Electrifying and intense

Rating: 8/10 (11 December 2015)

A wonderful depiction of Fischer's chess success, capturing in a perfect way his eccentric persona, game brilliancy and the atmosphere of the time.
Many believe that this is a film about chess, while it actually is about the person behind the chess player and for that reason the film strays from giving explanations about game philosophy and every move shown and concentrates on characters and what they go through. In the centre of that focus is the eccentric Fischer with his ridiculous and pretentious demands, unnerving and arrogant behaviour and remarkable chess skills. Tobey Maguire nails the role perfectly and his performance is astonishing. A huge impression makes his never-short of emotions face which in some scenes is used as a substitute for dialogue.
Another interesting thing to point out is that the character of Spassky is a bit undeveloped and he is more of a figure in the film rather than a real character and rightly so. This is intentional and is there to show that the real opponent of Fischer is not his chess one, even though it looks so, it's actually his own self, constantly torn apart between suspicion and paranoia mixed with a good portion of overconfidence and ambition.
The whole film breathes the time it takes place in and that's a credit to the excellent choice of music and the use of authentic materials, such as videos, interviews, etc. It really shows the Cold War reality with the endless race on all fronts where a simple intellectual game becomes a confrontation point not between players but between nations.