9 best chess movies that every chess player should watch

1. Magnus - 2016

Director - benjamin ree

Running time - 78 min

This documentary is based on current world champion Magnus Carlsen. The film features footage from Magnus's childhood, his showdown with Kasparov when he was just thirteen, and the exciting environment that surrounded the Anand vs. Carlsen world championship match in Chennai where Carlsen reached the summit.

2.Pawn Sacrifice - 2014

Directed by - Eduard Zwick

Running time - 115 min

budget - 19 million USD

The movie Pawn Sacrifice is based on former world champion Bobby Fischer. It is based on the true story of Bobby Fischer's challenge against top Soviet chess grandmasters during the Cold War and culminating in the World Chess Championship 1972 match versus Boris Spassky in Reykjavík, Iceland. It was directed by Edward Zwick and written by Steven Knight. The film stars Tobey Maguire as Bobby Fischer, Liev Schreiber as Boris Spassky, Lily Rabe as Joan Fischer, and Peter Sarsgaard as William Lombardy.

3. The luzhin defense - 2000

Director - Marlin Gorris 
running time - 109 min
collection - 1.8 million USD 

The Luzhin Defence is a 2000 romantic drama film directed by Marleen Gorris, starring John Turturro and Emily Watson. The film centers on a mentally tormented chess grandmaster and the young woman he meets while competing at a world-class tournament in Italy. The screenplay was based on the novel The Defense (The Luzhin Defence) by Vladimir Nabokov. Emily Watson received best actress nominations at the British Independent Film Awards and the London Film Critics Circle Awards.

4.Bobby Fischer Against the World -

Director - Liz Garbus
Running time - 94 min
This 2011 film, dives into the life and genius of Bobby Fischer. There are several interviews with personalities such as Larry Evans, Susan Polgar, Garry Kasparov, and many others that knew Fischer or were influenced by his genius. Bobby Fischer took on the entire Soviet chess empire and won! The film includes rare footage of Fischer's 1972 World Championship match against Boris Spassky where he won the ultimate chess title. The film explores the tragic and bizarre life of the late chess master from his troubled childhood through his rise to fame and his life as a fugitive.
The film is dedicated to editor Karen Schmeer, who was killed in a hit-and-run accident while they were already a few months into the editing process. Here is a full documentary. 

5.Queen of Katwe - 2016

Director - Mira Nair
Running Time - 124 min 
collection - 10.4 Million USD

The 2012 book made into a movie "Queen of Katwe" is a  2016 film based on the life of Ugandan chess player Phiona Mutesi, a Ugandan girl growing up in the slums of Katwe. Phiona, played by actress Madina Nalwanga, would frequent the local center where chess is taught by Robert Katende, played by actor David Oyelowo. At first, her motivation is that the students would receive a free meal for attending the class, and then it was realized that Phiona has a talent for chess which evolves into a love for the game. After successes in local tournaments, Phiona is challenged to play chess on an international level and learns of life outside of Katwe.

6. Brooklyn Castle -2012
Director - Katie Dellamaggiore
Running time - 101 min

This movie is a documentary film about Intermediate School 318, an inner-city public school in Brooklyn, New York. Where an after-school chess program, having both dedicated educators and a supportive community, has triumphed over deep budget cuts to build the most winning junior high school chess team in the country, and the first middle school team to win the United States Chess Federation's national high school championship. The film follows five of the school's chess team members for one year and documents their challenges and triumphs both on and off the chessboard.

7. Game over - Kasparov and machine
Directed by Vikram Jayanti
Running time - 90 min

Kasparov had beaten Deep Blue, a computer designed specifically to beat him, in a match played in 1996. He agreed to offer a rematch the following year. Kasparov won the first game of the rematch easily with the white pieces. In the second game, Kasparov was struggling with the black pieces but set a trap that most computers fall for. Deep Blue didn't fall for it and won to level the match. At the time it was reported that both Kasparov and Deep Blue missed a perpetual check that could have given Kasparov a draw, but the strongest computer chess engines today, for example, Stockfish, don't consider the final position as draw, but as having better winning chances for white, contradicting the human analysis at the time that Kasparov missed an opportunity to enter into a perpetual check. The next three matches ended in draws, with Kasparov appearing to weaken psychologically. Deep Blue went on to win the decisive sixth game, marking the first time in history that a computer defeated the World Champion in a match of several games. From this experience, particularly the second game of the match, Kasparov accused the IBM team of cheating. He suspected that a human player was used during the games to improve the strategic strength of the computer. As a metaphor for this suspicion, the film weaves in the story of the Turk, a hoax involving a chess-playing automaton built in the eighteenth century, but secretly operated by human beings. The film also implies that Deep Blue's heavily promoted victory was a plot by IBM to boost the company's market value

8. Closing Gambit 
this film is a story about the infamous Karpov - Korchnoi world championship match which ended on 17th Oct 1978 . for the full article you can click on this link -https://en.chessbase.com/post/closing-gambit-new-feature-documentary

9. Dark Horse - 2014

Directed by James Robertson
Running time - 125 min 

One of the best motivational chess movies is Dark Horse. The movie based on the real-life story of New Zealand chess player Genesis Potini. A man who wants to become a leader and change the life of the children who have no hopes for a better future. The movie is a drama film written and directed by James Napier Robertson. The actors are Cliff Curtis and James Rolleston. It won Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, and Best Score at the 2014 New Zealand Film Awards.

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