Pawn Sacrifice

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2:31

Pawn Sacrifice

PG-13

2015

1h 54m

History

Drama

Biography

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Popcornmeter

73%

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119 Reviews

66%

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10,000+ Ratings

American chess legend Bobby Fischer (Tobey Maguire) and Soviet Grandmaster Boris Spassky (Liev Schreiber) enthrall the world with their intense battle of wills and strategy during the 1972 World Chess Championship.

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Critics Consensus

Anchored by a sensitive performance from Tobey Maguire, Pawn Sacrifice adds another solidly gripping drama to the list of films inspired by chess wiz Bobby Fischer.

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Jason Bailey

Flavorwire

'Pawn Sacrifice' takes all of those tropes and cranks them up to 11, far past the barometers of either believable human behavior or credible filmmaking.

May 3, 2016

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David Sims

The Atlantic

Like all of Zwick's works, it's perfectly watchable fare, but it's often infuriating for its refusal to dig deeper into its incredibly compelling subject.

Oct 14, 2015

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Brad Wheeler

Globe and Mail

Fine-looking but safe ...

Rated: 2.5/4

Sep 25, 2015

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Edward Porter

Sunday Times (UK)

The film’s approach lacks bold gambits, but the story is still a rewarding exhibition.

Nov 22, 2022

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Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

Pawn Sacrifice paints a portrait that shows us how, when true genius of this kind is discovered, it must be supported to its fullest potential, leaving everyone else to follow in awe of its rare whirlwind.

Rated: 3/4

May 27, 2022

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Richard Crouse

Richard Crouse

Kicks into gear in its final third as Fischer and Spassky go mano e mano over a chess board as the world watches.

Rated: 3/5

Feb 3, 2021

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Pongo K

A beautiful movie. It shows how complex chess is, and how important it was during the cold war.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

09/11/25

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John V

Maguire reduces Fischer to brooding intensity, overlooking the man's well-documented awkward humor and mercurial charm. Just watch the famous Bob Hope and Dick Cavett interviews to glimpse the real Bobby Fischer.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

09/10/25

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Thales T

Uma guerra psicológica!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

05/16/25

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Yash B

"Pawn Sacrifice" is interesting enough but it left me curious to learn more about the people it portrays. I think Tobey Maguire is excellent in this and his performance largely carries the movie. I feel the pacing is pretty slow and it starts to drag a bit before the big chess showdown at the end. I actually wish the movie showed glimpses of more chess matches and think it could have been a better use of its runtime. Nonetheless, this is a fascinating movie that studies the fine line between crazy and genius and I thought it was an engaging enough watch, primarily because of Maguire's great lead performance.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

03/01/25

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Ryan M

Bobby Fischer's story is an interesting one and this portrayal is well done by Tobey.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/13/25

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Kyle M

Tobey Maguire proves once again why he’s one of the best/ most iconic actors of all time!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

11/27/24

Full Review

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Edward Zwick

Director

Tobey Maguire

Bobby Fischer

Peter Sarsgaard

William Lombardy

Liev Schreiber

Boris Spassky

Michael Stuhlbarg

Paul Marshall

Lily Rabe

Joan Fischer

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Pawn Sacrifice: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

American chess legend Bobby Fischer (Tobey Maguire) and Soviet Grandmaster Boris Spassky (Liev Schreiber) enthrall the world with their intense battle of wills and strategy during the 1972 World Chess Championship.

Director: Edward Zwick
Producer: Tobey Maguire, Gail Katz, Edward Zwick
Screenwriter: Steven Knight
Distributor: Bleecker Street Media
Production Co: Material Pictures, Gail Katz
Rating: PG-13 (Historical Smoking|Brief Strong Language|Some Sexual Content)
Genre: History, Drama, Biography
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Sep 16, 2015, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 27, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $2.4M
Runtime: 1h 54m

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