Emmy Interviews: Carlos Rafael Rivera

I’m delighted to share some of the interviews I’ve been able to conduct with Emmy nominees.

For Netflix’s “The Queen’s Gambit,” here’s composer Carlos Rafael Rivera. Enjoy a brief clip of the interview above, and click through to read the conversation we had for Awards Radar.

Interviews with Abe: The Queen's Gambit

As Emmy voting is underway, I’m delighted to share some of the interviews I’ve been able to conduct with contenders across all categories. 

For Netflix’s “The Queen's Gambit,” here’s star Thomas Brodie-Sangster, star Harry Melling, and casting director Ellen Lewis. Click through to read the conversations we had for AwardsWatch and Awards Radar.

Top 20 New Shows of 2020: #8

My annual TV Awards, the AFT Television Awards, are given out during the summer. It’s always nice to check in midway through the television season to reflect back on all the calendar year introduced us to. As 2020 closes out and 2021 begins, here’s a look back at the best new shows of the year.

#8: The Queen’s Gambit

Chess is making a serious comeback thanks to this wholly involving portrait of a young prodigy who can’t help but see all the possible moves in her head. Anya Taylor-Joy was just one part of an outstanding cast that moved in perfect step with this exciting chronicle of addiction, chess games, and friendship. Watch it now on Netflix.

Best Episode: “Doubled Pawns”
Pilot Review | Episode Reviews

What I’m Watching: The Queen’s Gambit (Series Finale)

The Queen’s Gambit: Season 1, Episode 7 “End Game” (B+)

This really was a superb finale, one that did provide a pretty satisfactory end to Beth’s story. Opening with Mr. Shaibel’s funeral was a good way to tie together the influences that shaped Beth early on, and the haunting flashbacks to the final moments with her mother were also effective. Rebuffing the Christians who wanted her to publicly affirm her commitment to religion was a bold decision, one that she couldn’t really back up until Jolene offered her the money to get her all the way to Russia. Hearing all the rules about what she could and couldn’t do and watching her watch around by herself made clear the isolation she felt, and it was nice to see some camaraderie in the game from Luchenko, who resigned with pleasure and praised her as the best player he’d seen. That was a perfect moment for Townes to show up and provide her some true comfort, and it was very sweet that he had Benny and Beltik on the phone to offer support when she needed it most. Refusing to accept Borgov’s draw proposal was an expected move, and the grace he showed in telling her that it was her game and hugging her was wonderful. It was cool to see her simulate the game on the ceiling during the match to help herself and have Borgov and everyone look up to see what was up there. Having the final scene show her walking in the park and playing a random game was great, and it’s a real tribute to how she enjoys the game. I’m definitely going to try playing chess a lot more now, and I hope this very well-done show earns a good deal of awards attention for its technical elements and all its cast members, including Marielle Heller as Alma. Bring on the praise – this limited series was terrific.

Series grade: A-
Series MVP: Anya Taylor-Joy as Beth

What I’m Watching: The Queen’s Gambit (Penultimate Episode)

The Queen’s Gambit: Season 1, Episode 6 “Adjournment” (B+)

There’s always a sense of disappointment that comes with nearing the end of a limited series since the storyline is usually contained and any hope for more of it is minimal at best. I know that this show has been very popular, but I imagine that the narrative arc is relatively contained and meant to be finished in the final episode. What we saw here may be Anya Taylor-Joy’s best work yet, showing her as Benny trained her to be the best in his New York City basement apartment and she turned the tables on him to win game after game after game. But what was most impressive was the way in which she had one drink and then went out on all-out bender in her house that resulted in Beltik coming over to check on her and a last-minute phone call about an impending tournament serving as the only thing to get her somewhat closer back to reality. Having her adoptive father return with no interest in even looking at her and acknowledging any responsibility was a reminder of the fact that she has no choice but to be a free spirit since the support system that existed in her mother is now gone. I’m interested in what Jolene’s return will mean, since Beth is as close as she can be to beating Borgov, almost managing it when she was hung over after a wild night with Cleo. I’m excited to see what the finale brings, which I hope is victory and a satisfying farewell of some sort to Beth.

What I’m Watching: The Queen’s Gambit

The Queen’s Gambit: Season 1, Episode 5 “Fork” (B+)

It’s fascinating to see the way the men in Beth’s life react to her. Both Beltik and Benny first met Beth when she was considerably more awkward and when they were considered to be the best. Beltik calling her from a payphone in the rain made him seem like a completely different person, eager to connect with someone who had evidently influenced his life in a big way. She barely seemed to notice when, after moving in with her, he confessed that she was the reason that he got his teeth fixed, and there was something almost too easy about the way that a romantic relationship started between them. Losing to her over and over obviously took a toll on him, but in this case it led to a positive realization, which was that he didn’t actually love chess anymore. Benny, on the other hand, seems to truly enjoy it, and it was fun – and dizzying – to see them play speed games and then to watch through a number of split-screen frames as they slowly took down each of their opponents so that they could end up being matched up for the final round. Chipping away at her confidence and her wallet ahead of time should have broken Beth, but instead she rallied and won in the real match. I’m excited to see them work together to prepare for her international trips, and it’s good to know that Benny has made sex off-limits and is keeping a watchful eye on her generous attitude towards alcohol.

What I’m Watching: The Queen’s Gambit

The Queen’s Gambit: Season 1, Episode 4 “Middle Game” (B+)

It’s so interesting to see how Beth responds to way her opponent acts and treats her. Girev was so kind and respectful, telling her what an honor it was to meet her, and she in turn purposely distracted him by walking around and pushing him to make a mistake. She heard Borgov talking about her in the elevator and referring to her as a drunk, but she should have had the upper hand due to her knowledge of the Russian language. She still managed to get thrown off during the match and resigned angrily, hardly the noble way in which Girev knocked over his king. Going upstairs to find her mother dead, something she didn’t realize until after she didn’t hear a reaction to her story, was a harrowing development that is clearly going to push her to self-medicate and take advantage of the surprising news from the doctor that a prescription isn’t needed for the pills she so likes in Mexico. Her father’s response to hearing that his wife was dead was so detached, and he didn’t seem to care at all that the girl he had adopted is now going to be living in a house all by herself with no one to support her. She’ll likely be spending all of her time in this chess world, indulging in alcohol and tranquilizers that she’ll use to try to keep herself focused. What she could use now is a friend, and hopefully she’ll grow closer with one of the many chess enthusiasts she’s met on the tournament circuit.

Take Three: The Queen’s Gambit

The Queen’s Gambit: Season 1, Episode 3 “Doubled Pawns” (B+)

This show couldn’t only feature Beth winning every game she played, and her response to her first loss was predictably unpleasant. Benny, played by Thomas Brodie Sangster of “Game of Thrones” and “Love Actually” fame, had already fractured her confidence when he met her and pointed out something she could have done something differently, and his cockiness felt different from, say, Beltik, who wasn’t even interested enough in his opponent to realize that he should be paying attention to the game. Townes was very happy to see her when they ran into each other, though she apparently had different ideas of what he would want other than the more literal opportunity to take pictures of her for the magazine. She seemed put off by the fact that he was gay mostly because she was interested in him and had thought that he would reflect those feelings back and give her another first experience. Having a friend who she can rely on who can help analyze her game play will be helpful, since she doesn’t seem to want to take the advice of someone who doesn’t understand the intricacies of chess: her mother. There are still troubling signs about the addictive parts of Beth’s personality, like her eagerness to drink beer and just rush through every new experience rather than try to digest it slowly so that she can get used to it. What will be most telling is how quickly – and responsibly – she bounces back from a crushing defeat and uses it to better both her strategy and her resilience.

Round Two: The Queen’s Gambit

The Queen’s Gambit: Season 1, Episode 2 “Exchanges” (B+)

I was very impressed by the first hour of this limited series and only took this long to continue with it because of other television episodes and film festival fare on my plate. This second installment took a bit of a different turn with Beth’s departure from the orphanage but maintained its pacing and intriguing content. It was jarring to see Beth so easily lifted out from her banal existence to an equally mediocre one, with a miserable mother and entirely absent father whose rare presence didn’t make things any better. Now that Anya Taylor-Joy has taken over the role of Beth, I want to take a moment to praise the performance of Isla Johnston, who made her very interesting as a young child. I’m also mesmerized by Marielle Heller as her adoptive mother Alma. I didn’t realize that she was played by Marielle Heller, best known as director of the Oscar-nominated films “Can You Ever Forgive Me?” and “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood.” Though she was bullied frequently at school, in part because of her clothing, it was good to see Beth find a way to get into the chess scene, smartly making a deal with Mr. Shaibel to sponsor her first tournament entry because he was just as confident as she was that she would win. I immediately pegged her yawn-prone, obnoxious opponent Beltik from actor Harry Melling’s role as Sergeant Smythe in the recent film release “The Keeper” (he also apparently played Dudley Dursley in the Harry Potter series). The excitement that Alma has now found for Beth’s abilities is great, but the lie they are perpetuating and Beth’s use of her medication are concerning elements that will surely come up again soon.

Pilot Review: The Queen's Gambit

Check out my one-minute take on every new pilot, which is embedded below and you can also watch by subscribing to movieswithabe on YouTube.