Bobby Fischer Against the World

Name: Bobby Fischer Against the World
Genre: Biography, Sport, Documentary
Released: September 9, 2011
Duration: 93 min
Rating: 76

2011

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Generally favorable reviews based on 12 Critic Reviews

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Generally favorable reviews based on 12 Ratings

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7.8	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 12 Ratings

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Bobby Fischer Against The World

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Movie Details & Credits

Home Box Office (HBO) | Release Date: September 9, 2011 | Not Rated

Summary: Bobby Fischer against the World is a feature documentary that uses the narrative tension of the 1972 match between Boris Spassky and Bobby Fischer to explore the nature of genius, madness, and the game of chess itself. This film tells the stranger-than-fiction story of the rise and fall of an Fischer, a true icon. From veteran filmmaker LizBobby Fischer against the World is a feature documentary that uses the narrative tension of the 1972 match between Boris Spassky and Bobby Fischer to explore the nature of genius, madness, and the game of chess itself. This film tells the stranger-than-fiction story of the rise and fall of an Fischer, a true icon. From veteran filmmaker Liz Garbus, and the final project of late editor Karen Schmeer, Bobby Fischer Against the World exposes the disturbingly high price Fischer paid to achieve his legendary success and the resulting toll it took on his psyche. Rare archival footage and insightful interviews with those closest to him expand this captivating story of a mastermind’s tumultuous rise—and fall. (Dogwoof Films)
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Director: Liz Garbus

Genre(s): Biography, Sport, Documentary

Rating: Not Rated

Runtime: 93 min

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Critic Reviews

Peter Rainer

Sep 17, 2011

For those who love chess, Fischer will probably always be its premier player, a fact his mental illness cannot expunge. Read full review

Shawn Levy

Sep 15, 2011

The result is a gripping film about a subject almost too good to be true. Read full review

Dennis Harvey

Sep 6, 2011

Assembly is brisk and high-grade, allowing for the variable quality of archival materials. Read full review

Joshua Rothkopf

Sep 6, 2011

If this profile is marred slightly by thematic tidiness and a willingness to overglorify the champion's rise (Fischer didn't even write his best-seller, Bobby Fischer Teaches Chess), it still supplies a cracked, conflicted genius trapped in his ceaseless endgame. Read full review

James Greenberg

Sep 6, 2011

Liz Garbus' documentary tells the compelling and powerful story of the late chess prodigy. Read full review

Gary Goldstein

Sep 22, 2011

This expertly constructed film follows the curious and tragic life of the troubled chess icon as he went from child prodigy to global legend to paranoid recluse. Read full review

Boxoffice Magazine Ray Greene

Sep 6, 2011

Garbus' over-reliance on interviews that state rather than dramatize Fischer's excellence makes this a portrait that too often seems more overheard than inhabited. Read full review

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User Reviews

Trailesque

Mar 17, 2021

This is an excellent, thorough look at the life of chess genius Bobby Fischer - his life, his short but brilliant career, and his downfall. Fischer comes across as a gifted, obsessive fanatic. When he devoted himself to chess, he became the best in the world, perhaps the best ever. ButThis is an excellent, thorough look at the life of chess genius Bobby Fischer - his life, his short but brilliant career, and his downfall. Fischer comes across as a gifted, obsessive fanatic. When he devoted himself to chess, he became the best in the world, perhaps the best ever. But the film shows us his painful childhood, as the son of a flaky mother who abandoned him at age 16, literally left him and his sister alone in a Brooklyn apartment. We get a brief look at his biological father, who tried to be there for him but who died at a young age. The name Fischer came from one of his mom's boyfriends, who apparently was not in the picture for long. Bobby was a king in the world of chess, but a lost soul in the world at large, and eventually became paranoid and loony, embracing anti-semitism (he was Jewish) and an extreme Christian church, before appearing on the world stage again toward the end of his life. Fischer's life was a frequently sad, but fascinating, story, and we see a lot of it thru the eyes of his good friends, which he did have several of. There is some good archival footage included too, especially from the famous match between Fischer and Spassky. It is hard to picture how this documentary could be made any better.… Expand

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jdb26354

Sep 10, 2011

Recommended viewing for chess fans but broader appeal could be limited because the Cold War subtext seems irrelevant now and the movie does not have a dramatic arc so much as a focal point - the 1972 Fischer-Spassky match. The treatment of the buildup to and playing of that match wasRecommended viewing for chess fans but broader appeal could be limited because the Cold War subtext seems irrelevant now and the movie does not have a dramatic arc so much as a focal point - the 1972 Fischer-Spassky match. The treatment of the buildup to and playing of that match was adequate - particularly noteworthy is footage of Fischer engaged in exercise workouts to gird himself for the grueling intellectual contest to come. However, the film should have pushed the audience to follow more details of the key strategies used - this is ultimately a movie about chess after all. Once the movie moves past Fischer-Spassky, it seems to lose its bid for pathos, although it keeps up with the chronology of Fischer's life, patchy as it becomes due to his reclusiveness. The frequent inclusion of on-camera interviews with various people who knew Fischer or know chess proved a stylistic distraction - more voiceovers would have been better, so that the film could have kept more of its focus on its charismatic subject.… Expand

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DukeJon

Oct 11, 2019

Outstanding documentary about the flawed genius of chess. However if you're not a fan of chess and haven't heard of Fischer this has limited appeal

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Sir_Brandon

Oct 31, 2011

Bobby Fischer is arguably the greatest chess player of all time. Even if you do not play chess, you know his name and his accomplishments. However, who exactly is the man who sits in front of the chess board? Director Liz Garbus tackles that subject and shines a light not only on hisBobby Fischer is arguably the greatest chess player of all time. Even if you do not play chess, you know his name and his accomplishments. However, who exactly is the man who sits in front of the chess board? Director Liz Garbus tackles that subject and shines a light not only on his professional life, but a brighter one on his personal life. Bobby Fischer Against the World tells about one fascinating man who had a gift for playing the complex game of chess. Ever since he was a boy, he loved the game and it is undoubtedly safe to say he became obsessed with it. But with his genius, he paid a heavy price in the other areas of his life. Bobby Fischer thought the world was against him, but come to find out, it was him against himself the entire time. Fischer had a troubled childhood and the game of chess saved his life. It gave him something he could really apply himself to and it certainly paid off. At the age of 15, he became the U.S. Champion and became World Champion when he was just 29 years-old after defeating Boris Spassky during the height of the Cold War. After that, Fischer was seen as a hero by everyone because he was the American who beat the Russian. And the best part is finding out what occurred before and during the matchup. The realization of the destruction Fischer causes within himself while battling with his own demons starts to sink in and show its ugly face. After he becomes the Michael Phelps of his time, Fischer takes a hiatus from chess and refuses to defend his championship. It isnâ… Expand

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