Queen of Katwe is a 2016 American biographical sports drama film directed by Mira Nair from a screenplay by William Wheeler. The film depicts the life of Phiona Mutesi, a Ugandan chess player from Katwe who becomes a Woman Candidate Master after her performances at World Chess Olympiads.
Movie Details :
- Directed by : Mira Nair
- Produced by : John Carls, Lydia Dean Pilcher
- Screenplay : by William Wheeler
- Based on : The Queen of Katwe: A Story of Life, Chess, and One Extraordinary Girl’s Dream of Becoming a Grandmaster by Tim Crothers
- Starring : David Oyelowo, Lupita Nyong’o, Madina Nalwanga
- Music by : Alex Heffes
- Cinematography : Sean Bobbitt
- Edited by : Barry Alexander Brown
- Production company : Walt Disney Pictures, ESPN Films, Cine Mosaic, Mirabai Films
- Distributed by : Walt Disney Studios, Motion Pictures
Queen of Katwe Movie Review :
Queen of Katwe (2016) Hollywood Movie Review By The A.V. Club
At times, the film is as slight as it is cheerful. But mostly, there’s the fact that you don’t have to have read ESPN writer Tim Crothers’ book on Phiona to know how this story turns out. Both as an underdog sports movie and as a coming-of-age family drama, Queen Of Katwe is undeniably formulaic, and the moments of triumph and defeat occur exactly when—and how—you’d expect them to. But predictability can’t squash all of the film’s appeal. And as far as empowering role models for preteen girls go, you could do a lot worse than Phiona Mutesi.
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Queen of Katwe (2016) Hollywood Movie Review By TheWrap
This humanistic tale, helmed by a masterful filmmaker, offers a potent — and yes, inspirational — story of triumph against huge odds.
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Queen of Katwe (2016) Hollywood Movie Review By Variety
“Queen of Katwe” doesn’t veer from the family-friendly inspirational sports movie playbook — there’s a plucky protagonist looking for a way out, a hardworking single mom concerned about false hopes, a committed coach seeking personal redemption. But the Disney release from veteran helmer Mira Nair is quietly radical in enough ways to make you cheer despite the cliches.
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Queen of Katwe (2016) Hollywood Movie Review By New York Daily News
Although the script is a little flat — just because the story is true doesn’t mean it should feel so predictable — Nair gives the film tons of energy and joy.
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Rating : 4/5
Queen of Katwe (2016) Hollywood Movie Review By The Guardian
In fact for what is, in essence, a by-numbers Disney sports flick, there’s endless freshness and vivacity to Mira Nair’s picture – her best in years. The Slumdog settings are eye-poppingly well shot by Sean Bobbitt, and though it’s hard to attest to their authenticity, urban Africa is rarely this intimately drawn. Conflict with snooty public school kids might be a bit blunt, but it’s played for compassionate comedy, and The Queen of Katwe remains quite a challenging prospect for a mainstream mass market audience.
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Rating : 4/5
Queen of Katwe (2016) Hollywood Movie Review By RogerEbert.com
With the combined efforts of Nalwanga, Nair, Nyong’o, Oyelowo, Bobbitt and many more, “Queen of Katwe” makes it clear that we can’t successfully tell “our stories” alone. To make them resonate, we need people this talented working together for a common goal. It seems unlikely that Phiona Mutesi ever imagined her life would one day be the subject of a Disney film. But she certainly learned that life is full of surprises. When it comes to movie surprises, “Queen of Katwe” is a truly pleasant one.
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Rating : 3/4
Queen of Katwe (2016) Hollywood Movie Review By Common Sense Media
Queen of Katwe isn’t just Phiona’s story, and that’s party of why it’s so good. Her widowed mother, Harriet (Nyong’o), struggles to keep the family fed and sheltered while also keeping her dignity. And Oyelowo is lovely as the coach trying to keep the chess team going — fighting to get funding and opportunities — while at the same time feeling a responsibility to provide for his own family.
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Rating : 4/5
Trailer :
Queen of Katwe (2016) Hollywood Movie Review
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