Bobby Fischer Against the World (2011)

'Bobby Fischer Against the World' is a documentary feature exploring the tragic and bizarre life of the late chess master Bobby Fischer. The drama of Bobby Fischer's career was undeniable, ... See full summary »

Director:

Liz Garbus

Stars:

Bobby Fischer, David Edmonds, Anthony Saidy

Nominated for 1 Primetime Emmy. Another 1 win & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Bobby Fischer	...	Himself (archive footage)
David Edmonds	...	Himself - Author
Anthony Saidy	...	Himself (as Dr. Anthony Saidy)
Susan Polgar	...	Herself
Henry Kissinger	...	Himself
David Shenk	...	Himself - Author
Gudmundur Thorarinsson	...	Himself - Match Organizer
Boris Spassky	...	Himself
Mikhail Tal	...	Himself (archive footage)
Garry Kasparov	...	Himself
Mikhail Botvinnik	...	Himself (archive footage)
Tigran Petrosian	...	Himself (archive footage)
Russell Targ	...	Himself
Larry Evans	...	Himself - Former Champion
Shelby Lyman	...	Himself

Storyline

'Bobby Fischer Against the World' is a documentary feature exploring the tragic and bizarre life of the late chess master Bobby Fischer. The drama of Bobby Fischer's career was undeniable, from his troubled childhood, to his rock star status as World Champion and Cold War icon, to his life as a fugitive on the run. This film explores one of the most infamous and mysterious characters of the 20th century.

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Plot Keywords:

title directed by female | brilliant mind | troubled childhood | cold war | chess | 

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Taglines:

The greatest match was in his mind.

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Genres:

Documentary | Biography | History | Sport

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Certificate:

TV-14

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA UK

Language:

English Russian

Release Date:

6 June 2011 (USA)

Also Known As:

Bobby Fischer mot världen

Filming Locations:

Reykjavík, Iceland

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$90,511

Company Credits

Production Co:

HBO Documentary Films, LM Media Production, Moxie Firecracker Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min

Color:

Color Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

"The Game of the Century" was held in Reykjavik, Iceland from July through September 1972, the drama of the world championship boosted the image and popularity of chess to new heights. Bobby Fischer lost the first two games, the first on a bad end move and the second by forfeit when he refused to participate. Because of his eccentric demands, he came close to forfeiting the match, but Boris Spassky agreed to his demand to play in a new room with no TV cameras, the presence of which had upset Fischer.

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Quotes

Larry Evans - Former Champion: Reportedly, Fischer's last words were: "Nothing is so healing as the human touch".

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Connections

Featured in Ebert Presents: At the Movies: Episode #1.20 (2011)

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Soundtracks

Vehicle
Words and Music by Jim Peterik (as James Peterik)
Published by Bald Medusa Company
Administered by Kohaw Music C/O The Bicycle Music Company (ASCAP)
Performed by The Ides of March
Courtesy of The Bicycle Music Company

User Reviews

Chess made him and destroyed him

This fascinating film documents the rise and fall of chess grandmaster Bobby Fischer. It isn't really about chess; it's very much more about a man who was obsessed by it. As a result of his pursuit of perfection on the chess board, he piece by piece lost his own mind. The intensity of the mind games necessary to succeed in top level chess overflowed into the personal life of Fischer until he became a fully fledged paranoid schizophrenic. This ultimately resulted in his public anti-Semite and September 11th ravings. By the end it seems quite obvious that Fischer was a mentally ill man whose genius on the chess board was as much fuelled by his mental disorder than anything else. His obsessive immersion into all things chess at the expense of anything else in his life was after all an extremely unhealthy pursuit; it made him the genius he was but at a terrible human cost.

The key historical event that the film revolves around is the 1972 World Championship against the Soviet grandmaster Boris Spassky. This dramatic confrontation hosted in Iceland had huge political significance seeing as it set the American against a Russian at the height of the cold war. As a result it was probably the most internationally famous chess match ever played. Even at this early stage, however, Fischer's erratic behaviour is quite evident. He almost never made it in the first place due to his own personal demons, when finally there he arrived absurdly late and then proceeded to complain about the hum of the TV cameras. You might find yourself wishing that the dignified Spassky actually defeated this highly strung man. But this is partially why this documentary is an interesting one, as its central character is not particularly likable at all. There is very little actual footage of Fischer; he remains a very enigmatic figure. After the Spassky match less and less is seen of him, so much so that his next public appearance in a match in Yugoslavia occurs the best part of twenty years later. In agreeing to this he contravenes international law, seeing as this country was in the midst of a terrible war. The sight of Fischer publicly spitting on the letter warning him that he would be breaking international law is a grim one indeed; the years that followed until his death in 2008 seem to be equally mysterious and sad.

Bobby Fischer Against the World is a very good documentary about a troubled man who was destroyed by the only thing he loved. The documentary states that he was the greatest player there ever was. Personally I think this is a somewhat romantic statement based mostly on the drama of his ascent. But for sure, he was one of the most fascinating chess players that ever lived and in many respects remains an enigma still.