Pawn Sacrifice

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Pawn Sacrifice

PG-13

2015

1h 54m

History

Drama

Biography

Mystery & Thriller

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Popcornmeter

73%

Tomatometer

120 Reviews

66%

Popcornmeter

10,000+ Ratings

American chess legend Bobby Fischer and Soviet Grandmaster Boris Spassky 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

May 3, 2016

'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.

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David Sims

The Atlantic

Oct 14, 2015

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.

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Brad Wheeler

Globe and Mail

Sep 25, 2015

2.5/4

Fine-looking but safe ...

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Matt Oakes

Silver Screen Riot

Oct 14, 2026

B-

Edward Zwick and Tobey Maguire conspire to bring life to the dark side of chess prodigy Bobby Fischer, resulting in an unusually entertaining account of paranoia, celebrity and sporting.

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Edward Porter

Sunday Times (UK)

Nov 22, 2022

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

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Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

May 27, 2022

3/4

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.

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zachary W

@RT01714879 Sep 1, 2026

This movie has Tobey Maguire in it first off, so it’s a win. He depicts the legend Bobby Fischer. The true story involves neurological struggles within humans, U.S. history, and chess grandmasters that play in a world tournament back in 1972.

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Bert D

@LordBort92 Feb 1, 2026

Another reminder to myself to never start playing chess.

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Gregory S

@Gregory566 Nov 26, 2025

I thought that is was pretty great. Whats truly incredible is that almost everything that happened during the matches actually did happen. The absolute obsession and absurdity of the Cold War is captured beautifully.

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Pongo K

@RT48921889 Sep 11, 2025

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

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John V

@RT03600135 Sep 10, 2025

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.

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Thales T

@sirthales May 16, 2025

Uma guerra psicológica!

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Edward Zwick

Director

Tobey Maguire

Bobby Fischer

Peter Sarsgaard

William Lombardy

Liev Schreiber

Boris Spassky

Michael Stuhlbarg

Paul Marshall

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Synopsis

American chess legend Bobby Fischer and Soviet Grandmaster Boris Spassky 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, Mystery & Thriller
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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