SEARCHING FOR BOBBY FISCHER

SEARCHING FOR BOBBY FISCHER - 1993

RATED - PG for thematic elements. VERY family friendly for ages 7+.

RATINGS - 106 Amazon (5/5), 336,733 Netflix (3.8/5), 12,330 IMDB (7.5/10), Roger Ebert (4/4).

STARRING - Max Pomeranc, Ben Kingsley, Laurence Fishburne

AWARDS - 1994 Academy Award nomination for BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY plus 4 other nominations and 5 wins.

THEMES - Relationships, gifts, winning.

STORY - The film is based on the true story of Josh Waitzkin and his family. What happens when a sportswriter, who has just given his son a new baseball glove for his 7th birthday, discovers that his son prefers chess over baseball. He not only prefers it but he is a child prodigy. He could be another Bobby Fischer. Unfortunately, as we see in flashbacks of Fischer's career throughout the film, being a genius and world champion did not necessarily make you a human success story. The question is: are genius and success as a human being mutually exclusive? Can you be a child prodigy and a 'normal' child? The film does a great job of exploring that question as we see the family struggle with first, Josh's gifts, and then, how to best use the incredible talent he has for visualizing the game of chess. As Josh says to one of his opponents during a match, 'It's over. You just don't know it yet." Genius sees things the rest of us mortals do not. The acting is superb, the cinematography, especially of the chess tournaments, is amazing, and the degree to which the film addresses the question of genius versus having a life is sometimes heartbreaking. A film that will challenge you and inspire you. You don't need to be a chess fan or even know anything about the game to enjoy this one. Lu G. for Lu's Reviews. 03/29/2009.

LINKS - AMAZON, IMDB, ROGER EBERT (Excellent Review)