THE QUEEN’S GAMBIT MOVIE REVIEW

1.d4, d5, 2.c4, e6. Welcome to the mind of Elizabeth Harmon (Anya Taylor-Joy): a woman who, while living in an orphanage, discovers solace and meaning inside the sixty-four squares of a chess board. As she grows into adulthood Harmon must find a way to navigate through her own inner demons of addiction, abandonment issues, and the struggle to be accepted by the world, all the while rising through the ranks of chess from novice to champion. It’s the crème de la crème of the chess world in a show with everything but Yul Brynner. Mindy, Harmoni, and Eliot discuss whether this 1960’s period piece is worth playing through to its checkmate.

**This review is available in a longer, uncut, video version for TIME LORD subscribers and above right here**

WATCH HERE

CREATED BY: Scott Frank and Allan Scott

STARRING: Anya Taylor-Joy, Isla Johnston, Annabeth Kelly, Bill Camp, Moses Ingram, Christiane Seidel, Rebecca Root, Chloe Pirrie, Akemnji Ndifornyen, Marielle Heller, Harry Melling, Patrick Kennedy, Jacob Fortune-Lloyd, Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Marcin Dorociński, Sergio Di Zio, Dolores Carbonari, Matthew Dennis Lewis, Russell Dennis Lewis, Janina Elkin

 

YOUR REVIEWERS

 

Mindy Rast-Keenan (Screener Squad, Highly Suspect Reviews)

Having grown up in Nairobi, Kenya, and being very disappointed at the lack of riding elephants her cartoons had promised her, Mindy spends the majority of her time as a film, theater, and voice over actress in the Austin, Texas area. They still give her money for being on HBO that one time, with her name in the credits spelled wrong. A nerdy geek, this award-winning actress joined One of Us figuring she’d put her summa cum laude BFA acting degree to good use…by judging other people’s acting. In the few seconds she gets to herself, Mindy bakes for charity, knits eccentric plushies, plays original RPG’s with her gamemaster husband, and spends time with her soulmate, Batman.

 

Harmoni Anderson (Screener Squad, Highly Suspect Reviews, Unstabletop Gaming)

Harmoni is a mermaid-haired, millennial, rum drinking, Section 31, Slytherin (who’s divorced J.K. Rowling) preschool/nursery teacher and multi genre geek who also loves all things film, tv, fashion, makeup, and an embarrassingly huge BTS stan. Like really embarrassing. As in, mention them and then sit back and watch the insanity. Harmoni likes being able to game and talk movies/TV with people that aren’t 3 feet tall or all that demanding of her. Plus she can curse at us and not get fired….so bonus!

 

Eliot Nelson (Screener Squad, Staff Writer)

Soaked in the soggy rains of Seattle, Eliot developed a love of sci-fi, movies, cartoons, heavy metal, and all of geekdom. Pursuing his passion for the written word, he got his BA from The Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington. He has since worked exclusively in the foodservice industry, like any liberal arts major worth their salt. Eliot wiles away the hours listening to movie reviews, writing his epic sci-fi novel, and consuming as much media as possible. His favorite movies include The Lord of the Rings, City of God, Dawn of the Dead, and Groundhog Day. When not rambling to himself about the ineptness of entertainment executives, Eliot posts infrequently on Twitter and squawks regularly on his podcast The Debasement Tapes.

 

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