History Film / PawnSacrifice

* DownerEnding: [[spoiler: Fischer manages to beat Spassky in the World Championship, but doesn't seem to feel the elation he hoped. On top of that, he's alienated and pushed away everybody who cared about him, leaving him alone and empty. The WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue makes it even bleaker, revealing that Fischer's madness left him homeless and penniless by the time of his death in 2008.]]

* LonelyAtTheTop: [[spoiler: The ending gives the indication that this is the final result of Fischer's victory.]]

* SlowClap: By [[spoiler: Spassky]] when he realizes [[spoiler: Fischer]] has beaten him.

* WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue: This appears right before the credits, detailing Bobby Fischer's life after the World Tournament. [[spoiler: [[DownerEnding It's not a very pleasant one.]]]]

** When [[spoiler: Spassky]] realizes that [[spoiler: Fischer]] has won, he stands up and gives him a SlowClap.

** Spassky also shows signs, thinking that his rooms are bugged by agents of his own government. Justified in that the Soviet Union was a PoliceState liable to monitor anybody.

** Spassky also shows signs, thinking that his rooms are bugged by agents of his own government.

* GloriousMotherRussia: One of the reasons Spassky is urged to play against Fischer, for his superiors believe that it will be a testament to the Soviet chess ability.

** Fischer is show taking Boris Spassky's abilities in chess very seriously.

* ConfusionFu: In Game 6 of the world championship, Fischer plays seemingly random moves to prevent Spassky from figuring out his strategy. Bit of a dramatization}} - in the actual game, Fischer played an uncharacteristic opening so any preparation Spassky had for Fischer's customary plays would be worthless. After that, Fischer simply played a superior positional game.

* CrazyPeoplePlayChess: Bobby Fischer is the best chess player in the world. He also suffers from extreme paranoia, thinks that the Russians and the [[BoomerangBigot Jews]] are out to get him, suspects his phones are being tapped, and moves the world championship chess tournament into a ping-pong room because the main theater was too loud. It's even suggested that it might be an InvertedTrope - that playing chess makes crazy people.

** Spassky also shows hints of this - see ConspiracyTheorist above, and later he gets distracted by the buzzing of a fly trapped in his chair.

-> ''After only four moves there's more than 300 billion options to consider. There's more 40-move games than there are stars in the galaxy, so... it can take you very close to the edge.''
-->-- '''Father Lombardy'''

''Pawn Sacrifice'' is a 2014 biopic directed by Edward Zwick and starring Creator/TobeyMaguire, Creator/LievSchreiber, and Creator/PeterSarsgaard.

!!Tropes Featured in this movie include:

* ConfusionFu: In Game 6 of the world championship, Fischer plays seemingly random moves to prevent Spassky from figuring out his strategy.
** Bit of a Main/{{Dramatization}} - in the actual game, Fischer played an uncharacteristic opening so any preparation Spassky had for Fischer's customary plays would be worthless. After that, Fischer simply played a superior positional game.
* ConspiracyTheorist: Fischer. He thinks that his phones are tapped, that the Russians will try to blow up his airplane, that he is being followed, you name it.

* CrazyPeoplePlayChess: Bobby Fischer is the best chess player in the world. He also suffers from extreme paranoia, thinks that the Russians and the [[BoomerangBigot Jews]] are out to get him, suspects his phones are being tapped, and moves the world championship chess tournament into a ping-pong room because the main theater was too loud.
** It's even suggested that it might be an InvertedTrope - that playing chess makes crazy people.
--> '''Father Lombardy''': This game... it's a [[DownTheRabbitHole rabbit hole]].

* GoodShepherd: Father Lombardy is a Jesuit priest and prior chess master who accompanies Fischer on his travels to serve as his minder and practice partner.
** Shades of EvilJesuit when he advises against medicating Fischer, saying it would destroy his [[PowerBornOfMadness chess ability]].

* WorthyOpponent: Fischer spends the entire movie trying the play and beat Boris Spassky to become the new world chess champion.

* ColdWar: One of the reasons Fischer is so supported by Paul Marshall is that Marshall believes that an American beating the Soviet players will be a symbolic victory over communism and will weaken Soviet resolve.

The movie depicts the career of Bobby Fischer, a chess prodigy who rose to fame during the Cold War, specifically his attempts to defeat the world champion chess player of the time, Boris Spassky. At the same time, Fischer is struggling with increasing feelings of paranoia.

* DownerEnding: [[spoiler: Fischer manages to beat Spassky in the World Championship, but doesn't seem to feel the elation he hoped. On top of that, he's alienated and pushed away everybody who cared about him, leaving him alone and empty. The [[WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue: epilogue]] makes it even bleaker, revealing that Fischer's madness left him homeless and penniless by the time of his death in 2008.]]

* WhereAreTheyNowEpilogue: This appears right before the credits, detailing Bobby Fischer's life after the World Tournament. [[spoiler: [[DownerEnding: It's not a very pleasant one.]]]]

* ColdWar

* GloriousMotherRussia

* SexyPriest: Peter Sarsgaard, anyone?

* SmartPeoplePlayChess: Fischer and Lombardy play mental games of chess against each other to practice.

* PowerBornOfMadness: It's unknown how much of Fischer's ability comes from his obsessive and paranoid mindset.