La Partie d’échecs (1994) - film review

One day, a preacher, Ambroise, saves a young orphan, Max, from killing himself.  When they sit down to play chess, Max is revealed to have an unnatural skill in the game.  Years later, Max is a chess grandmaster, and he is to play a tournament with the reigning world champion, at a country mansion owned by a wealthy marquise.  Max’s opponent is the arrogant Englishman, Lord Staunton, who hopes to win the marquise’s daughter, Anne-Lise, by winning the match.   However, Anne-Lise appears not to be keen on this outcome, and urges Max to beat his opponent.  Max falls under the young woman’s charms, without realising that he has offered himself up as a pawn in a very deadly game of social politics.

This is a curious films which, despite some curious Tolkien-like characters and some extraordinary visual images, feels somewhat bland and unengaging.  The idea of a real-life drama mirroring a game of chess is appealing but could have been pursued further.  Like so much of this film, there are so many good ideas which just fail to take off.   Also, the plot appears to raise far much questions than it answers, which is somewhat frustrating.

© James Travers 2000

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