Forget The Terminator, this real-life battle between man and machine contains no more action than two bespectacled men staring at a chessboard. Exploring the controversial match in which world chess champion Garry Kasparov lost to a computer, inventive documentary Game Over: Kasparov And The Machine is a subject with the potential for crushing boredom. Instead we get a film which builds into a gripping blend of When We Were Kings and 2001: A Space Odyssey.
In May 1997, undefeated world champion Kasparov was challenged by computer corporation IBM to a "friendly rematch" with their super-powerful chess playing computer, named Deep Blue. Having already thrashed the machine in a previous match, Kasparov had no problem agreeing. But when the computer's playing ability suddenly started improving during the second of the six-game series, the champion cried "Foul!"
"ENJOYABLY PARANOID QUESTIONS"
Did IBM cheat? To try and find an answer, the film patches together news footage from the time, and interviews everyone involved. With enjoyably paranoid questions about corporate behaviour - particularly the way IBM's share price rose thanks to their computer winning the match - the end result is like watching an old-fashioned conspiracy thriller where you're rooting for the hero against the evil corporate bigwigs.
Admittedly, the film points the finger of blame a little too enthusiastically at IBM, and the shots of a fake 18th century chess-playing machine make everything too clear cut rather than letting us make up our own minds.
Despite this, by the finale it's obvious who the real winner is. Kasparov may have lost the match, but in the personality stakes he comes across as surprisingly honest and charming. As for the IBM team, they're a chilling example of how scary life would be if the Geeks were to inherit the Earth.
Game Over: Kasparov And The Machine (2004)
