Monday, August 31, 2015

e-mail from Ginny Hoffmann

James: 

Thanks for coming to the film.  The film people would like feedback. Can you please review the film?  How many points would you give the film out of 10?  What are your general impressions of the film?

Ginny

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At my blog, I have already posted my impressions of the film (Facts Sacrificed in "Pawn Sacrifice").  Because of the many factual errors, I would rate the film 9 out of 10.  I really liked Pawn Sacrifice.  It captured Bobby Fischer's genius while, at the same time, showing his psychological problems.  Liev Schreiber gets a perfect 10 for his portrayal of Boris Spassky.  A lower mark of 8 out of 10 goes to Tobey Maguire.  His best scenes took place on stage during games one and six.  His complaining to the referee about the camera noise and his incredulity at Spassky's leading the applause looked authentic.   I felt as if I was watching the real Bobby Fischer.  But the scene on the beach where he shouts at Spassky was overplayed and struck a false note.  In all fairness, the role of Bobby Fischer would have been a difficult task for any actor.