''Computer Chess'' is a 2013 independent

comedy-drama Comedy drama (also known by the portmanteau dramedy) is a hybrid genre of works that combine elements of comedy and Drama (film and television), drama. In film, as well as scripted television series, serious dramatic subjects (such as death, il ...

film written and directed by Andrew Bujalski. The film premiered at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival, where it won the Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film Prize, and subsequently screened at such festivals as

South by Southwest South by Southwest (SXSW) is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and Convention (meeting), conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Texas. It began in 1987 and has conti ...

and the Maryland Film Festival. It is Bujalski's second black-and-white film, and was shot with analog video cameras. It is more improvisatory than his previous films, with only an eight-page treatment for a script. Bujalski also cast nonprofessional actors who were knowledgeable in computer technology.

Plot summary

In 1980, an annual gathering of teams of idiosyncratic nerds compete in an undistinguished California hotel to see which of their computer programs can best the others at computer chess. A grandmaster ( Gerald Peary) presides as master of ceremonies with a videographer and microphone in tow. Clunky, primitive

personal computer A personal computer, commonly referred to as PC or computer, is a computer designed for individual use. It is typically used for tasks such as Word processor, word processing, web browser, internet browsing, email, multimedia playback, and PC ...

s are carted from room to room. Bad haircuts, dorky shirts, " birth control glasses", and other social impedimenta are ubiquitous. Bull sessions on the dystopian possibilities of

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are pursued.

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's interest in the goings-on is intimated. The only female geek ( Robin Schwartz) in attendance is repeatedly hailed and “welcomed” by the MC. Simultaneously at the same hotel, a human potential movement group (the “seekers”) has occasional run-ins with the geeks, generating awkward and humorous moments. A painfully shy young computer programmer ( Patrick Riester) attracts the interest of a swinging older couple ( Cyndi Williams and Chris Doubek). The twin threads of “spiritual” exploration and cybernetic innovation imply an unspoken and implicit hidden connection. In a startling scene, a

prostitute Prostitution is a type of sex work that involves engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-pe ...

— apparently solicited by the young programmer — reveals herself to be infinitely more than expected.

Cast

*Patrick Riester as Peter Bishton * Wiley Wiggins as Martin Beuscher *Myles Paige as Michael Papageorge *Robin Schwartz as Shelly Flintic * Gerald Peary as Pat Henderson * Gordon Kindlmann as Tom Schoesser

Reception

The movie has an approval rating of 88% on Rotten Tomatoes, with an average rating of 7.5/10. The site's critics' consensus reads: "With its delightfully retro production design, ''Computer Chess'' is an inventive, intelligent, and humorous comedy that celebrates the eccentricity and uniqueness of its subject." In ''

The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture publication based in Greenwich Village, New York City, known for being the country's first Alternative newspaper, alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf (publisher), Dan Wolf, ...

'', Aaron Hillis wrote that it was "the funniest, headiest, most playfully eccentric American indie of the year." Mike D'Angelo of '' The A.V. Club'' raved that the film was "the year’s most singular and adventurous movie to date, to the point where it feels not so much original—a word that conveys a strong sense of craft—as it does “isolated,” as in a mutant strain of a virus. What's more, it's ''fun,'' generating pleasure not from canned jokes or clichéd plot twists but simply from a sense of unhindered freedom."

References

External links

* * *
Interview with the director
at ''Motherboard'' {{Sundance Alfred P. Sloan Prize 2013 films 2013 in chess 2013 comedy-drama films Alfred P. Sloan Prize winners American independent films American black-and-white films Films about chess Films about computing Films set in 1980 Films set in the 1980s Films shot in Austin, Texas Sundance Film Festival award–winning films 2013 independent films 2010s English-language films 2010s American films English-language comedy-drama films English-language independent films