I wanted to write something about the 7-episode Netflix series adapted from Walter Tevis's novel of the same name. This mini series is about the life of the character named Beth Hormon. Tevis was inspired by famous chess players such as Bobby Fisher when creating this character. Be careful, it contains spoilers, let me warn you from the beginning (!)
A period film that tells about the sufferings, substance addiction and the cold war period, starting from Beth's childhood in the orphanage until she became known as the chess queen.
Think of a 9-year-old child. His memories with his father are limited to the day he quarreled with his mother and left them. Her mother, a mathematics professor, is a woman who wavers between madness and genius and dies in an accident the day her daughter was in the car. From this point on, the only option for orphaned Beth is an orphanage.
We see a procedure applied in orphanages in the 1960s, the period that the movie reflects. The addiction created by Beth's misuse of drugs given for sedation has been testing her for most of her life. She was introduced to chess thanks to Mr. Shaibel, who worked at the orphanage.
Beth explains her interest in chess in an interview as follows: 'The board first attracted my attention. A world consisting of 64 squares. I feel safe there. It can be under my control and sovereignty. It is predictable. If I get hurt, I'm the only one to blame.'
These words actually summarize his film, his life, and his struggle with himself. Having to watch her own life as if watching a movie, not being able to do anything, not being able to establish safe bonds at a young age, being a mother to both herself and her stepmother, and searching for a haven of shelter can be seen in Beth's struggle from the beginning of the film.
As it turns out, Beth's safe place is the chessboard. So where is your safe place?
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