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The Luzhin Defence [VHS]

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Confession time up front: I'm a Turturro fan. This intense, versatile actor has won me several times, most notably with "Barton Fink" (1991) and "Quiz Show" (1994). "The Luzhin Defence" simply corroborates past good judgment.

Inspired by Vladlimir Nabokov's 1930s novel "The Defense," this is the story of Alexandre Luzhin (Turturro), an eccentric, preoccupied chess genius whose miserable childhood has left him bereft of what we might think of as normal relational skills. So engrossed is he in the game that he is incapable of carrying on a conversation or tending to life's everyday tasks.

As a child of privilege in early 20th century St. Petersburg (we learn in flashbacks) he was gifted with a chess set by a beautiful aunt who was having a not very hidden affair with his father. To say that the child takes to the game is an understatement - he buries himself in it and soon becomes known as a child prodigy.

After the death of his mother, Luzhin's father easily hands him over to Valentinov, a school master (Stuart Wilson) who promises to nurture the boy and tutor him in the ways of the chess world. Instead, the reptilian Valentinov deserts Luzhin and pops into his life again some years later when as an adult Luzhin is participating in a major chess tournament held at a luxurious resort on Italy's Lake Como. While villains can be difficult to portray, it seemed that at any moment Valentinov would mumble "heh, heh, heh," and twirl his moustache. His evil doings were as predictable as his take on the role.

Nonetheless, it is at this tournament that Luzhin sets eyes on the luscious Russian expatriate Natalia Katkov (Emily Watson). He is smitten, and so is she. The maneuvering of her social climbing mother to pair Natalia with a handsome young French count (Christopher Thompson) come to naught. While some may wonder what Natalia sees in the bumbling, outre Luzhin, suspend rationales and enjoy their blossoming relationship as she brings love into his life for the first time. Watson is luminous in this role, and Turturro gives a star turn as the tortured virtuoso. Fabio Sartor is perfection as Luzhin's opponent for the chess championship.

With lush scenery and elegant period costuming the film, as directed by Marleen Gorris, offers thoughtful insight into the madness of obsession and the redemptive power of love.

This review refers to the Columbia/TriStar DVD edition of "The Luzhin Defence"......

I'm not sure how I missed this little gem the last few years, but I'm glad I finally found it. I was browsing through the mark downs at my local video store and this one practically had flashing red lights. It is directed by Marleen Gorris, who I knew had directed another of my favorites("Antonia's Line") and to boot it starred two brillant actors...John Turturro and Emily Watson. It had to be worth a try....and well worth it, it was!

It's a deep and complex story, with characters that will draw you in with their every word and action. John Turturro is Alexander Luzhin. An eccentric but brillant chess player, who life consists of nothing else. He is called "The Maestro", by others in his circle, admired for his genius and expert abilities. He lives, thinks, breathes, even sleeps, nothing else. Basically he has been obsessed, since the age of ten.That is until the wonderful Natalia(Watson), turns his thoughts to love and marriage.In a very short time, she seems to be the one who understands him, and cares deeply and is able to introduce him to the wonders of life outside of the chess world.

They will be married as soon as he wins the most prestigious match in Italy. But life takes another turn for Luzhin, when a mysterious man from his past turns up and is out to destroy him. The storyline becomes one of intrigue as this real life chess match becomes more serious with each move.

Miss Gorris engages us from start to finish.The love scenes are beautiful and touching, the mystery captivating, and the characters are very real. The ending was totally unexpected and took my breath away. Turturro is nothing less than brillant in his portrayal of this eccentirc, complex being. Emily Watson shines as the woman he finds solace with. Together they have a magnificent chemstry.Two others I must mention are Alexander Hunting, who's performance as the young Luzhin was remarkable and Alexandre Desplat who adds beautiful music to go along with this beautiful story.

The DVD is very nice. Excellent pictue in Widescreen(1.85:1), rich colors and fabulous sound in DD5.1(you also have the choice of 2-channel Dolby surround)..follow the chess pieces through the menu to choose. Features include Dircetors commentary, a making of featurette(there wasn't much to this), some theatrical trailers and has subtitles in French, English and Spanish for those needing them.

This is a definate keeper. One I will probably view often, maybe even to the point of obsession!...enjoy....Laurie

Nabokov's tale of chess, love, and madness might have been challenging to bring to the big screen canvass, but apparently not so for Marlin Gorris. The chess figures come to life, the city hall where the chess championship is being played for. It seems a struggle between life and death itself for Alexander Luzhin, a Russian virtuoso whose life basically divides into three parts: the brief childhood before chess, then a long life after he learned to play, and finally a moment when he came to the resort in Italy and fell in love with his beautiful countrywoman, played here with gentleness and strength (a combination that only she could pull off) by Emily Watson. John Turturro and she share a chemistry that is hard not to sympathize with, and their plight to survive what seems an increasingly high-stakes game is admirable.

Luzhin is obsessed with chess to the point approaching insanity; we see flashes of his childhood and youth that perhaps led to his rapidly worsening condition. He is a strange figure, eccentric and lovable. It's no surprise that Nataliya feels the need to rescue him from himself - he can barely take care of his clothes or health, spending most of his time rehearsing chess matches in his head and rarely aware of his surroundings. What doesn't help either of them is the appearance of a devious, jealous mentor from Alexander's past who feels the need to ruin his ex-prodigy's possible happiness or the first place in the tournament. Nataliya's family who is very much against this coupling is fun to watch - her mother and father provide some not so rare and very welcome moments of mirth in this sometimes dark film. Watching this story unfurl, one indeed comes to understand why behind every great man there stands a great woman.

Without disclosing the ending, I will simply say that it stays with the viewer, and the entire experience is profound and touching. The best movie about chess I've seen, the best movie based on Nabokov that I've seen, one of the best movies I've watched in a long time. Fantastic. I can't recommend it enough.

Obsession comes in many flavors, and exists for a variety of reasons; for some it may be nothing more than a compulsive disorder, but for others it may be an avenue of survival. Lack of nurturing, combined with an inability to negotiate even the simplest necessities of daily life or the basic social requirements, may compel even a genius to enthusiastically embrace that which provides a personal comfort zone. And in extreme cases, the object of that satisfaction may become a manifested obsession, driving that individual on until what began as a means of survival becomes the very impetus of his undoing, and as we discover in "The Luzhin Defence," directed by Marleen Gorris, a high level of intelligence will not insure a satisfactory resolution to the problem, and in fact, may actually exacerbate the situation. Obsession, it seems, has no prejudice or preference; moreover, it gives no quarter.

At an Italian resort in the 1920's, Alexander Luzhin (John Turturro) is one of many who have gathered there for a chess tournament, the winner of which will be the World Champion. Luzhin is a Master of the game, but he is vulnerable in that chess has long since ceased to be a game to him; rather, it is his obsession, that one thing discovered in childhood that saw him though his total ineptness in seemingly all areas of life, and enabled him to cope with the subtle disenfranchisements of his immediate family. So Luzhin is a genius with an Achilles heel, a flaw which perhaps only one other person knows about and understands, and furthermore realizes can be exploited for his own personal gain at this very tournament. That man is Valentinov (Stuart Wilson), Luzhin's former mentor, who after an absence of some years has suddenly reappeared and made himself known to Luzhin.

Valentinov is an unwelcomed, disconcerting presence to Luzhin, and once again life threatens to overwhelm him. Not only is he about to face a formidable opponent in the tournament, Turati (Fabio Sartor), against whom in a previous match he emerged with a draw after fourteen hours, but he is also attempting to resolve a new element in his life-- his feelings for a young woman he's just met at the resort, Natalia (Emily Watson). And, genius though he may be, dark clouds are gathering above him that just may push Luzhin even deeper into the obsession that has been the saving grace, as well the curse, of his entire life.

To tell Luzhin's story, Gorris effectively uses flashbacks to gradually reveal the elements of his childhood that very quickly led to his obsession with chess. And as his background is established, it affords the insights that allow the audience to more fully understand who Luzhin is and how he got to this point in his life. For the scenes of his childhood, Gorris textures them with an appropriately dark atmosphere and a subtle sense of foreboding that carries on into, and underlies, the present, more pastoral setting of the resort. The transitions through which she weaves the past together with the present are nicely handled, and with the pace Gorris sets it makes for a riveting, yet unrushed presentation that works extremely well. She also underplays the menace produced by the presence of Valentinov, concentrating on the drama rather than the suspense, which ultimately serves to heighten the overall impact of the film, making Luzhin's tragedy all the more believable and unsettling.

The single element that makes this film so memorable, however, is the affecting performance of John Turturro. For this film to work, Luzhin must be absolutely believable; one false or feigned moment would be disastrous, as it would take the viewer out of the story immediately. It doesn't happen, however, and the film does work, because the Luzhin Turturro creates is impeccably honest and true-to-life. He captures Luzhin's genius, as well as his inadequacies, and presents his character in terms that are exceptionally telling and very real. It's a performance equal to, if not surpassing, Geoffrey Rush's portrayal of David Helfgott in "Shine." And when you compare his work here with other characters he's created, from Sid Lidz in "Unstrung Heroes" to Pete in "O Brother Where Art Thou?" to Al Fountain in "Box of Moonlight," you realize what an incredible range Turturro has as an actor, and what a remarkable artist he truly is.

As Natalia, Emily Watson is excellent, as well, turning in a fairly reserved performance through which she develops and presents her character quite nicely. Though she has to be somewhat outgoing to relate to Luzhin, Watson manages to do it in an introspective way that is entirely effective. Most importantly, because of the detail she brings to her performance, it makes her accelerated relationship with Luzhin believable and lends total credibility to the story. You have but to look into Watson's eyes to know that the feelings she's conveying are real. It's a terrific bit of work from a talented and gifted actor.

The supporting cast includes Geraldine James (Vera), Christopher Thompson (Stassard), Peter Blythe (Ilya), Orla Brady (Anna), Mark Tandy (Luzhin's Father), Kelly Hunter (Luzhin's Mother), Alexander Hunting (Young Luzhin) and Luigi Petrucci (Santucci). Well crafted and delivered, "The Luzhin Defence" is an emotionally involving film, presented with a restrained compassion that evokes a sense of sorrow and perhaps a reflection upon man's inhumanity to man. We don't need a movie, of course, to tell us that there is cruelty in the world; but we are well served by the medium of the cinema when it reminds us of something we should never forget, inasmuch as we all have the ability to effect positive change, and to make a difference in the lives of those around us.

Visually. And emotionally. One of the most beautiful and rewarding films I've ever seen. Equal in quality and power to "In the Belly of an Architect." Man against himself. The value of love. Individuality in thought and courage. Style in losing (not saying by whom). Vladimir Nabokov created the original novel, Peter Berry wrote the screenplay (why are writers downplayed so much?), and Marlene Gorris directed. More credit yet to the cinematographer and to fine actors Emily Watson and John Turturro (he's good enough to deserve a slot on "The Sopranos"). An easy five stars.

This beautifully filmed movie is an adaptation of Vladimir Nabokov's novel by the same name. The sets/locations are gorgeous, and the acting quite adequate.

The story concerns the mental disintegration of a chess master, Luzhin. He is portrayed as a kind and sincere person, though perhaps too naïve. As the story progresses Luzhin becomes involved in a critical chess match. The stresses prove too much, leading to his mental breakdown and destruction.

Those who have not read Nabokov's novel will probably find the film both entertaining and enlightening, as well as a glimpse into the world of professional chess.

But those who have read Nabokov's novel might be disappointed. For the movie simplifies too much. Nabokov had a talent for providing a comic touch to essentially very dark subjects. The movie takes a different approach: it lightens the topic by concentrating all evil into a single character, an unscrupulous trainer/agent. This produces two-dimensional cardboard characters.

Nabokov's book explores the deeper question whether total immersion into abstract mental activities might be deleterious to the human psyche. A neglected child, Luzhin immersed himself in the rational and secure world of chess. Was the withrawal from the world of social interaction the root cause of Luzhin's problems -- or was there a deeper reason yet?

The writer G. K. Chesterton conjectured that:
"Poets do not go mad; but chess-players do. Mathematicians go mad, and cashiers; but creative artists very seldom. I am not, as will be seen, in any sense attacking logic: I only say that this danger does lie in logic, not in imagination. Artistic paternity is as wholesome as physical paternity."

After viewing the film I recommend reading the novel -- and forming your own conclusions.

The movie of "The Luzhin Defense" is a case study in how one great central performance cannot redeem an otherwise woefully misconceived - or at any rate, misexecuted - film.

I am not one of those literary snobs who thinks that no good book can be adapted into a decent movie. I am a Nabokov fan, to be sure, but while I am not a fan of the Kubrick "Lolita" I concede that it has its moments...although I prefer the Lyne version for being more faithful.

The real problem with "The Luzhin Defense" as a film is that the story has been fundamentally dicked around with, and I don't believe that that can ever be forgivable. This is not a movie adaptation of a very, very good novel (although Nabokov's "The Luzhin Defense" undoubtedbly is a very good novel); it's a movie version of a story loosely based on a novel by Nabokov but with a very different plot, in which the title character is playing the role as if he were in a movie adaptation of the novel. In other words, Turturro does a great movie rendition of Luzhin, but it makes no sense because somebody, on some level, wasn't interested in filming this novel; they were interested in banking on Nabokov's name, and also the names of Turturro and Emily Watson.

The film story is a ridiculously trivialised and sentimentalised version of the novel's story. In the book, Luzhin attempts to cure himself of chess and to a certain extent succeeds - but in the end he is tempted once again, succumbs to the temptation, goes nuts and dies.

In the film, he plays the endgame but then dies, but his pious widow then goes on to win the game for him. This robs the story of its entire point. Chess is supposed to be Luzhin's tragedy. If it's just something that someone else can do for him, what is the point of the story?

In other words - forget it. I would quite like to own this DVD, only because I have a perverse fondness for utterly stupid and disastrous adaptations of great books. But, please - do not buy this because you are tempted by the magic words "Nabokov", "Turturro", "Watson". Buy this ONLY because you have to be a completist.

There' s a big difference between these three concepts: duty, passion and bliss. Usually a great majority tends to overlap the first concept over the other two and that reveals an absolute clumsiness. The duty itself is bounded with all kind of unpleasant activity.

But if you examine briefly the Greek concept of the term amateur you will surprise: Amateur is that person who loves what does. So the little difference between passion and bliss is in the involvement or commitment level you decide add to your activity.

In this sense Luzhin defense deals about this last term: to follow your bliss, no matter how high be the prize you pay for reaching that goal . This inner satisfaction has nothing to do with economic profit. And that explains the devotion, vocation or frenzy according the case you face your reason to live in the world.

A Nobel Prize is simply a human being who has decided to study six thousand hours for instance to analyze a special issue. And the over passion of a Chess player it can not be understood but through this consideration.

Luzhin followed his bliss without care about any other consideration. The countless obstacles he had to overcome worked out much more as a challenge than a real warning. He did not mind any other issue.

This crude and painful portrait is superbly by John Turturro in his best performance on screen to date. The astonishing actress Emily Watson as his devoted lover is splendid too and the rest of the cast is excellent. Art direction and photograph deserve a sonorous applause , the script is memorable and the lesson of life is a perpetual evidence of integrity and trust in oneself far beyond the risks you may find on the road.

This film to my mind still remains among the greatest in this decade.

Based on the famous Vladimir Nabokov's novel The defence!

While excellent as a period-piece romance, this movie bears little semblance in substance or form to Nabokov's great novel of the same name. Of all Nabokov's novels, "The Luzhin Defence" is without doubt one of the worst candidates for adaptation to play or screen, because it deals so intimately-and so bravely-with the private obsessions of its protagonist, obsessions that are unconveyable on film by virtue of the medium. Movie characters cannot be seen to think; they may only speak.

The illustration, foremost in my mind, of where the book succeeds and the movie fails, is the penultimate scene, where Luzhin plummets to his death. In the movie, Luzhin's leap is only tenuously accounted for by his actions and thoughts. The idea in the movie is that Luzhin is so distraught that the business of life must supplant the business of chess, because playing chess makes him ill, that he kills himself. He has lost so much of his life to an immersion in chess that at this stage there is no turning back; no readmission into society, no retracing of the lost years into a normal existence is possible. He cannot re-learn his lifestyle and mode of existence, an understanding that rocks him to the very core. He cannot be happy without chess and he cannot be healthy with it, so the only way for him is an end to it all in suicide.

Nabokov's brings his character to somewhat similar conclusions, but in a much more vivid way. Where in the movie Luzhin's silent motives can only be guessed at through inference, in the novel the solipsistic universe of the fat chess genius (yes, he is fat in the novel) is laid bare, with all its crevasses and mountaintops intact. This, in fact, is the virtue and purpose of the novel as a form. It is limited in that it cannot show actual, physical things to the reader, but in exchange the author has supreme control over his characters' actions and thoughts. Nabokov is a novelist, and exploits the novel's virtues and possibilities like a master. His novels are not prose dramas. They are novels, whole novels, and nothing but novels. Because Nabokov is so on the side of the novel, and not the drama (although he wrote a few plays in his life, including a script for "Lolita"), a metamorphosis into spoken lines is very likely to be suspect.

As a result, the movie, in comparison with the book, comes off as shallow and unworthy of its title, especially given the director's own admission in the commentary included on the DVD that the script is a "loose" adaptation of the novel. Absent are the flares of Nabokov's bewildering inspiration and, notably, his consciousness of the kalidescope of hidden combinations, feints, bluffs, and traps that characterize chess and inform the very construction of the novel.

Yet as a "loose" adaptation, "The Luzhin Defence" is better than decent. Though the stock character of the evil former chess teacher is an obvious lowlight, Emily Watson and John Turturro are excellent, as is the cinematography. It just would have made more sense if the movie's title were something other than "The Luzhin Defence," because Nabokov's novel it is not.

Very good plot, magnificent scenic views, superb acting of both John Turturro & Emily Watson, very worthwhile to watch, great movie overall!