Protraph Lack of good storyline.

Yash Wade Close shines in drama with strong language, adult themes.

Jemima It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.

Janis One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

thaisinha_bueno Queen of Katwe is a beautiful movie that invites you to think, to smile, to cry, to feel gratitude and hope. It is one of the best movies I have seen lately. No cliches, spectacular performance from all actors and actresses and a real example of compassion, determination, strength, focus and courage. I wish we could have more movies like this.

proud_luddite Based on a true story: Phiona Mutesi (Madina Nalwanga) is a ten-year old living in the slum district of Katwe, Uganda. Through the kind and able mentoring of a local missionary (David Oyelowo), she discovers the joys of chess and realizes a potential that is beyond her life circumstances. "Queen of Katwe" is an American film and in the English language.The film's first half is very appealing especially as it exposes class struggle and prejudice in various situations. Phiona is seen as the poorest of the poor when she first learns chess among neigbourhood peers; later, she and her new peers face further barriers and snobbery as their collective and individual talents take them to much higher places. It is more than just a battle against other chess opponents. The bigger battle is the internal voice that says, "I don't belong here" when sent to places that radically differ from the Katwe slums.Sadly, the film sags in the second half. It is even more disappointing that the directing is by Mira Nair who has done so well with other films especially "Monsoon Wedding" back in 2001. Despite the depth of the inspiring story in the first half, a blandness takes over in the second. This is unfortunate considering the movie's potential. In any case, Oyelowo is moving as the father-like figure - not surprising considering his fine work in "Selma".

bandw This is the story of Phiona Mutesi, an accomplished young Ugandan chess player. The story follows the standard script of inspiring sports story where the underdog meets competition and succeeds, but not without overcoming many obstacles. One of the biggest obstacles Phiona had to overcome, and what makes this a remarkable story, is her having been born and raised in Katwe, a slum in the City of Kampala.The dialog offers little by way of surprise. After Phiona loses a crucial match she expresses self-doubt and questions whether she should go on. Interacting with her coach after the loss, in a scene with a strong emotional buildup, her coach delivers the tired line, "You must never surrender." I appreciated this having been filmed on location in Uganda. The bright colors are a delight to the eye. The costumes make a vivid impression, from the women's dresses to the more subtle intricate designs and colors of the men's shirts. The little insight into what life looks like in a Kampala slum is something I would never otherwise have gotten. I would like to have seen more of the daily life in Katwe.Using non-professional actors for many of the roles worked two ways for me, it added authenticity at the expense of stilted acting.In all movies "based on a true story" I always have a question as to just how many liberties were taken for audience appeal. This movie may have pushed the envelop--it tries to extract every last drop of emotion. The overt attempt to manipulate drains the true emotional content. A little research reveals that Mutesi's chess playing is not of the prodigy caliber as portrayed; her ranking by the World Chess Federation among active players is around 90,000. Her apparent financial success, as represented by her buying a nice house for her mother, could not have come from her chess wins, since any major money from tournament wins is awarded only to the very top players. The celebration of her last win make it look like it was for a national holiday. Is chess really that popular in Uganda? All of the exaggeration is not to take away from Mutesi's achievements that are extraordinary given her background and living conditions.There are lots of chess-related movies out there (Google "chess movies") and, of the half dozen or so I have seen, my favorite is "Searching for Bobby Fischer."

Mark Turner There are so many movies released each year that a number are left behind when it comes to box office glory. This is not to say the movies are bad movies, just that they are overlooked for various reasons. Some are missed because they don't have the star power of other films. Some are missed because of the sheer mass of hits released that same week. Some are missed because of more blockbuster titles coming out at the same time. QUEEN OF KATWE falls into that last category, not only at the theater but on disc as well. With both JACK REACHER and INFERNO coming out at the same time many may miss this movie. That's a shame.Based on a true story the movie tells the tale of Phiona Mutesi (Madina Nalwanga), a young girl growing up in the slums of Katwe in Uganda. Phiona's life is hard. Her father died when she was young and her mother Nakku Harriet (Lupita Nyong'o) is struggling to keep the family together and to provide for them. Living in a shack and subsisting on selling maize she gets on credit, Harriet and her family spend most of their time just trying to live.10 year old Phiona's life completely changes when she meets Robert Katende (David Oyelowo), an instructor in charge of a missionary project that reaches out to children and teaches them chess. Fascinated by the game Phiona and her brother begin to show each day to the mission, both to get something to eat and to play the game.When Harriet learns of what the two have been doing she is angered. People have been telling her that this is a gambling den with people betting on games. It takes some convincing by Katende to convince her otherwise and to tell her just how good her children are at the game. She allows them to return and Phiona begins to flourish. Katende begins to recognize the skill and ease with which Phiona plays. He sees that she has the ability to be a grandmaster, someone who can see moves in advance before the pieces on the board are even moved.Eventually Katende brings several of the best students to compete in a regional contest. There they encounter prejudice, and not a white/black style we are used to seeing but a class prejudice between the well-dressed students from various schools to these street urchins with nothing. Their smug attitude is erased when Phiona wins the championship.The film follows the ups and downs of the lives of Phiona and her family from there. Will she be able to move forward, to be provided the opportunity to progress and become the champion that Katende sees in her? Will her mother be able to provide for the family and keep them together? And will the youngsters of one of the poorest slums in the world find hope in the moves of chess pieces in the hands of young Phiona? The movie revolves around several stories all going on at once. The center piece is of course that of Phiona and her natural ability to play chess. Her story also revolves around her growing up as the years pass and of her dedication and wish for more for her family. That brings out the second story going on here, that of her mother. A strong willed women determined to hold her family together at all costs. She's lost her husband and one child already. Is she willing to do anything to retain her family now? And lastly there is the story of Katende, a man who wants to teach these children and to help them rise above the poverty and squalor that they have no choice but to live in.The movie is an uplifting tale that will cause the viewer consider life as we know it. If you own a DVD player and are watching the movie in a home with a roof, heat or air conditioning you are so far advanced from the people in this story you are watching. If you don't count your blessings while watching then there is something far too cold within you. It helps you to appreciate what you have and to wish the same for others.The story raises you as you witness a young woman determined to move up in life by moving game pieces on a board. Chess is more than a simple game. It involves strategy, attention and skill. The side by side stories of Phiona and Harriet show them both using what skills they have and learn to move and advance their pieces forward, in Phiona's case those on the board and in Harriet's the lives of her family. Both are skilled at what they do and have the potential to achieve their goals, moving one piece at a time. In the end you will find yourself cheering both Phiona and Harriet on in their struggles. And you will wish that more could find a way to achieve their goals as well.