Did you people see the same film I saw?

I saw this movie before reading any reviews, and I thought it was very funny. I was very surprised to see the overwhelmingly negative reviews this film received from critics.

a film so unique, intoxicating and bizarre that it not only demands another viewing, but is also forgivable as a satirical comedy where the jokes eventually take the back seat.

The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;

The story of an agoraphobic chess master solving mysteries with his associates had some good moments, especially once the season got underway. Unfortunately, the single season ends with NO resolution to the central mystery of who killed the protagonist's finance. This was a very unsatisfactory ending, and my wife and I feel that we wasted our time on a show with no resolution.

Among all the "crime" shows out there, i enjoy this one the most. Intelligent TV is usually an oxymoron, but not in this case! I love the way Balagan doesn't have to resort to anything physical,but uses his intelligence to solve crimes. And the use of chess moves to work out the sequence of events is genius on the part of the writers! It is well acted and I especially like that the show is set in Vancouver, and you know it's set in Vancouver; not in some anonymous American city!I really hope the network gives this a second season to gain more viewers. I have friends as far away as Isreal who really love this show.

what I usually do is only watch the first 20 min of a new show and this let's me know if it is something I will enjoy to watch, and I can tell you that with-in the first 10 min I new that this was going to be a very entertaining show to watch. I keeps you under suspense the entire time, and it is very well written, and the acting is fantastic... very sad to hear that it has been cancelled, what a shame especially when there was finally something to watch that was worth watching... The story lines are very interesting and it is very difficult to tell what the out come will be. Most of the shows on TV now are so very predictable and bravo to the writers that pulled this one off and did a fantastic job doing it, and the production value is great as well.

I am hard core chess fan and reasonably strong player and I always wished our game gets media attention and recognition it deserves. Here comes Endgame. The show is not really about game of chess, but rather about Chess grandmaster who applies his analytical skills to solve crimes. The brilliance of the show, is the way they display this thinking process. Arkady, the grandmaster imagines potential suspects as pieces on the chess boards, he actually talks to them to question and analyze their motives. Shawn Doyle who is playing the main role- I absolutely love this guy.From a chess fan standpoint, I greatly appreciate the fact that show producers went to a great length to reproduce quality chess content, in those occurrences where chess has actually being used. It references Donald Byrne - Bobby Fischer game of the century as an example. It warmed my heart to see real position from Kings Indian defense to be played in one of the episodes and fashionable chess equipment (like Chronos and Saitek Competion chess clocks). Compare this to some other shows where chess board placement is typically wrong. Guys- remember, white square on the right side of player with white pieces.For someone who was born Russia, it is obvious the show was made for Western audience and full of Russian stereotypes. Arkady drinks vodka right from the bottle, talks about Putin wanting to kill him, often says "na zdorov'ja" (instead of na zdorov'ie), dances "gapak", etc. Still all those Russian shortcomings simply add charm to this show.I hear the news that for some reason that is simply beyond my understanding there maybe no second season. That will be very sad. The story of the main hero has just been briefly touched upon and all the fans are anxious to find out more about him. I really hope that network gives the show another chance.