The Luzhin Defence
– Based upon the novel by Vladimir Nabokov, a chess grandmaster travels to Italy in the 1920s to play ..
Based upon the novel by Vladimir Nabokov, a chess grandmaster travels to Italy in the 1920s to play in a tournament and falls in love.
08 Sep 2000
English, Italian
Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13. Parents are urged to be cautious. Some material may be inappropriate for pre-teenagers.
Marleen Gorris
Vladimir Nabokov (novel), Peter Berry (screenplay)
John Turturro, Emily Watson, Geraldine James, Stuart Wilson
Set in the late 1920s, The Luzhin Defence tells the story of a shambling, unworldly chess Grand Master who arrives in the Italian Lakes to play the match of his life and unexpectedly finds the love of his life. Discovering his prodigious talent in boyhood overshadowed by his parents' failing marriage, Luzhin's lyrical passion for chess has become his refuge and rendered the real world a phantom. Already matched up by her family to the very suitable Comte de Stassard, when Natalia meets Luzhin, she is drawn to the erratic genius and offers him a glimpse outside of his chess obsession. But it is a world he is not equipped to deal with and his two worlds collide to tragic effect.
3 wins & 2 nominations.
Sony Pictures Classics