Tag Archives: Peter Sarsgaard

Pawn Sacrifice (2014)

Pawn Sacrifice review.

written by Souranath Banerjee

My Ratings: 4.2/5.

United States or the Soviet Union? Bobby Fischer or Boris Spassky? – the cold war was at it’s peak!

Tensed boxing biopics like Raging Bull or high speed Formula One racing movies similar to Rush or the fast baseball films like The Pride of the Yankees or even those fantastic movies on the lives of athletes and runners like Chariots of Fire – sports biopics are always fun to watch because they are so full of adrenaline.

But then, how much energy and drama can be squeezed into a sport biopic based on the most calm and tranquil game ever played in the world – that is CHESS ?

pawn-sacrifice-poster1Well, Edward Zwick (famous for films like The Last Samurai, Blood Diamond and Defiance) took up the challenge and believe it or not he manages to make a highly thrilling and captivating chess-film – his latest release Pawn Sacrifice.

A biopic on chess world champion Bobby Fischer played superbly by Tobey Maguire

Now this is not Tobey’s first sport biopic (remember the famous Jockey Red Pollard in Seabiscuit); but in Pawn Sacrifice he has shown a different level of maturity and perfectly portrayed the silent madness of the paranoid genius.  

Bobby Fisher, considered to be the best chess player till date was indeed a troubled soul but aren’t insanity the price you pay for being a genius?  

pawn-sacrifice-posterIn 1972, Bobby Fischer faced the then world champion Boris Spassky (from Russia) in the greatest match ever played in the history of chess!

On the board he fought the Cold War. In his mind he fought his madness.

Liev Schreiber perfectly fits the role of Spassky while Peter Sarsgaard, (the father figure) along with Michael Stuhlbarg (the manager) tries their best to cope up with Bobby’s madness and make him play his best game.

Pawn Sacrifice is a skillful film that cleverly brings out the subtle characteristics of Bobby Fisher as an individual; his arrogance, his fears, his childish demands, his mood swings and above all his genius.

You don’t need to know chess to relish the film, although a bit of basic chess knowledge will make you feel more comfortable.  

Poster courtesy: www.impawards.com

Black Mass (2015)

Black Mass review.

written by Souranath Banerjee

My Ratings: 4/5.

Comparison with Scorsese’s epic gangster film Goodfellas is inevitable. I think the director is just asking for it.

Black Mass is a true story based on the most notorious American gangster James ‘Whitey’ Bulger.

black-mass-poster2For 12 years he had been on the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) top-ten Most Wanted Fugitives list with a $2 million reward for information about his whereabouts – an amount larger than any other fugitive on the FBI list except for Osama bin Laden!

And Johnny Depp IS the mean and merciless James Bulger. 

I totally agree when the Johnny-Depp-fans claim that this is his best performance; even Depp himself chooses this one to be his favorite film among all his previous works. 

Well, he has not only drastically changed his looks but also his body language, his laugh, his cold and menacing stare are very effective – ‘strictly criminal’ indeed.

black-mass-posterDirector Scott Cooper, known for his earlier films Crazy Heart (2009) and Out of the Furnace (2013), have done a great job in slowly unfolding the drama with a proper balance of thrill and violence.

Joel Edgerton expertly plays the role of the blemished FBI officer who made an infamous deal with Bulger that allowed the ruthless gangster to freely indulge in crime and in exchange he should provide confidential informations about his competitors in South Boston (especially the Italian mafia).

A deal that gave Bulger the license to commit unlimited drug deals and murders. He was ultimately prosecuted for 19 murders based on grand jury testimony though it is said that the actual number of murders he committed were much higher that that.

Then there are a series of most talented supporting actors like black-mass-poster3Benedict CumberbatchDakota JohnsonKevin BaconJulianne NicholsonPeter Sarsgaard whose presence uplifted the overall experience of the film to a different level.

Cinematographer Masanobu Takayanagi needs a mention for his measured camera movements which makes most of the extreme violence in the film not too gory yet effectively disturbing.

A psychopath of highest degree, the blue eyed leader of the Irish-American Winter Hill Gang and interestingly enough a perfect family man too. 

Black Mass, the story of James Bulger is surely worth a watch.

poster curtsey: www.impawards.com