Polgár’s Checkmate: Kennedy examines the ‘Queen of Chess’

Cinema | May 11th, 2026

By Greg Carlson

Issues of gender reside at the heart of Rory Kennedy’s entertaining documentary “Queen of Chess,” available on Netflix following a January world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival. In the feature, Kennedy explores the remarkable career and achievements of the phenomenal Judit Polgár. The Hungarian’s staggering stat line should pique the interest of any viewer. As the greatest female chess player of record, Polgár remains the only woman to be ranked on the worldwide list of top-ten players, the only woman to attain an Elo International Chess Federation rating over 2700 and the only woman to reach the final stage of the World Chess Championship.

Kennedy’s movie, which features extensive interviews with Polgár and the members of her close family, intensifies the heavyweight-champ drama by devoting significant time to the longstanding rivalry between Polgár and superstar Garry Kasparov, culminating in the triumphant 2002 duel marking the only time a woman has defeated the reigning number one player in the world. Kasparov’s presence suggests an almost mythic clash of titans akin to Muhammad Ali versus Joe Frazier. Arguably the highlight of the entire movie is the dramatic recounting of the 1994 face-off in which Kasparov broke the touch-move rule by releasing a knight and then quickly changing his mind.

That entire sequence, as constructed by Kennedy and her ace editors Azin Samari and Jesse Overman, unfolds as a suspenseful cat and mouse conflict worthy of Hitchcock. Drilling down on the hypotheticals (a formula repeated in other parts of the film), Kennedy knows exactly how to tighten the screws — even when the historical outcome is fixed and known. The “revelation” that unattended cameras brought by a Spanish TV crew were left running quickens the pulse. It is equally satisfying, then, when Kennedy returns later to the unlikely friendship between the adversaries. Footage of Polgár and Kasparov banana boating and enjoying some beach time offers up an unexpected contrast to the sedentary posture of a cerebral chess confrontation.

The veteran documentary filmmaker previously interacted with the world of chess as one of the producers of the fantastic Liz Garbus feature “Bobby Fischer Against the World” back in 2011. In the new movie, a brief clip of Fischer’s sexist claims about the prospects of women in chess is perfectly timed to make the controversial and enigmatic legend look foolish. The unmistakably sweet flavor of victory is served as Polgár breaks Fischer’s 33-year-old record as the youngest player to become a grandmaster, which she accomplished at the age of 15 years and 4 months. Along with Fischer’s dismissive comments, Kennedy includes other concrete examples of men struggling mightily to cope with the “threat” of successful women.

Despite Kennedy’s access to Polgár, the decorated prizewinner and precedent-smasher remains somewhat enigmatic. Polgár’s father László, who “experimented” on his three daughters by rigorously training and teaching them to become competitive in the chess world, hints at the potential costs exacted by the relentless pursuit of excellence. And Judit’s sisters Zsófia (Sofia) and Zsuzsanna (Susan) might have revealed more of their own feelings about sibling dynamics while living under such incredible pressure. Even so, “Queen of Chess” takes a position alongside “Queen to Play,” “Queen of Katwe,” and “The Queen’s Gambit” to inspire the game’s next generation.

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