| Academy Awards, USA | |||
| Year | Result | Award | Category/Recipient(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Won | Oscar | Best Foreign Language Film Switzerland. |
Gaumont (France)
Directed by Richard Dembo
My rating: 2.5 stars out of 4
IMDb
(DVD, Home Vision Entertainment)
A middle-aged Russian chess master with a heart condition is challenged by a young, brash defector for the world championship in Geneva. They play a series of games where the real action is not on the board but behind the scenes. They each try a variety of tactics to distract their opponent, such as placing a hypnotist in the audience or continually showing up late. It gets personal when wives are brought into the mix. Supposedly a metaphor for the Cold War which was ongoing at the time of its release, the political angle is not so intriguing today. Chess aficionados may get a kick out of this, but the rest of us are left kind of scratching our heads about the importance of it all.
No comments:
Post a Comment