By: Elena Donatone
With yet another lockdown here in the U.K., I think we all need a new TV series to binge and get addicted to. Luckily I have one for you that won’t disappoint at all and that is The Queen’s Gambit (2020).
The new drama miniseries, created by Scott Frank and Allan Scott, landed on Netflix on October 23rd and it has so many fans and reviewers talking about it already!
The Queen’s Gambit is set in the course of the 1960s and it focuses on the life of American girl Beth Harmon, played by the incredibly talented rising star Anya Taylor-Joy as an adult and Isla Johnston as a child.
The series follows her growth from an orphan girl, who is raised in a strict and religious orphanage, to a talented and strong young woman.
But the centre of the series, like the title already suggests, is Beth’s passion and incredible talent for the game of chess.
Beth is drawn to the game at a very young age and she learns how to play with the help of Mr. Shaibel (Bill Camp), the orphanage’s custodian, who teaches her the basics of chess and some of the most famous strategies.
"To tell you the truth of it, child, you’re astounding."
While Beth loves playing chess, she encounters struggles even at such a young age, including a rising addiction to a tranquilizer pill that the orphanage gives the girls every day.
Her addiction sadly follows her over the years and throughout the series.
Spoiler Alert!
As she grows older, she will luckily get adopted by Alma Wheatley (Marielle Heller) and her husband. Although the transition is challenging at first, Beth finds a true supporter and loving figure in her new mother.
Alma, in fact, is the one that accompanies her and encourages her to play chess and sing up to famous competitions.
Her amazing talent gets noticed straight away, especially as a young girl in a male-dominant environment that was chess competitions in the 1960s, and wins game after game, even making it to the U.S. championship and beyond!
“Girls do not play chess.”
The Queen’s Gambit is a breath of fresh air among Netflix’s quite disappointing autumn releases.
Not only is the show original and amazingly written, but the acting is incredible.
Anya Taylor-Joy is purely phenomenal as Beth and, although the actress is known from popular movies like The New Mutants (2020) and Split (2016), she gives her best performance yet in this role.
The actress really makes us emphasise with Beth and what she is going through and I couldn’t help but root for her every step of the way!
“The one thing we know about Elizabeth Harmon, is that she loves to win.”
Marielle Heller and Moses Ingram, who plays Beth’s close friend Jolene, are marvellous and they both deliver a performance you won’t forget anytime soon.
"I don't know why my body is so intent on sabotaging my brain, when my brain is perfectly capable of sabotaging itself."
Another aspect that I found particularly well-portrayed and delivered was Beth’s addiction to medication drugs and subsequently alcohol. Her journey and addiction felt so real and they weren’t romanticised at all- unlike many other movies and shows tend to do. We witness Beth’s pain and struggles throughout the years, from her hitting rock bottom to her final and much-awaited decision to quit and take care of herself. I was positively impressed with it.
“Creativity and psychosis often go hand in hand. Or, for that matter, genius and madness.”
But what I loved the most about this new TV series is the way the game of chess is portrayed.
Although I’ve never been a fan and I’ve never been particularly interested in the game - I’ve always considered it boring- I couldn’t help but to come to love it and actually wanting to learn how to play!
Creators Scott Frank and Allan Scott did an amazing job in turning an underestimated strategy board game in a thrilling and exciting one that will leave you wondering what will happen right until the famous “checkmate”.
I highly recommend this TV series to all chess lovers and anybody who is ready to fall in love with the game like I did. It won’t let you down, I promise!
"Chess isn't always competitive. Chess can also be beautiful. It was the board I noticed first. It's an entire world of just 64 squares. I feel safe in it. I can control it. I can dominate it. And it's predictable, so if I get hurt, I only have myself to blame."
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