Becoming the number one chess player in the world is no easy feat, yet Magnus Carlsen almost makes it look effortless. In Magnus, directed by Norwegian journalist Benjamin Ree, we follow Magnus’s journey over a ten-year period as he goes from thirteen-year-old chess grandmaster to twenty-three-year-old World Chess Champion.
Described as the ‘Mozart of Chess’, Magnus shows an interest for intellectual challenges at a young age. He is a deeply introverted child, and his father, Henrik, understanding his son’s mathematical mind, introduces him to chess as an outlet. Magnus quickly moves up the ranks, and at the age of thirteen becomes the third-youngest grandmaster of chess, ever. He quickly starts preparing for the title of World Chess Champion. As we watch him prepare, where his competition use computer programs and analysts to master the game, Magnus has the unique talent of visualising the game in his head, and where others have a lavish entourage, Magnus brings his parents and sister. Magnus is the eye-opening journey of this young man’s natural talent.