The Queen's Gambit (2020) Netflix Original Limited Series Review 

My heart got broken into pieces when she returned to the janitors basement as an adult. My grandpa taught me how to play when I was just a little kid so this really hit hard on me.

I am a chess master. I actually enjoyed this show. They brought in Bruce Pandolfini and Garry Kasparov as chess consultants. The games and chess talk throughout is highly accurate and very well done. The characters are all fictional but all appear to be based on actual people. Beth seems to be a cross between Fischer, Tal, and Korchnoi....possibly also Alekhine especially since they make a reference to her playing like Alekhine at one point, both Alekhine and Tal had similar drinking problems to the character Beth, Korchnoi was orphaned at 12 and her rise in chess in America and learning Russian seems to follow very closely to the life of Fischer, even a lot of the games are taken directly from Fischer, Also the personalities and portrayal of the chess world is highly highly accurate. I say this as a person who played professionally for 8 years. It's always good when real chess players get involved in the process to make a chess show that isn't crap, even the hand movements and expressions were very close to accurate. For once a chess show that doesn't make me cringe every time I see the board. it gets 5 stars out of 5 from me. I was so moved at points. I like the way she describes the board in chess when asked what her favorite piece was. The response is literally what every master says and more importantly feels. It was an amazing show.

This is a good example of a hero’s journey with the main character being a women

Anya Taylor joy is probably the best young actress out there right now. She is just fantastic

If Anya does not get a Globe/Emmy out of this, I am off to Hollywood to riot. Who's with me?

Beth is cheating. She has a chess engine running in the ceiling.

I was afraid of the "in your face" feminism many movies or series have this days... But none of that, she felt like a natural woman with flaws, like everyone...

I watched the show in one day and I truly love it. The actress is serious and a great talent , completely mind-blowing , I LOVE IT xoxo

Rick i just watched the show and it's the best show or movie of the year(in my opinion)Anya Taylor-Joy deserves a golden globe and emmy for her incredible performance.They also bring back the 60s in a stunning way.

Loved this miniseries so much, literally just finished watching and rushed to youtube to find reviews cause I don’t want to let go of it yet.

i had no interest in chess before i watched this show. now im trying to learn everything about chess! this series was GOOOOOD.

When Beth was at Mr Schibel's funeral and remembered that she owed him $10. I was like: 'you made all that money and you never paid him back his cash?!' I like to imagine him taking clippings of her latest win from each newspaper and thinking: "I KNEW I wasn't gonna see that money again. That c...sucker".

I love this series. I feel so energized after finishing it.

This was like ‘Searching for Bobby Fischer’ meets ‘A Beautiful Mind’ meets ‘Mad Men’. Amazing storytelling, cinematography, and acting 👏🏻

I think this show really breathed some fresh air into the "sport" or competition genre. Often in shows with some sort of tournament plot the story gets really stale. It's like the tournament aspect is just a tool to avoid having to drive more story. Like you'll often see they will introduce a new character that the MC will have to face off against, and then the whole story line just gets put off to the side and we focus on this new characters whole backstory. Tournament arcs are often just backstory galore for characters we'll never even see again. However Queen's Gambit doesn't focus on driving a lot of irrelevant backstory, and the side characters don't just go away after their time facing off against Beth has ended, all the side characters manage to stay relevant. So I really enjoyed this take on the whole competition genre, it was new and refreshing. The only thing is that I wish there was at least some backstory to those relevant side characters. I mean there's hints of it, but they never really explore much depth into those characters. So things might get a little spoilery from here, but I wish we could get a bit more info on Benny. like they make a big deal cinematographically, on how Benny is not living very luxuriously, He's got a pretty run down basement suite, and doesn't even have his own parking spot (evident by all those parking tickets he racks up). Then all we get on reasons for his lifestyle, despite us knowing that he must make a fair amount of money, is that brief conversation he has with Beth after she turns down the "Jesus people," where Beth asks if he gambled away all his money. and judging by how Benny does frequently bring up bets (the first time Beth and Benny meet in Cincinnati, and during their speed chess matches), Benny also says he's had a lot of practice in speed chess and so I'm assuming that this has been with monetary bets involved. So Benny's just my one example, but a lot of side character backstory is kind of hidden in the background of the show and never really explored aside from what the viewer pieces together and I wish that we could have gotten a bit more out of these characters. Also I know that a season 2 is pretty unlikely as there's no more source material to go off of, but there were a few open ended points that weren't really explored. While I do think that the show had a very satisfactory ending, I'm still left with a few pondering questions. Such as what happened to Beth's biological father, we can gather that he's the person Beth's mother visited right before attempting a double suicide via car crash, and it looks like he has a separate family and Beth's mother was just some hookup. I feel like there's some room to explore this if we get a second season, although I doubt he will ever hold any major significance in Beth's life. The show also explores ideas of people carrying weapons for protection, this is seen when Beth asks Benny about why he carry's a knife around and the camera zooms in on it, and then again when Beth arrives in Russia and is taxied to her hotel, the camera pans in on the Russian carrying a gun. However this theme was kind of left open ended, I get it could just be a product of the times, 1960's anxiety, but still, they started on a topic brought it to the forefront of the viewers attention, and then just ditched the idea. Of course we could also question the actual ending of wether or not Beth stays in Russia or not, but I think at the very least, that end was left open on purpose. based on events I think it is highly likely that Beth will stay in Russia, at least partially. We know that Beth is a very easily influenced person, we even get a scene at the beginning of ep 5 when her biological mother says that the strongest people are those who are alone and that being around other people will just influence you and shape your desires (I can't remember the exact quote, but it at least was something along those lines). and then we see this in action in previous episodes, so Beth gets bullied because she doesn't have nice clothes during her first few days at school, despite Beth never actually showing much interest in fashion prior to this, it develops into being part of her character, Beth gives a damn about her clothes. also in areas regarding sex, when she hooks up with the her classmate from her Russian class, it was more just because that's what the 'other girls' were interested in, not exactly what she really wanted. So Beth is actually pretty easily influenced, and she desires to fit in with other social groups, so I believe that Beth could also be influenced by Cleo (the model), who expresses that she is a 'vagabond' and doesn't really live in one place. Beth tells Cleo that she's not really held down by anything and that she could live anywhere, she even expresses she might live in Paris. But at the end Beth seems to be pretty enamoured by Russia, Beth loves chess, and people are just playing it on the streets, it almost seems like an ideal place for Beth to live, hell she already even knows the language. So I think it's pretty likely that Beth could live at least partially in Russia, and when she returns to the States, well she does have her own house there, so I don't see why she couldn't just live the vagabond lifestyle, going wherever the chessboard takes her.

I like how you break down the movies in chunk bites, you don't spoil a lot, and your taste is almost the same as mine. Thanks for the channel

For me this series is not just a fascinating story about a prodigious chess player, but an inspiring story about a person who eventually defeats her demons and finds out that the world is not a lonely and hostile place.

I just finished watching and it is amazing. One of the best I have seen in a long time.

I loved this series. I’m not a chess player but I was fascinated by it all. Very well done.

I don’t know anything about chess and really liked it regardless

Anya Taylor-Joy is my favorite young actor right now. I will have to check this series out. Thank you for reviewing this. My favorite board game is Clue.

Reminds me of beautiful minds or forest gump. You go on a journey of extraordinary people. Beautiful cinenatography too.

Having played at a decent level in high school with a 1672 rating, I played to a draw with the #2 seed in the first round of the State Championship in '76 as an unknown entity like Beth was. This was accompanied by the drama of a sealed move as the whole room watched our game run long in order to get the 2nd round started and the tournament director then pairing me as if I were going to lose the sealed game as the nobody against the well known strong player despite being a bishop up and in solid position; so I can tell you from experience that you can smell the chessboards and the tension in the tournament rooms in this show from the chess being so fantastically visualized. The acting and story arc are astounding. If you've ever appreciated the magic of chess and the battle of the minds that chess uniquely is, the ending will spectacularly touch you. I couldn't recommend this any more highly. It is the "Rounders" of chess (and I'm now a pro poker player).

Christopher, you've overlooked a very important element and that was Carlos Rivera's incredible music sound track.. It approached going to far but settled down to be perfect..

I hope this brings people closer to chess and gets people playing and understanding the game. Chess may be a game 1st and foremost, which it is and only must be treated as such. Yet it can teach you so much in life itself and strengthens your decisive capabilities and foresight.

EXTRAORDINARY!!!... I highly recommend watching it. Anya Taylor Joy's performance and the script are awesome. To me personally, better than "Searching For Bobby Fischer" and "Pawn Sacrifice".

I really wish Beth had visited Mr. Schibel at least once while he was alive!

Absolutely loved this series! So well done! Not overdone or over the top.

What impressed me was the fact they stayed true to the book. After the mess they made of Rebecca and Virgin River I worry every time I hear that a book I love is going to be adapted by Netflix. I was very pleasantly surprised to find that they made very few changes to the source material and the few they did make only improved it.

Great review, brought out some interesting points that I had overlooked. When I saw the thumbnail, I instantly knew I was going to like this series. Taking an outwardly mundane sport and building a drama around it (The Cardturner by Louis Sachar). I liked the creepy aspect of it, especially at the beginning in that dungeon of an orphanage. Excellent series, excellent video response, thanks.

Played chess all my life and utterly loved this show.5 stars

Very well done your layers of analysis of the movie was excellent! Was told to watch this movie but very busy during Holidays! So I just recently watched Anya Taylor-Joy in The Queen's Gambit and was mesmerized, enthralled, captivated by all aspects of this movie especially ATJ's excellent acting ability enhanced by her beauty with those awesome eye's, but also giddy and I even got misty eyed! So this movie accomplished everything that I haven't experienced in years! She's honestly the most talented and smartest former Model to become an actor that I can recall!

Great review of this fine mini series. (And cool chess games played without a stunt-double, played by a non-chess player.)

brilliant cast + perfect costumes + antique lighting = masterpiece

How can anyone not be a chess fan? Greatest board game in the world and it might be the most popular board game in the world. There are only 6 different pieces that the game is played with. Most people don't know that and get intimidated when they see there are 16 pieces in total for each side at the start of a game. 4 year old kids learn chess nowadays, so it can't be that difficult for adults to learn. Lol.

I seriously love this show, trully amazing, you can tell everyone in the cast and crew really cared for the show

I grew up in the states from 1965 to 1969 and for me it was memory lane, you forgot to mention the music which was so good. I will be buying the dvd as soon as possible. A great watch

Wow. I remember reading the novel by Walter Tevis when I was in school decades ago and thinking it should be made into a movie. Will check it out.

I have seen the first three episodes and am absolutely loving it. It is , after all, about two of my greatest passions - chess and mind-altering substances. I usually cringe at movies about chess because they get it so wrong but not this time. The only scene that really grated was the chat between Beth and the top seed in episode 2 towards the end of the crucial game. I have played chess at a reasonable level in NZ, Australia, the UK, Ireland, Russia, Malaysia and the UAE and that simply does not happen.

This review was just on point👌🏽

Great review! Yes, it was a character story... and a story of how addiction is due to a lack of connection, and how she let her community IN, and it replaced her need for tranquilizers.... very beautiful story with just the right amount of vulnerability.

The music and the 1960's vibe, clothes, style and sets were great.

I agree it was truly engaging. I cried when she discovered that mr shaibel was truly proud of him. Love this series!! 5 stars. 😊

Excellent review. You truly see the movie's gripping hold on the viewer.

Loved your review! Thank you!

I really love the ending, it brought me to joy, chess, sports or games are really boundless, it brings people together even when they were in hot geopolitical climate of the cold war.

I loved this series. I am no chess expert and only played when at school. Highly recommended. Wonderful portrayals of the characters. I was dismayed to find out this was fiction. It was so well done i hoped it had been based on real events. Yes it was that engaging and binge worthy.

I really like your review and I'm a chess player and dependant on psychiatric medication, so I can't miss this one. What you said about how chess players visualise the pieces moving as they calculate and scheme is really accurate and I hope they did a good job of representing the chess.

Just polish all the Emmy's. Screenplay. Adaptation. Best actress.Supporting actress..costume design..editing..

The play was very fast, but that's for image. The chess was spot on. Chess is very male dominated, especially at the top level. The Soviet chess psychology was spot on. Also, the variety of personalities, yes there people who used drugs, others were bohemian, protegies and great appreciation for the very old complex game.

For half of the show I thought this was based on a true story, the script is really good. My only complain is that the show was bulding up to that first scene in Paris and then there´s almost an episode worth of material that, for me, could´ve been cut from the show (a lot of scenes showing her drinking, not answering the phone, etc, that were very repetitive. That whole storyline about her buying the house felt unnecessary too). But it´s a really well made series, it feels like a movie.

My dh and I finished watching The Queen's Gambit this evening, and we LOVED it. We basically watched 2 episodes at a sitting. You really covered all the bases in your review, and I agree with you. I wish there were more like this to watch, so engaging, we were drawn into it. First time I discovered you, subscribed :)

Great review Chris, thanks! I will check this one out. A good chess related film was Pawn Sacrifice (2014) with Tobey Maguire where he plays the eccentric Bobby Fisher.

nice review! I'm so excited to watch this :) glad there were no spoilers

Your channel is now my go to for reviews 👍

Played enough club chess in the 80's to understand the references, appreciate the beauty of the game and know some of the brilliant but quirky people of that world. Loved the Tevis novel and re-read it every few years, like how the chess world was presented through the eyes of a flawed but human child prodigy, thought the adaptation was true to the source material.

I loved the show so much that I purchased the audio book on audible. This is the best thing i've watched on Netflix this year.

Loved the show, thanks for the review and recommendation

I found this to be the best mini series I’ve watched in years!

Your review is excellent!

Your video is great!!! Descriptive and entertaining

This is the best series ever. Out of five. Five. Out of ten.Ten. flawless. Ever game in ever scene is a real game. Gary Kasparov was an adviser on the series. But that's irrelevant because you never see a complete game. So it doesn't matter. What matters is the emotions, the eyes and facial expressions. The tension. And what eyes Anya has, what expression. It's a tour de force of acting. In chess terms an 'brilliancy.' Just to add, the pieces on the ceiling are Mr Shaibels chess set. And in the wardrobe department. She starts in the orphanage as a pawn. But by the climax of the series is a white Queen. Awesome :)

People are rightly praising Anya-Taylor Joy's performance, but I thought the main younger Beth actress was brilliant as well. Love the series!

It's very very powerful morality play. 64 spaces on the board are her safe place. The only place she has total control.

I’m just addicted to that series ,,, I watched it 1 day non stop .... IM DROWNED to QUEENS GAMBIT series .. OMG

Excellent show & actress. I've never played chess.

Even the journalist's approach to the game.

Great review as usual. I may watch this cos of anja Taylor Joy. She is just sooo fantastic in everything she does.

They made the games interesting with the power of the background score Man , what a BGM this series has !!

I know nothing about chess but i loved the tv show! Really loved the easy way the series go on!

When Beth notices the tack board for the newspaper clips and a photograph? 😭😭😭😭

Fair and comprehensive review. TY from Australia

Very entertaining series I watched it twice and the second time was better I paid a lot of attention to detail and the setting and music was perfect.

The book by the same title is fabulous

Just done watching it and what i like about it is even your not a chess player you'll be hooked into the story even so if you're a chess player the mingling with chess friends before a tournament is actually so accurate that i remember my high school days before a tournament where me and my friends prepare for the gane

Great review. I may just have to subscribe to Netflix now.

Strongly recommend reading the Novel also by Walter Tevis

Great review.I will watch the show this weekend.Favorite boardgame:Mens erger je niet.I believe it's called Ludo in english.

A Great watch and all you need to do to prepare for the show is understand the basic peices and rules of the game and maybe play on the computer (w/ a beginner setting) a little to have a resepect for how hard it is to strategically think 8-10 moves ahead. I also loved the references to the razors edge between genius and madness as many of the grand masters have fallen to mania. If you watch the Bobby Fisher Documentary (another great watch) you'll see how someone so smart can become so dellusional. Well Done to Anya for a great performance and the writer and director. Lastly, If you liked this and enjoy strong female leads check out the show runners other work "Godless" on Netflix as it is a great western...

Only Anya Taylor Joy can pull this character off. Any other actress will not be as engaging as her.

I am looking forward to this one because I am a Chess player. I am not professional one, but good amateur. For those familiar with ratings, my ELO hovers between 1950-2050 (I think that is Expert category in US Chess). Chess is very rarely depicted correctly. I will watch and come back to report.

When i was 10 i remember when the world was intrigued by bobby fisher and boris sapp cant remember how to spell last name.

I grew up on Monopoly, Risk, Trouble, Headache, Scrabble, Aggravation, Life, PayDay, Sorry!, and to a lesser degree, checkers and chess. My favorite board game? Probably Scrabble. It's just the most enduringly interesting game to play. Monopoly and Risk are too cutthroat for my tastes these days. Aggravation is fun, but I have more of a soft spot for the Uno family card games: Uno, Rack-O, Skip-Bo... Out of those, Rack-O is pretty much my fave.

I really want to know more about the janitor.

Ah yes, Tokaido, the game where literally anything you do gets you points LOL. Personally, I'm a fan of Scythe. Was never that into Chess, but I could see myself getting into Go, if time permitted. THAT "lifestyle" game seems more my style.

A board game you should definitely try is Abalone! It's a French game, in ways a bit similar to chess. Not complicated at all yet still a lot of fun.

Just finished it, a solid 8.5/10, i really enjoyed it.

i appreciate the review, but i cannot find a Spoiler warning anywhere.. i had to stop the video

I was on the fence with this one but it seems enjoyable enough to check out.

Ok, I'm watching it!

Brilliant show and acting

8:37 some *mistakes*??!!!! there is literally grandmaster level of chess in there

I was (pleasantly) surprised by two things wrt the Tevis book: 1) The series was made as a period piece matching the era in the book. They didn't try to put this in the 21st century, which wouldn't have worked. 2) The series followed the book very closely, including massive amounts of dialogue. Also, I wonder if you or anyone has looked at this series in comparison with the Japanese anime (based on manga) Hikaru No Go and Shion No Ou, which are also coming-of-age stories built around board games which are played at a professional level - go and shogi, respectively. I'm hoping this series might also have the result of creating a resurgence of interest in chess, as Hikaru No Go did for go in the late 1990s.

I fucking loved this show. It's brilliant. Binged in one day.

love the teamwork

Haha wonderful. I used 2 be school runner up in 2002 until i retired a year later. Looks like i need 2 dig back my old chess set and revive back my mad skills. Hahahaha.

Ok. I see that we have a master :). But, If you are looking for a quick second opinion. My latest ELO before lockdown was 2036. I have never played professionally, but I played in lots of tournaments (nothing glamourous though), and I am a club player. (I am not American) This was the best show depicting Chess by lightning years. I was pleased that there was nothing outrageously wrong, although there was lots of exaggerations but that is really expected in drama. That said, there were lots of little (one or two little bit bigger) things that bugged me which I have to say lowered my enjoynment. But, the positives were far more. I would give it about 8/10 from a Chess perspective. As a drama, it was really good as well (favourite scene is in the last episode in the basement..I couldn't control my tears), but the story arc is fairly predictable and standard (How I wish if the end was different. And quite frankly more realistic). And despite the very good depiction, my knowledge of Chess was ultimately a hindrance. And I think I would have enjoyed it more if it was a different game. Still 8/10. (Well..at least I am not a Doctor, lawyer, or a cop lol)

Still a long way to beat Tiger King - jjk - definitely this series has been the best Netflix release in 2020!

Oh scicilian... Go breaking my art, your shaking my confidence baby, oh scicilian, im dowm on my knees , im begging you please to be own... 🎶🎶🎶🎶🎶

You spoke vaguely about Godless, and I really think you should review that as well. I loved it when I watched it a few years ago (New subbie, by the way. Great channel!)