Sorry, this movie sucks

Really Surprised!

It's a mild crowd pleaser for people who are exhausted by blockbusters.

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Nine out of ten times an unashamedly sentimental feel-good film like this will have me in a photo finish reaching for the sick-bag and remote simultaneously but somehow this one kept me watching. Why? Good question. There's nothing here we haven't seen before on a fairly regular basis and there's only one familiar actor. Ted Danson here is light-years away from his breakthrough role in 'Cheers' and shows he can do quietly understated with the best of them. In retrospect it seems a little hard to believe that a group of kids from a deprived area in the Bronx could become hooked virtually overnight on chess but apparently the movie is based on a true story so who am I to argue. What can I tell you, I enjoyed it, I was moved and enriched. Sue me.

I was really looking forward to seeing this movie and overall it was a good movie. Like most chess players any movie which portrays chess in a good light is welcomed with open arms.Lets get the gripes out of the way first. For me Ted Danson was never really believable in this movie, I can't quite put my finger on the reasons why but he just didn't seem to be comfortable in the role. Then there are the chess errors, any attempt by TV or Film to represent the royal game seems to fail miserably with the chess basics.I am not talking about a 1 second clip here with the board incorrectly set up, but in the Nationals when Jimmy is playing, there is a close up which pans out with the board completely set up wrong. This is just unforgivable and any basic chess consultancy on this film would have picked this up. For me that cost the film 3 stars right there. This may seem harsh however this is not the only error in this movie other less serious errors have been documented on the Internet.However that said if you are looking for a feel good movie with the usual happy ending with chess in it you can't really go wrong with this film.

This movie was excellent. I didn't look at anything technical, only how this teacher was there for his students. Teachers need to remember why they wanted to teach. Sometimes the teacher is the only person they can ever go to. Teacher was there for the disappointments and the victories. It is also surprising what a difference it made in his personal life. I know for a fact the encouragement and the negative words stay with someone for there whole life. There should be more teachers like him. All in all I enjoyed that movie. There was drama, love, and for me,tears. I would definitely buy a DVD if there is one made. I would like to comment on Ted Danson, he was superb. Not quite like the man he usually portrays on TV series. thank you

Knights of the South Bronx is based on the story of David MacEnulty, one of the first coaches in New York City's Chess-in-the-Schools program. Ted Danson plays the MacEnulty character, named Richard Mason in the movie.Danson's character, a fired corporate whistle-blower, takes a job as a substitute teacher in an elementary school in an economically depressed neighborhood. A chess expert, he finds that is the one way he can bond with his class and get them to learn.A motivated teacher can change the world, and it seems some of the best have come from corporate backgrounds and have made teaching a second career. Jaime Escalante of Stand and Deliver fame was a Silicon Valley executive before finding his true calling teaching math to inner-city youths. Danson is believable and as always, likable as Mason/MacEnulty. The four children with the biggest roles are charmers. Keke Palmer, a 12-year-old beauty who made a big impression playing opposite William H. Macy in The Wool Cap is every bit as impressive as Kenya Russell, a girl who refuses to let her crack head mother destroy her future. Malcolm David Kelley is Jimmy Washington, a kid who refuses to be daunted or cowed by beatings administered by the local gang toughs. Yucini Diaz is Renee Soto, who has the job of looking after her kindergärtner brother, Dawson, who turns out to be the true chess prodigy. The exuberant Dawson is played to perfection by Antonio Ortiz.Many of MacEnulty's original students are now in college because chess broadened their horizons beyond the South Bronx. MacEnulty himself has become a successful author of chess books for kids.While the movie is predictable and formulaic, the story is real. You could do a lot worse things with two hours than watch Knights of the South Bronx. 7/10