Searching for Bobby Fischer

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Searching for Bobby Fischer
Directed by	Steven Zaillian
Written by	Steven Zaillian
Release date(s)	1993
Running time	110 minutes
IMDb profile

Searching for Bobby Fischer is an acclaimed film of 1993 based on the life of prodigy chess player Joshua Waitzkin (Max Pomeranc). Adapted from the book of the same name by Joshua's father Fred, the film was written and directed by Steven Zaillian. In the United Kingdom the film was released under the title Innocent Moves.

In this film, Josh Waitzkin's family discovers that he possesses a gift for chess and they seek to nurture it. They hire a strict instructor, Bruce Pandolfini (played by Ben Kingsley) who aims to teach the boy to be as aggressive as Bobby Fischer. The title of the film is a metaphor about the character's quest to adopt the ideal of Fischer and his determination to win at any price. The main conflict in the film arises when Josh refuses to adopt Fischer's misanthropic frame of reference. Josh then goes on to win on his own terms with the kind of gracious sportsmanship that Fischer rejects.

The film was nominated for Best Cinematography (Conrad L. Hall) at the 1993 Academy Awards. It won the category at the American Society of Cinematographers the same year. The film also ranked #96 in AFI's 100 Years... 100 Cheers. Based on the grounds that the film's producers used Fischer's name to promote the movie yet paid him no compensation, the living Fischer saw the movie as an attempt to make money off him and sully his reputation at the same time.^{[citation needed]}

Contents 1 Cast 2 Waitzkin vs Sarwer match 3 Trivia 4 Errors 5 External links

[edit] Cast

Actor	Role
Max Pomeranc	Josh Waitzkin
Joe Mantegna	Fred Waitzkin
Joan Allen	Bonnie Waitzkin
Ben Kingsley	Bruce Pandolfini
Laurence Fishburne	Vinnie
Michael Nirenberg	Jonathan Poe
Robert Stephens	Poe's Teacher
David Paymer	Kalev
Hal Scardino	Morgan
Vasek Simek	Russian Park Player
William H. Macy	Tunafish Father
Dan Hedaya	Tournament Director
Laura Linney	School Teacher

[edit] Waitzkin vs Sarwer match

At the end of the movie, Josh is seen playing a tough opponent named Jonathan Poe in the final tournament. The character Jonathan Poe was not the actual name of Josh's opponent, however. His real name was Jeff Sarwer. Near the end of the game, where Josh offers Poe a draw, Poe rejects the draw and play continues. Sarwer rejected the draw in the real world as well. Josh played Sarwer to a draw (the two kings were the only pieces left on the board), and he kept the championship, as he was top seed. In the movie, Josh had to see twelve moves ahead; but the actual moves are unknown: no one saved the scoresheets, and no one could remember the moves sequence later.

Depicted to the right is the position of the game before Josh offers Poe the draw. The position did not occur in the real Waitzkin-Sarwer game; it was contrived by Josh Waitzkin and Bruce Pandolfini specifically for the movie. The following moves are executed (see algebraic chess notation):

1. ...gxf6
2. Bxf6 Rc6+
3. Kf5 Rxf6+!
4. Nxf6 Bxf6
5. Kxf6 Nd7+
6. Kf5 Nxe5
7. Kxe5?? a5
8. h5 a4
9. h6 a3
10. h7 a2
11. h8=Q a1=Q+
12. Kf5 Qxh8 0-1

In the October 1995 issue of Chess Life, Grandmaster Larry Evans stated that the position and sequence were unsound; Jonathan could still have drawn (note the double question mark after White's move 7, signifying a serious blunder). White could have drawn the game by advancing his pawn on move 7 instead of taking the knight.

[edit] Trivia

• Some famous chess players have brief cameos in the film: Joel Benjamin, Roman Dzindzichashvili, Kamran Shirazi, along with the real Joshua Waitzkin, Bruce Pandolfini, and Vincent Livermore. Chess master Asa Hoffmann is played by Austin Pendleton; the real Hoffman didn't like the way he was portrayed (his dialogue is taken almost verbatim from the nonfiction book, but the manner in which he delivers his line is different). Chess expert Poe McClinton, still a park regular, is seen throughout the film. Pal Benko was supposed to be in the movie, but his part was cut out. Waitzkin's real mother and sister also have cameos in the film.
• Vinnie, the character played by Laurence Fishburne, is based in part on Vincent Livermore and in part on Joseph Lincoln, both regulars at Washington Square Park chess games throughout the 1980s. Livermore, regarded as a master-strength player, died of AIDS in 1993. Lincoln died of a heroin overdose in 1996. In an interview with the New York Post shortly before his death, Lincoln said he had never seen the film.
• Kingsley plays Bruce Pandolfini as having an Irish accent, a gray buzzcut, and a cold and distant air. The real Bruce Pandolfini is very different: he has curly brown hair, glasses, a mustache, and a friendly and soft-spoken demeanor (he has a cameo in the film; he is the kibbitzer who refers to Josh as a "young Fischer"). Joshua Waitzkin is quick to point out that Kingsley's portrayal is fiction and not to be confused with fact.
• Max Pomeranc was chosen to play Waitzkin in part because he was an actual chess player and the film's producers wanted an actor who would be at ease playing chess.

[edit] Errors

One gripe from some chess players is the way Josh is seen offering the draw. In the film, he sticks his hand out and says he's offering a draw, waiting for Poe to shake his hand. The proper procedure is for a player to make a move first and then verbally offer a draw (without a handshake offer), letting the opponent consider the draw offer for as long as s/he wants. In the film's defence, in reality many players do not follow the correct procedure for a draw offer.^{[citation needed]}

Another minor error in the film are the chess timers being set to 12:00 instead of the standard 6:00.

[edit] External links

• Searching for Bobby Fischer at the Internet Movie Database
• All Movie Guide entry
• Spoofed in Searching for Gern Chegman at the Internet Movie Database
• Updated article from 2006 by award-winning Esquire (UK) journalist Eamonn O'Neill available at http://www.eamonnoneill.net/articles/Josh%20Waitzkins.PDF