A Great Cold War Victory & Rembrance of A Iconic Person

Rating: 7/10 (15 February 2016)

Bobby Fischer was, by many knowledgeable chess aficionados, the greatest chess player to ever live. As of 2015 there is a sizable number of twenty-somethings (maybe those in their 30's) who have no clue who he was, maybe even never playing the game of chess either. One might see this as an opportunity to correct a slight injustice or a sign that no one cares? Tobey McGuire goes for a bit of later day historical correction in Pawn Sacrifice as he and writer Steven Knight bring Fischer back to life for your introspection and entertainment.
Chess as entertainment? In spite of all it's drollness, yes. This is in no small part due to the enigmatic Fischer and his all-time great defeat of Boris Spasky in the Cold War super-match of 1972. It sealed Fischer as chess icon and political pawn in a time when the US was trying to assert any dominance over communism it could achieve without actual war. Within this the game of chess was elevated to a heady pinnacle from which it quickly fell and has never quite recovered. Perhaps if this was all it would be more of piece for a documentary, but with Bobby Fischer being the most integral ingredient it deserves more and that is what viewers get here.
Without ever bogging down in too much minutiae the story of how a very young boy with laser like vision believed he was to be the world's youngest Grandmaster Chess Champion is quite entertaining. Fischer from the time he was self-aware believed his lot in life was to be the world's greatest chess player. Complicating it all was the fact that he was somewhat anti-social outside of chess and had a mother who the CIA pegged as a potential communist political threat. High strangeness ensued in Fischer's youth that would only ramp up with age and his own disillusionment. In spite of it all he became a icon in the Cold War between the USSR and USA. A reluctant American hero if you will even though he crashed and burned as he fettered away his chance at becoming the youngest ever World Grandmaster Champion.
McGuire brings it in his recreation of Fischer. The viewer actually feels turmoil just watching McGuire bring to life the war between his own greatness and crippling paranoia. It's not a totally sympathetic characterization in that as a viewer you often feel contempt for Fischer's selfishness. I'd say there's great truth in McGuire's realization of the man who for a moment united American pride much like the celebrated moon landing of 1969. It's also nice to see a fine role, and performance, by Peter Saarsgaard. And with limited screen time Liev Schieber turns in an excellent portrayal of the great Soviet Chessmaster Boris Spasky. Add an excellent score by James Newton Howard which includes fantastic period music and what could be a boring as paint drying is anything but. This is a great movie which also sheds light on the injustice of Fischer being somewhat forgotten as of the new millennial. A highly recommended film that should spur some latter day interest in a time where we counted winning against Russia in any way possible, even at the game of chess, as a great victory for our nation.