Magnus is Directed by Benjamin Ree, produced by Sigurd Mikal Karoliussen and stars Magnus Carlsen, Henrik & Sigrun Carlsen, Garry Kasparov and Viswanathan Anand. The movie won Best Film at the Norwegian International Film Festival 2016 and is nominated for Best Documentary at the Moscow International Film Festival 2016.
We have been given the amazing news of the releae date of the movie that is heading to UK cinemas very soon.
As a young boy, Magnus Carlsen was very different from his peers. He usually sat by himself, lost in thought, and his parents, Henrik and Sigrun, were concerned about his relative development. When a strong interest in numbers made them realise that he could become a good chess player, they introduced him to the game at the tender age of 5. He soon started climbing the ranks of the chess world.
Reykjavik, Iceland. 13-year-old Magnus Øen Carlsen in action against the Icelandic grandmaster Johann Hjartarson in Reykjavik
At 13 he became the youngest grandmaster in the world and began to wonder just how far he could go. Magnus’ father was told that the road to success in chess is paved with hard discipline and structure, but he refused to force Magnus into rigid modes of learning. Instead, the family let him keep his playfulness and nurtured his curiosity and fascination for the game. This approach, in time, strengthens Magnus’ best overall trait as a chess player: his brilliant intuition.
The movie is the incredible story of a boy, who went from being bullied by his classmates to become the World Chess Champion. For a decade the filmmakers have captured the decisive moments of Magnus Carlsen’s life, one of the world’s most intelligent people, and achieved over 500 hours of footage. In 2004, when Magnus was 13 years old he made a decision: He would become the World Chess Champion. The coming of age story unfolds as we follow the prodigy battling his way through the ranks of chess, with personal sacrifices, special friendships and a caring family. MAGNUS is a character driven drama that is bound to engage the non-chess players, as well as the over 600 million people who play chess all over the world.
Magnus – Official Trailer
Director Benjamin Ree said, “Chess is regarded as the touchstone of intellect, the ultimate battle of the minds. During the last 15 years, Magnus Carlsen has become the highest ranked player of all time. I found it immensely fascinating that no one I talked to understood how Magnus Carlsen had become so good – not even himself! He has studied the game in a completely different way than all the greatest chess players in history. He has been driven by playfulness and curiosity, rather than discipline and structure. I wanted to understand how Magnus’ brain works and discover who he really is on a deeper human level.”
The movie sheds light on the extraordinary character and mind of Magnus, who, as well as becoming a grandmaster at 13, and Two-time World Champion by 25 has also check-mated Bill Gates in nine moves and has defeated Ten Harvard professors at chess simultaneously whilst blindfolded.
Magnus will be playing at UK Cinemas on the 25 November.
Karen Woodham is the founder and owner of the Blazing Minds. She is also a Cinema reviewer and works with RealD 3D reviewing the latest 3D releases and IMAX, she has also had several articles published in various publications including the first edition of SFW Magazine. In 2015 she became an Award Winning Blogger and also has her website listed as one of the UK’s Top 10 Film Blogs.
