crisis escalates, and the match becomes an allegory for the battle of the superpowers.

This spy thriller is not based on specific historical events and is rather a fantasy that includes real facts. The chess game is also shown with some flaws. However, the film conquers with a poignant plot, tense atmosphere and a beautiful soundtrack. The viewer will also be pleased with the appearance of compatriots on the screen: Evgeny Sidikhin and Alexei Serebryakov starred in the film.

9. King's Gambit

• USA, 2020.
• Drama.
• Duration: 111 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 4.

Mr. Martinez, a master of chess, teaches this art to disadvantaged children. His task is to form a school team and lead it to success. His goal is to make the guys believe in themselves and show them that the world needs them. Various obstacles stand in the way of Mr. Martinez, but nothing is impossible for a person with such strength of mind.

The film was directed by John Leguizamo, who played the main role in the film. It is noteworthy that the chess games are shown on the tape naturally, with mathematical precision. Also, Martinez, teaching his charges, talks about real chess players who have formed certain styles of play. Chess lovers will surely appreciate this.

The picture prompts us to think that not always the past can predetermine a person's future, and the environment can not always shape his destiny.

8. Knights of the South Bronx

• USA, 2005.
• Drama.
• Duration: 89 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 8.

Richard has a difficult period in his life: he is losing his job, and even acutely experiencing a midlife crisis. He gets a job at a school and becomes a deputy teacher for four-graders from disadvantaged families. One of the students, pursuing selfish goals, asks Richard to teach him to play chess. Later, other guys show interest in the lesson - and the class gathers a team to participate in major tournaments.

The director of the film claims that the plot of the film is based on a real case from the life of David McInolty, who taught children from elementary school to play chess, and later led them to victory in a significant championship. This inspiring story reminds the viewer that in life, as in chess, there are many alternatives. And thanks to intelligence and courage, even the most difficult game can be won.

7. Chess player

• France, 2019.
• Drama, comedy, biography.
• Duration: 107 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 8.

Fahim is a poor boy who plays chess with talent. His father goes to France in search of work, and Fahim travels with him. His dream is to see a chess grandmaster and become a world champion. In a foreign country, the hero meets a grumpy, overly strict and tactless chess teacher. The boy does not yet know that he will become his friend and help to translate his cherished desire into reality.

"The Chess Player" is a kind film that is great for family viewing. Fahim's story inspires and inspires confidence that any challenge can be overcome. The experience of the tape is enhanced by the fact that it is based on a real story. And especially touching in the picture is the line of relations between the student and the teacher, who was brilliantly played by Gerard Depardieu.

6. Luzhin's defense

• UK, France, 2000.
• Drama, melodrama.
• Duration: 109 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 8.

Luzhin is a chess genius, whose amazing abilities were manifested in childhood. His lifelong passion for chess became a refuge from the real world for him. Once this reclusive grandmaster came to an important chess match on the Italian Lakes. Here he met the love of his life - Natalia. But she is from a completely different world.

The film is based on the novel of the same name by the great Vladimir Nabokov. The main role in the film was played by John Turturro, who not only shines in dramatic roles, but also amazes the viewer with his comic potential - for example, in the films of the Happy Madison studio. Luzhin turned out to be very expressive for Turturro, and his play was perfectly complemented and set off by the talent of his colleague in the film, Emily Watson.

5. The life of a king

• USA, 2013.
• Drama.
• Duration: 101 minutes.
• IMDb: 6, 9.

Criminal Eugene Brown, after serving his sentence, gets a job as a janitor at a school. Once the director asks him to provide a service - temporarily work as a deputy teacher for high school students. Eugene defends his authority among arrogant teenagers and begins to teach them to play chess. His lessons arouse the interest of children, and the hero founds a chess club for them.

The leading actor, Cuba Gooding Jr., has a wide range of acting abilities, and in this picture appears in a convincing dramatic role. The story of his hero, Eugene Brown, is based on real events. She convinces the viewer that even one mistake can cost a person too much - both in life and on the chess field.

4. Sacrificing a pawn

• USA, 2014.
• Drama, melodrama.
• Duration: 115 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 0.

The film takes place during the Cold War. Bobby Fischer plays against Boris Spassky, the world champion from the USSR. Fischer wants to play a regular match with his opponent. However, the US government puts pressure on the master, seeing in the game a political battle with the Soviet Union. And the tension intensifies not only this: against the background of all the events, the hero also tries to overcome his paranoia.

A strong team worked on the film: it was directed by Edward Zwick (Legends of Autumn, The Last Samurai), and the script was written by Stephen Knight, who worked on Peaky Blinders. And the role of a chess genius who is let down by his own mind was perfectly played by Tobey Maguire.

The choice of the name for the picture is interesting. Sacrificing a pawn is a common chess technique, when the loss of an insignificant leads to an advantage. However, the name has another meaning. According to the director, it reflects the fact that chess players were just pawns in a complex political game for the US and Soviet governments.

3. Game selection

• USA, 1993.
• Drama, biography.
• Duration: 109 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 4.

Josh is an ordinary boy who is interested in baseball. One day he unexpectedly beats his father at chess. Then his parents hire a strong coach for him to turn their son into a new Bobby Fischer. However, as he learns, Josh gets bored with both the teacher's system and chess in general.

The film tells about the childhood of the chess player Joshua Vaytskin. The film touches upon the themes of personal choice, the relationship between parents and children, and also reveals the idea of everyone's right to be themselves. In addition to difficult and dramatic moments, the film also contains scenes that make the viewer smile.

2. Queen of Katwe

• USA, 2016.
• Drama, biography, sports.
• Duration: 124 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 4.

Fiona lives in a slum. Since early childhood, she has been helping her mother earn money and take care of her younger brother. One day the girl meets Robert, a missionary who teaches children to play chess. Fiona takes an interest in the game and soon becomes the best in the group. The discovered potential helps her to open the doors to the big world and escape from poverty.

The film tells about real events in the life of the chess player Fiona Mutezi. Throughout the film, the heroine demonstrates fortitude, hard work and determination. Her history proves that you can never say "never".

This is a Disney movie that is not your typical studio product. To some extent, this is an acute social tape, as it touches on issues of inequality and raises the problems of third world countries.

1. Daring

• USA, France, 1994.
• Thriller, drama, crime.
• Duration: 114 minutes.
• IMDb: 7, 6.

Daring is a 12-year-old drug dealer from Brooklyn who lives in a world of poverty, racial conflict and riot. His father, formerly a speed chess champion and now an alcoholic, taught the boy how to play. And now he uses these skills to avenge his friends and change his life.

The film was directed by Boaz Yakin (Remembering the Titans) and starred young Sean Nelson. Despite his young age, the actor masterfully keeps the frame and makes the viewer worry about him. The cast is reinforced by big names like Samuel L. Jackson and Giancarlo Esposito.