Magnus
FilmRise | Release Date: November 18, 2016 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
52
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 12 Critic Reviews
Positive:
7
Mixed:
4
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
80
EmpireDan JolinJan 18, 2017
An engaging study of a beautiful but mysterious mind, which also reveals the stressful nature of world-class chess tournaments and raises the deep question of where intelligence actually comes from. Read full review
80
Screen DailyDavid D'ArcyNov 15, 2016
Magnus Carlsen, called the Mozart of chess, became world champion in 2013 at the age of 22. Benjamin Ree’s rousing documentary shows us how this taciturn prodigy got there, and how his family keeps him sane. Read full review
70
VarietyOwen GleibermanNov 25, 2016
Magnus, it turns out, is the anti-Bobby: a fascinatingly “normalized” prodigy. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesMichael RechtshaffenNov 25, 2016
The loneliness of the long-distance chess grandmaster is affectingly conveyed in Magnus. Read full review
70
Village VoiceDaphne HowlandNov 17, 2016
Ree makes things easy for people who don't play chess, deftly pacing Carlsen's triumphs and failures and milking the suspense as "the Mozart of chess" employs his intuition to win, in an age when many players depend on computers to hone their skills. Read full review
70
We Got This CoveredLauren Humphries-BrooksNov 15, 2016
To make a movie about such an elusive figure is a challenging undertaking, and it’s a testament to the quality of Magnus that the film succeeds as well as it does. Read full review
63
Movie NationRoger MooreNov 16, 2016
[Ree] virtually never surprises us, making his film more a celebratory hagiography for proud Norwegians than anything the rest of the world, in and out of chess, can embrace. Read full review
60
CineVueMatthew AndersonJan 18, 2017
Watching the goofy boy develop into a man, we share in his experiences and root for him each step of the way. Read full review
60
Total FilmNeil SmithNov 25, 2016
It’s too brief to convey the intellect and almost mystical ability that underpin Carlsen’s success. Read full review
42
The PlaylistKevin JagernauthNov 16, 2016
Magnus is gifted with a tremendous opportunity and mostly squanders it, creating a profile that certainly admires Carlsen, but does little to uncover the methodology or magic behind the dazzling display he demonstrates on the board. Read full review
40
The GuardianLeslie FelperinNov 25, 2016
Even though director Benjamin Ree has accessed the family archive of footage showing young Magnus as a socially awkward prodigy through the years and interviewed him directly many times, the film barely dents his inviolate wall of polite reticence. Read full review
20
The New York TimesJeannette CatsoulisNov 17, 2016
[An] insipid and uninformative portrait of singularity and obsession. Read full review
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