“Its an entire world of just 64 squares. I feel safe in it. I can control it, I can dominate it and its predictable. So, if I get hurt, I only have myself to blame” says our heroine Beth Harmon and that just about sums up this gorgeous mini-drama series on #NetflixIndia.
ASHOK’s FIVE reviews #TheQueensGambit, the work of writer-director #ScottFrank based on the book of the same name by #WalterTevis. It is the mesmerising story of a chess prodigy set in the America of the 1960s. Sports movies are exciting because they cut across so man categories – there is athleticism, drama, theatre and rivalry. But #TheQueensGambit is not just about that – this is a tale of loneliness, insecurity, addiction, grief, the cold war and of course chess and clothes!
Beth is an orphan at the age of 9 and survives a horrific car crash where her distraught mother is dead. She is admitted to the Methuen Home for Christian girls. #IslaJohnston is a class act as the young Beth as she learns the game under the tutelage of the school janitor Mr Shaibel (#BillCamp). The stint also gets her hooked on to the tranquilizer Librium which impacts her as she grows up under its influence. There is a scene where the manager of a college chess club who pays them a visit and presents her with a doll. Beth is happy but her next words sum it all up “Thank you very much. Do you want another game?”
At the age of 13, she is adopted by a couple and becomes more of a companion to the woman Alma (#MarielleHeller) and they set off on a wonderful journey of chess tournaments across America, Mexico, Paris and finally the climax at Moscow. #AnnaTaylorJoy is brilliant as the wide-eyed, alcohol and drug-crazed genius as she fights the demons in her life and achieves acclaim in a world of sexism.
The seven-part series is tense, dramatic and very engaging all laden with an aesthetic production design that recreates the period milieu with emphasis on clothes, hair and make-up and upholstery. The CGI work and pastel animation is a feast for the eyes. Watch out for the unscuffed pristine looking glass bottles of Coca-Cola on the tables. The Aztec Hotel in Mexico is another landmark to watch out! Full marks to costume designer #GabrieleBinder, hair & make-up chief #DanielParkin and pf course the Master of Production Design #UliHanisch.
#ScottFrank does a masterly work of conveying the drama of what is essentially a two-player staid and audience-unfriendly sport by focussing on the faces and the emotions as the duels progress. Beth narrates the nuances of the game to her mother and this helps the audience engage with the drama without a need to understand the rules or techniques of the game at all!
The high point of the series though is the depiction of the battle within. Beth has to fight off her own self-destructive instincts triggered by the drugs and the alcohol and finally take on her final battle against the Russian champion Vasily Brogov (#MarcinDoncinski). Along the way there is her abject lack of social skills and her pent-up anger with all the men in her life, the sexism that existed in the world of chess and the cold war dynamics of that period.
All in all, a heady cocktail that looks great and keeps you hooked totally.
There is one scene tucked away in all the visual delight and drama. Beth asks a 16-year-old boy who plays chess “What will you do next. If you’re a World Champion at 16, what will you do with the rest of your life?” I think that kind of sums up the central theme of this series. It is the story of Beth; it is also a question that remains unanswered.
A last word perhaps on the sexism that exists around many disciplines including sport. Of the 1700 Grand Masters in the sport of chess today, only 37 are women. Our own #KoneruHumpy has said that the male players are clearly better. I guess that in this context, the emergence of women champions in badminton, gymnastics and now cricket is a great sign. The recently concluded IPL had some exciting women’s matches at the very end. Time perhaps to explore a full league and unlock the potential that exists there. More power to women!
