Bobby Fischer Against the World | Review

Bobby Fischer was quite possibly the greatest to ever put his mind to the bi-colored board of chess. A child prodigy, at the age of 15, Fischer became the US Chess Champion, and by 29 he reached the pinnacle of his sport by beating out Boris Spassky to become the World Champion, but like many brilliant minds, Fischer’s talents came with significant mental instabilities that ultimately brought his downfall. In the new documentary by award-winning director Liz Garbus, Bobby Fischer Against The World, the Grandmaster’s neurotic life is empathetically analyzed by the few people he let get close to him.

At the age of 6, Fischer was living in a small Brooklyn apartment with his sister, and his incredibly intelligent Jewish Communist mother. Upon discovering chess, his young and obsessive mind became consumed by the game, and Fischer could do little else with his spare time, but play against himself, quickly surpassing the skills of every player he faced. Once he started to become a focal point of the media, his awkward introverted persona started to become quite obviously a man so confined by the rules of chess that sociopathy, and paranoia started to take center stage. Fischer’s erratic behavior leading up to, and during the 1972 World Champion match almost caused his forfeit on several occasions. His senseless actions did not wane, resulting in his forfeiting of the championship after refusing to defend his title. In the years following, Fischer detached himself from the media, and disassociated himself from the chess world. Through his paranoia, and an intensified interest in anti-Semitic ideologies, he started to publicly become an unhinged, mentally unstable radical who openly spouted hateful remarks about people of the Jewish faith, despite his own heritage. After a series of bizarre events that led to him becoming a US émigré, cut off from nearly everyone he knew and on the run from the US government, Fischer sunk deeper into depression, and the warped paranoid thoughts of a man who was very mentally ill. This brilliant decayed man lived out the rest of his life in Iceland, the only country that would take him in.

Garbus’s doc skillfully dissects the illusive character, shining light on his troubled childhood, and plagued relationship with his mother, which had a great impact on his intensely reclusive personality. Not only was he a genius with untreated mental issues, but because of his focus on chess, he missed out on having a normal childhood, leaving him to be somewhat of a brilliant, self absorbed man-child, who gave no thought to other human beings. Despite his insolency, Fischer is thought to be the best chess player that ever lived. His rock star rise to the top sparked a global interest in the game, but like some of the best rock stars, his unreliable spotlight burned out far too young because he could never seem to keep himself in check. Bobby Fischer Against The World dazzlingly puts the pieces of Fischer’s drama infused life into motion with an objective, and intimate handle on the chess master’s history. The film’s intelligent editing that blends a variety of documents together with an international cast of interviewees creates an enthralling tale out an outlaw chess Grandmaster’s bizarre and tragic life.

Rating 4 stars