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Amazon.com: Steve Zaillian, the Oscar-winning screenwriter of Schindler's List, made his directorial debut with this critically acclaimed but little-seen drama based on the nonfiction book by Fred Waitzkin, about a father (Joe Mantegna) who discovers that his seven-year-old son (Max Pomeranc) is a genius at playing chess. The boy plays chess for fun, but when he's tutored by a former champion (Ben Kingsley) and entered into high-pressure competitions, an enjoyable pastime becomes a source of tension and resentment, forcing the father to reconsider his parental priorities. A poignant study of the difference between parental idealism and proper parenting, the movie is also an observantly witty portrait of a precocious child who is still, after all, a child, and still eager for the joyful discoveries of youth. While offering a fascinating look into the world of competitive chess, the movie's dramatically engrossing and extremely well-acted by a brilliant cast that also includes David Paymer, William H. Macy, and Dan Hedaya in memorable supporting roles. --Jeff Shannon
Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: - My favorite movie.
This is my all-time favorite movie. There is not one wasted scene or false note. The performances are excellent. I am not alone in my opinion: Ben Kingsley said in an interview I watched, that this was his favorite of all the movies he's done. If you are a chess expert and expect this to be a technically correct in every way depiction of the game, it's not. If you are not interested in chess and think this is about just chess, it's not. It's about relationships: mainly a father, son, and teacher relationship. No profanity, no blood, no sex, some tears and laughs, minor reference to drug use. It does not closely follow the book it's based on (a true story written by the real life boy's father) which is fine. It's not a documentary.
Rating: - sterling
Throughout the past few years, I have never seen this movie fail to highly motivate children to play chess. A combination of a great sound track, fabulous cinematography, a great director, and an experienced cast produced a classic film.
Rating: - a movie you can watch more than once
a movie you and your family can watch more than once. Excellent acting and character development.
Rating: - Excellent
I bought this film for a friend whom I played over 50 chess games with (2 of which I one and he tutored me on chess theory throughout) as a graduation gift. I hadn't even heard of kinsley and didn't even recognize fishburne when I first saw this, nowadays I'd recommend the movie just for those actors alone, but even without the "good acting" the movie pace and plot has a mesmerizing feel. This -- along with a lot of kingsley's acting -- just has an incredible flow to it. Excellent film.
Rating: - One of my guilty pleasures
Having seen this film in the theatres when it first came out, I've always had a fondness for this film. So there is no need for explanation about why I've seen this film at least six times. It's got a marvelous cast, Laurence Fishburne, Joe Mantegna, Ben Kingsley, Joan Allen, Laura Linney, Dab Hedaya, William H. Macy, the list goes on. And what seals the deal is a breakthrough performance from first time actor Max Pomeranc, who shines as the seven year old Josh Waitzkin. The script was wonderful. But what else would you expect in 1993 from the screenwriter who penned Schindler's List? What was amazing though was that Zaillian also directed the film with as much panache and grace with which he wrote the screenplay. And to top it off, Zaillian found a way to shoot chess and make it exciting! I was so glad to finally buy this film, I'm going to show it to all my friends and show them what really good filmmaking looks like.
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