SummaryBobby 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 Garbu... Read More
Directed By:Liz Garbus
Bobby Fischer Against the World
Metascore
Generally Favorable
76
User score
Universal Acclaim
8.4
My Score
Drag or tap to give a rating
Hover and click to give a rating
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
83% Positive
10 Reviews
10 Reviews
17% Mixed
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Sep 17, 2011
83
For those who love chess, Fischer will probably always be its premier player, a fact his mental illness cannot expunge.
Sep 22, 2011
80
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.
User score
Universal Acclaim
92% Positive
12 Ratings
12 Ratings
8% Mixed
1 Rating
1 Rating
0% Negative
0 Ratings
0 Ratings
Mar 17, 2021
10
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. 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.
Sep 10, 2011
10
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 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.
Sep 6, 2011
80
The sorry spectacle of the ranting codger never effaces the image of the boy concentrating his entire being over a chessboard. You have to love that kid and pity him.
Sep 6, 2011
80
Liz Garbus' documentary tells the compelling and powerful story of the late chess prodigy.
Sep 6, 2011
75
Beyond the knights and rooks, Bobby Fischer Against the World tells the story of a Jewish kid raised in Brooklyn who spent his final years in exile as a fulminating anti-Semite and a raving anti-American.
Sep 6, 2011
40
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.
Oct 11, 2019
9
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
Oct 31, 2011
8
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 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
Aug 29, 2024
7
Via a series of interviews and scarce footage accrued over the various stages of his life, we're given a deep glimpse into the split genius and psychosis of former chess champion Bobby Fischer. The ex-master is a conflicted character - sometimes brightly personable, others brash, **** and selfish - and he's living proof of the vast gulf between intellectual strategy and social posturing. Bobby's story is a sad one, but of his own making. Raised by an absentee mother with no tangible father figure, he found solace in the chess board and learned to distrust and loathe anyone in a morally superior position, a mentality that only grew wilder and more dangerous over time. Looking back over the course of this documentary, it's easy to see the warning signs for his inevitable collapse, but equally understandable that it took so many by surprise. Though not entirely unbiased, this provides an enlightening look at a figure as perplexing and confounding as the infamous Howard Hughes.
Production Company:
- HBO Documentary Films
- LM Media Production
- Moxie Firecracker Films
Release Date:Sep 9, 2011
Duration:1 h 33 m
Rating:TV-14
Tagline:The greatest match was in his mind.
Website:
Awards
Newport Beach Film Festival
• 1 Win & 1 Nomination
Cinema Audio Society, USA
• 1 Nomination
Primetime Emmy Awards
• 1 Nomination
