‘Queen of Chess’ Review: The Surprising Story of a Grandmaster
‘Queen of Chess,’ directed by Rory Kennedy and streaming on Netflix, follows Judit Polgar after she became the youngest chess grandmaster at 15, breaking Bobby Fischer’s record. The film traces her career as the world’s top-ranked female player from age 12 until her retirement in 2014.
Through archival footage and interviews with Polgar, her parents and her two sisters, the documentary details an unusual Hungarian upbringing. Their father believed that “geniuses are made, not born,” spent the family’s money on chess tutors, and pushed the sisters to practice from morning to night — no holidays, no vacations, no breaks.
The film places Polgar’s victories against men against a backdrop of entrenched sexism and political obstacles. The Communist government at first refused travel permits, and when Judit began beating male opponents some of them reacted angrily, sometimes storming away without shaking her hand.
Hungary