kinda obsessed with how you set this up as a conversation like u ate this video up
@HeyitsBri_
3 ай бұрын
No crumbs. Compliments to the chef
@cee_ves
3 ай бұрын
I know you just performed all the scenes in one outfit together, and then performed all scenes in the other next, but i like to think you’re frantically putting up and letting down your hair every 2 seconds while changing out of a suit
@JamesWoodall
3 ай бұрын
It may please you to know this is exactly how I filmed the opening shot 😅 To be able to splice each side together, so the moves overlapped, I needed all the pieces to be in exactly the same position, so reflections and shadows wouldn't be cut off. Easiest way to do that is to film the moves in the correct order, running behind the camera and changing costume between them and cutting out the time between moves. I only had to change costume on one arm, though.
@icedcxffee2159
3 ай бұрын
@@JamesWoodall it is so refreshing to see that you care this much about the continuity of such small details, you've 100% earned my sub (i have binged like so many of your vids
@sapphothorne6645
4 ай бұрын
My take on this show is that its not really about genius or chess, its about trauma and escapism. For Beth, alcohol, drugs and sex are all means to cope with the loss and mistreatment she experienced from an early age. Chess is certainly another means of escapism for Beth, but its an avenue to more productive ways of coping with truama-forming friendships, establishing a strong sense of self, etc. When Beth spirals, she's cut off from those more healthy means of coping.
@WhizPill
3 ай бұрын
also it's about autism representation
@R-zg4zg
3 ай бұрын
I think this is what makes the show great, yes it's grounded in actual chess, but you are as gripped by the personal journey as well as the plot
@mayhit
3 ай бұрын
Oh, I love this description! You've articulated the core of the story in a way I'd always felt, but hadn't articulated for myself before.
@jurgnobs1308
3 ай бұрын
yea, it's more like a frame to put up the actual story
@Amelia-vk4jt
3 ай бұрын
Same I always thought that the show was about trauma and coping mechanisms, chess is one in the orphanage and so is her addiction, they're not all good but it's the only way she can cope with her trauma and internal struggles
@aud9931
3 ай бұрын
Finding out that the symbol that separates sections of prose is called a “dinkus” is almost as bad as finding out that the animated loading circle’s proper name is an “annular throbber”
@littlewyzard
3 ай бұрын
HUH
@spawel1
Ай бұрын
i can never forget this knowledge short of brain damage
@user-garnet
4 ай бұрын
Damn, I keep thinking this is a channel with at least 700k subscribers, and getting jumpscared by the actual subscriber count
@CadetRedShirt
4 ай бұрын
Barely 55K is a travesty
@idontneedaname318
3 ай бұрын
WHAT I JUST NOTICED
@user-garnet
3 ай бұрын
@@CadetRedShirtjust finished watching the video and IT IS VERY MUCH A TRAVESTY. The video absolutely blew my mind in its thoughtfulness and nuance and I need KZitem *to recognise that*
@WhizPill
3 ай бұрын
i know right
@R-zg4zg
3 ай бұрын
It's actually insane! It's so well done!!
@MariaVosa
3 ай бұрын
I have no quibble with most of the points raised in this socratic tour de force - except the one about Jolene. I really don't think the White male author created a more compelling and "true" depiction of racial issues by having a Black girl pressure a White girl into a sexual act, harassing her, and then being impressed said White girl hits back with the worst word anyone could use. This seems like a lot of awful tropes piled on top of each other and I'm glad they changed it.
@marm4851
3 ай бұрын
Same, I think there could be an arguement that racism in the series is sanitised, I can definitely see that- however I think the unconsenual stuff would require a lot of story changes and might feel out of place. I also think it perpatuates the sort of dangerous black person trope, where black people are presented as dangerous deviants, especially if they are queer- and a scene where a black girl assualts a small white girl rings alarm bells in my mind of the way white women are seen as innocent victims and black people are seen as perpatrators- think of in pitch perfect where one of the only poc and queer characters- a black lesbian- forces a lot of unwanted advances on the rest of the mainly white cast. I think in media there should be a diverse range of characters and experiances shown, this means bad/morally grey queer and black people as well as good ones- however I think it is difficult when the bad people are some of the only representation of those groups in your work, and this racist and queerphobic stereotype is so prevalent in media STILL. In order for this part of the story to fit into an adaptation you'd need to change a lot of the storyline and bring up a lot of diffucult stuff that I don't know if the story has room for. It would take a lot of skill and tact to adapt this part of the book, and I don't know if a white man is the most suited to do it without help from people who have been through that type of thing.
@Kagomai15
3 ай бұрын
I was thinking this too when he read that. I was like, "I mean I know I'm white but to me that seems kinda racist that this white author would have her react to being called the N word with respect?" Seems like a very white guy thing to write lol
@MariaVosa
3 ай бұрын
@@Kagomai15 Yeah, it is seriously bad and I'm glad the people making the series dropped that completely
@darlingdannid
3 ай бұрын
yeah... as a black girl, i'm perfectly fine with the singular black character not being a predator, and not gaining respect for someone who calls her slurs. sounds absolutely terrible to me, thank god they left it out
@blossomi.2824
3 ай бұрын
I think the inciting incident should definitely be changed but the alternative of just wiping Jolene relationship with Beth off the map wasn’t a good one either. Because she just ends up falling into another stereotype. I would be fine with a more antagonistic relationship between the two but with the context changed.
@stormwatcheagle5448
3 ай бұрын
I did not know how badly I needed a Queen's Gambit anime until now.
@hughcaldwell1034
Ай бұрын
Closest I can think of is Hikaru No Go, which I'm yet to watch. It's about a guy who finds an old Go set and is possessed by the ghost of an old master who lives inside it.
@tabsi2436
Ай бұрын
It would be so epic. Like death Note. Please I need that.
@GrandArchPriestOfTheAlgorithm
4 ай бұрын
Here’s the thing: Chess is actually really good as a crowd sport because it’s surprisingly well paced move to move. For every move there’s this phase of analysis where the commentators and audience try to find the right move along with the player. And they don’t always do. So you have a natural buildup of tension that is released when a move is finally done. Which is how 15 minutes of nothing happening can be nail-biting television.
@literallyjustgrass
2 ай бұрын
Also why the commentators and audience members reacting among themselves never felt like a cheap way of explaining the game, because that is in fact exactly how most spectators experience real chess games
@spammus1
Ай бұрын
Honestly I don't think chess is a good crowd sport at all, if you don't actively play and study chess you will not understand anything of what's going on and you'll lose interest quickly because watching something you don't understand anything about for hours at a time is extremely boring. It's only engaging if you are already into it. That said the show portrayed really well how the crowd reacts to an actual game of chess, even if it might have been for necessity.
@GrandArchPriestOfTheAlgorithm
Ай бұрын
@@spammus1 This was entirely about technical narrative. If there's no interesting emotional narrative, people don't care about any sport event. And for people not understanding, that's what the 3rd commentator is for, to make sure the 2 experts actually explain the game for people that doesn’t know it.
@lauramcastro4897
3 ай бұрын
I think you could put it better by saying the series is about "how genius interacts with trauma". Because yeah, Beth's issues are not CAUSED by her genius. Her troubles are not the "cost" of it. They are caused by compounding traumas; the death of her mother (twice), addiction, social isolation. But her genius definitely affects how she navigates and reacts to her trauma.
@Jaxrocable
3 ай бұрын
That was fantastic, excellent framing and discussion. I wasn't sure through which side was supposed to represent your 'actual thoughts' versus the 'devils advocat' before realising that they were both entirely you and I'm just so used to creators only creating an opposition character just to knock it down. Shocked that something so well thought out and tidy is coming from such a small channel. Truly a hidden gem. I'm now going to waste my day watching the rest of your backlog
@Sarah.H5
2 ай бұрын
Maybe he can have thoughts on both sides?
@ilyas863
2 ай бұрын
@@Sarah.H5that’s what op said in their comment?
@tonichan89
4 ай бұрын
It didn't make sense to me to "solve Townes" by making him gay. He was blatantly flirting with her and making moves on her, and just because he's hooking up with or dating a guy doesn't automatically mean he's not interested in people who aren't men; bi and pan people exist too. I find it annoying when the default reason for the Main Character being rejected is "oh he's gay", as if that's the only possible reason someone wouldn't want to be with the MC. It just comes off like a cheap red herring to me, one that doesn't work imo. I get there's such a factor as Beth overly reading into things cus she's got a crush, but if you look at what he says and does on paper, like touching her cheek while gazing into her eyes... that was just to mislead the viewer, and it's obvious; just to then kinda gaslight us with the bait and switch, as if that didn't happen and we imagined him doing those things. Let's remember Beth was only a teenager when she met Townes, I think she was 15? And he was a grown ass adult, by the looks of it in his mid to late 20s, maybe even into his 30s when they meet in Vegas and she's 17. A perfect reason for him to reject her would've been her age. It's fine for her to have a crush on him and want to sleep with him - teens commonly have crushes on adults - but it wouldn't be cool for him to get with her. The solution was right there. He was old enough to be her high school teacher when they met. He could still be LGBT, that's whatever, but it annoys me that that's the reason he doesn't hook up with her, as if the inapproproate age-gap wasn't reason enough; hell, it's not even brought up. When he was making moves on her, I jokingly said "jail" to the screen 😅 That all being said, I do love the show lmao. This is just one of my few gripes with it.
@mchjsosde
3 ай бұрын
I get that part of the rejection was his attraction to men, but also he was *with* that man. He could have been a random hookup or fling but they booked the room together. I got the impression that they were committed to each other and Townes was "taken". His partner makes light of their intimate moment which I interpreted as him witnessing Townes flirting with a woman as if it happened often but wasn't an actual threat to their commitment. Obviously this is just a personal interpretation, but I just wanted to express it because there are multiple ways to interpret the scene.
@Freezient
3 ай бұрын
He was obviously with someone, after we were shown that he’s taken, his interaction stops being flirtatious, in fact personally I never saw it as flirting, he’s a photographer, he’s looking at his model
@Aelffwynn
3 ай бұрын
Was she actually 17 there, or was she "17" (because the Methuen school told the adoptive parents she was younger than she really was)? Granted, she was still lacking in life experience so it still would have been inappropriate, and if he thought she was 17 then he shouldn't have flirted.
@Freezient
3 ай бұрын
@@Aelffwynn Beth is smart girl she knows how old she is, the methuen principal only told her to lie about her age so she’ll get adopted
@Aelffwynn
3 ай бұрын
@@Freezient yeah I know she knows how old she is.... The question is whether HE knew that. It's unclear if she ever told people her real age
@alexathegator
3 ай бұрын
about the "autistic savant" trope - I think it's a consequence of how neurotypicals see neurodivergents, specifically the black and white perception of people with autism. autistic people are often reduced to their abilities, especially in workplaces or abusive/power imbalanced relationships. special interests and hyperfocus are only perceived as "superpowers", as long as they're useful or impressive. I've often felt used by NTs for my abilities - I'd be praised for my talents and coerced into favors, but as soon as I struggled with something an NT person sees as easy, I'd get ignored, abandoned or even called names. for the longest time, I didn't realize how cruel people even were to me, I just wanted to be useful and felt awful when I couldn't do well. this trope highlights how our culture says it's okay to "use" NDs, because they're only as good as what they contribute, and coercing those contributions isn't abuse, but something morally just and necessary for society. it's gaslighting people with disabilities and abusing their need to be wanted and belong. edit: also, just calling special interests "superpowers" feels so disgusting to me. imo, it's dehumanizing language, akin to lovebombing. it serves to make an ND person believe they're both superhuman (and therefore capable of taking on more than they're comfortable with) and inhuman (therefore deserving social exclusion). you'll never catch an autistic person use that word to describe their interests and abilities. it's just like that puzzle piece bullshit, a degrading label thrown on by NTs.
@alexjames7144
3 ай бұрын
I feel like what it comes down to for me is the assumption that any talent must be related to our neurodivergence. A lot of neurodivergent people just happen to be talented. It's as simple as that. Neurodivergence isn't the reason I'm clever, and I'm not clever in spite of being neurodivergent. I just happen to be both. People are a huge collection of random traits, they're not all related. It feels like people expect that it must be a weird quirk of being autistic because they believe an autistic person couldn't just naturally be intelligent in the same way that anyone else can be.
@gooseazul
3 ай бұрын
Child of the 90s here. My mom did her absolute best to train the autistic traits out of me. My friend who works in CPS told me that some of her behaviors absolutely would have gotten me removed from the home had anyone known about them. I am wicked smart in some ways and the year I accepted that I simply wouldn't have some of my favorite personality traits and skills without the hardships of growing up in an autistic brain was the year I started actually liking myself and seeing myself as different rather than broken. I do hyper focus and can complete absurd amounts of repetitive work to a high degree of accuracy without losing my mind and that's earned me respect and admiration at work. Used to when I went on vacation it took 3 people to replace my output making IVs. The ability to hyper focus is autistic. The work ethic is all me and honestly a trauma response/survival skill. I've got a lot of examples of that where I pair an inborn autistic trait with a trauma response I only have because my mom tried to teach me to pass for allistic and you do have, not a special interest because it's not life affirming, but what does appear to be a super power from the outside. I was raised to pass as allistic at great personal cost. I call it emotional foot binding. My mom "sanded down my sharp edges" well into my 20s and honed traits employers can exploit to gleaming sharpness. She did her best to make my autistic brain MY burden rather than the world's. And by that measure, her methods were blue ribbon. You ever notice how the allistics categorize the autistics based on how burdensome their traits are to others? The world doesn't know what untraumatized autistic people look like because growing up this way is inherently traumatic. Our parents used exposure therapy and desensitization techniques, but for reducing outward pain responses. All this did was numb us out. "Super powers" are the results of a specific traumatic upbringing.
@barbarafisher4915
3 ай бұрын
@@gooseazul I think we had the same Mom. Though I grew up in the 1970s.
@Nariasan
3 ай бұрын
I have the misfortune of being autistic and bipolar with no talents whatsoever. My special interests are writing and TTRPGs, but I can't say I'm good at either. As a result, neurotypicals see me as lazy and useless, because I spend a lot of time hyperfixated on my interests, but nothing comes of it. Being autistic without the "superpowers" of being a "genius" in my interests is absolutely soul crushing because I'm seen as useless to society in every facet of my existence. (Except maybe paying taxes.)
@toolatetothestory
3 ай бұрын
@@Nariasan Same dude. Same. I am only really interested in games and KZitem essays. All other hobbies I wish I could have are too expensive or just not realistic and I'm not allowed to have pets either. I have nothing, therefore I Am nothing
@brookejohnson9914
3 ай бұрын
A dinkus! I have been wondering for YEARS what that thing is called. I used to read fanfic that used them very frequently.
@lauramcastro4897
3 ай бұрын
LOL, my first thought was this! "So the author used abundant dinkus to break the narration in scenes, in a more cinematic manner? ... ... ... ... ... ... ... like fifteen hundred fanfics I've read?"
@NotD-kp3by
3 ай бұрын
I am honestly glad they wrote Beth and Jolene's relationship. Yes they do play into the black best friend trope but would be even worse if they played into the black predator trope instead (not to mention young Jolene and adult Jolene have the same Actor while Beth is played by a child im sure that was also a motivation to cut that out) Also writing about race isn't always a good thing if it isnt written well, yes it may be more "authentic" but an awful alway to set up a life long friendship plus it gives power to Beth in a relationship that is supposed to be equal. I think in a show like this, when it comes to black characters if you dont have anything good to say, dont say anything all
@Pumpkin.Crowz_
3 ай бұрын
I love the idea that Beth is autistic. I am an autistic person. my special interest is biology. I've always been extremely good at biology. Where I relate to Beth most is how she feels after losing a game. Like her only talent isn't good enough. the thing she prides herself on most, she's not the best at. I feel like that whenever I don't do well on a bio test. The fear that the only thing you are good at, you aren't truly good at. I grew up as a 'gifted kid' I thought that I needed to be the best at everything. I relate to Beth so much because of the way she copes with this idea that she isn't good enough at chess. She is amazing reputation of autistic people who aren't geniuses, but are above average.
@mtea3596
3 ай бұрын
OMG… It suddenly hit me that you’re not only filming this video as a conversation between 2 men but 2 chess players, black and white
@garrylarry890
3 ай бұрын
Bro 😅
@Critic115
18 күн бұрын
"Addiction is caused by addiction", yeah, that's a real thing. It doesn't matter what drives your first time, addiction becomes the drive to fulfill itself.
@bye1551
19 сағат бұрын
There's a reason we have an "addiction" gene. No addiction is less severe than another, save chemical addiction like nicotine. It's the mentality of "this fixes my problems". For a lot of autistic people, hyper fixations can become addictions. Escapism from the daily struggle of being disabled, because it's the tantalising promise of that superpower media promised us. The joy of learning drowns out the pain of inadequacy everywhere else and we just succumb to the mentality of "just 1 more." 1 more pill, 1 more game, 1 more book. The brain really doesn't know the difference.
@branddransnothing
3 ай бұрын
A DINKUS. OMG I JUST SIMPLY WANTED TO SEPARATE MY WRITING INTO DIFFERENT SCENES AND NOW I KNOW WHAT IT IS CALLED.
@peccantis
3 ай бұрын
NGL I could totally see a Queen's Gambit anime with that specific OP shot, just spiced up a bit with some overlapping parallax effects and swipey movements with the chess pieces, with her standing there and staring in eerie determined silence in the middle.
@splendidfairywren9997
3 ай бұрын
i really appreciate the critic vs defender presentation of your videos. it's a very interesting way to explore different interpretations of a work and the context behind creative decisions, even ones that didn't work
@lauramcastro4897
3 ай бұрын
Now, on the "cost of genius", sick anime and chess... James, I implore you to check out Sangatsu no Lion. It's a manga/anime incredibly reminiscent of The Queen's Gambit, about an young shogi prodigy trust into a professional player's life by the death of his parents. It's an incredibly delicate and sensitive manga about trauma, bullying, isolation, and also the power of shogi (and friendship. because of course.) And there are also cats. I bet you'd love it.
@fernandohernandezqu8984
3 ай бұрын
Commenting for the algorithm, may this work of high quality not go unnoticed
@gooseazul
3 ай бұрын
Excellent video. I appreciate the format of you debating yourself. The cost of genius. I really, really like that topic, and yeah, very high intelligence in women is costly. Not all autistic people have traded that intrensic social wisdom for a "super power" but I'm autistic and tested in the 99th percentile academically as a child and actively would have traded my brain away for some friends. I really, really enjoyed Beth as female autistic representation. She Did succeed. She Did form a few real social bonds. She Did master her craft. And she had to learn to navigate her trauma. I didn't meet someone who loved me without trying to modify me until I was 27 and it was profoundly impactful. I'll be forever grateful to him, despite the logistics i couldn't fix for him, for showing me I'm a whole person rather than a poor substitute. Brilliant autistic women, especially raised by women who refuse to acknowledge their own neurodivergence and try to figuratively and literally beat it out of us because they hate seeing that rejected aspect of themstin us... Those women usually struggle with self acceptance all their lives. We were raised that with our potential and our god given big beautiful brains we're obligated to go far. And not to is akin to stealing. Or sloth. Autistic, intelligent women often battle depression, imposter syndrome, and unrealistic expectations. The focus moves from what we do very well to what we do very poorly. Beth struggles with addiction and there but for the grace of God go I. I love when adaptations play with the cost of genius in ways that don't just feel fake.
@k-onlegacy
2 ай бұрын
If only my mom was on the path of healing, we'd be the best of friends
@paigehansen8944
3 ай бұрын
This was surprisingly excellent!! The framing (both of the shots and of the narrative), the script & line delivery, the cuts to story beats and narration of the original text, everything You nailed it I think KZitem has rotted my brain a bit, I almost didn’t click because of the view count but you proved me wrong! Liked & subbed 👍🏻
@connerblank5069
3 ай бұрын
Anyone who doesn't think chess would make good tv _clearly_ hasn't watched 75 episodes of Hikaru no Go. Man, I should watch that show again.
@mariamatedei
3 ай бұрын
Amazing video, it's crazy this quality doesn't come from a bigger channel. Particularly I personally love the visual aspects that are used for editing!!
@starsong3
3 ай бұрын
the framing of this discussion was so fun and i loved what you had to say!
@danielcarens-nedelsky742
4 ай бұрын
Another banger video! I really appreciate that you discussed Beth's neurodivergence/neurodivergent coding. I would love to see you do a similar analysis of Poor Things' Bella. I feel another good companion peice of media is Frieren: Beyond Journey's End. On my reading Frieren is autistic, but rather than focus on her genuis the story is about her connecting with other people, and other people learning how to connect with and understand her. It's just so gentle and lovely, while still being a great character study.
@vestofholding
3 ай бұрын
7:56 You deserve so many more subscribers just the commitment to this joke alone, lol. This is my first video of yours and I already knew I was subscribing for the inventive style you brought this video, and this proved I was right.
@seniorss2401
3 ай бұрын
This is such a detailed and perfectly crafted video, you deserve more bro
@paulinedunne3481
3 ай бұрын
It's been a while since I watched, and I never read it, but learning about some of these changes is insightful. Like I remember one of my biggest issues with the series as a viewer was the kind of... shounen? way Beth would defeat men who then all turned around to be her close good friends despite treating her with a lot of contempt when they first met or being in active opposition to her. To me it was a nineties-esque sort of feminist television messaging where women have to earn men's respect by being better than them. Learning that a lot of this was added in adaptation, that the characters they choose to expand were mostly men (instead of her having a friendship with Annette Packer, for instance, if they were developing minor characters) and that her significant complicated relationship with Jolene was sanitised, and that Cleo was basically invented wholecloth to be a destructive force in her life changes the way that I think about the series a lot actually! A lot of these changes erase/weaken the complicated political background of the setting, and again, I haven't read it, but either Tevis set the book he published in 1983 in the 50's-60's on purpose or Frank Scott the director decided to. It is not set in the this time period accidentally by either of them.
@Kinochai
4 ай бұрын
Great video! I am curious whether the video's somewhat abrupt ending was a stylistic choice for a reason I'm not gleaning, or if it was done because there wasn't really much more to be said that would make it worthwhile to have a proper conclusion section. I liked that the video ended with the two characters conceding to the major points of the other, hammering home that they are both right in some aspects and not in others, but I am also curious as to the lack of a 3rd, semi-omniscient character, essentially just you really, to bring it to a close. Sorry for the ramble, these are just some immediate thoughts.
@justine4581
3 ай бұрын
Absolutely obsessed with the chess match format of this video!! Cannot believe how few subs you have!! You remind me a ton of Dominic Noble!! Very glad to have found your channel and excited to see more from you :D
@tahoemike5828
2 ай бұрын
This was an interesting deep dive. The show doesn't portray the tranquilizers as performance enhancing, it portrays Beth, an addict as believing that they are; while they are wrecking her life.
@violetlavi2207
18 күн бұрын
YES this! That's the whole reason the ending is so impactful - she assumed the drugs made her successful, but she discovered that no, it was HER own skill that made her successful
@js66613
3 ай бұрын
You CAN counter that. The SA and the verbal bullying for Beth standing up for herself, effectively justisfies her snapping at Jolene, especially considering she too used a racially-charged name for her, AFTER she SA'd her, and it also plays into the hypersexual black person stereotype and the black rap---. Just because something existed in the time period you're depicting doesn't *actually* mean you *have* to show it, that it has a point in showing it, that it'll improve the quality of the tale or the characters, or their relationship. All it does is confuse the relationship - WTF would Beth want to stick around her SA-er. People that get SA'd, once they realise it, tend to want little to do with them, and ESPECIALLY if their rejection to their advances is met with nastiness as if the abuser is in the right. All it does is imply "just stick it to your SA-er and everything will be fine.
@violetlavi2207
18 күн бұрын
YEP this!! I kept waiting for him to bring that up, but he never did. Cutting the SA from Jolene and the slur from Beth would just play into the black predator trope...and also the fact that Jolene would "gain respect" for Beth after Beth uses the n-word against her is pretty icky too
@thisrandomdude_
Ай бұрын
this has gotta be one of my favourite video essays about a show ever. so frickin' creative, to the point, and substanceful. god bless man
@blossomi.2824
3 ай бұрын
Haven’t finished the video but the part about Jolene was so good and necessary. I loved the show and thought it was a masterpiece but as a black woman it bothered me so much. And the dialogue about not being there to save her but that they were family (despite not being in contact at all) just made it glaringly obvious. I didn’t even know the Queen’s Gambit was an adaptation so I didn’t know Jolene was more complex in the book. I understand cutting the inciting scene because they were children but they should have replaced it with some other incident causing their antagonist relationship and kept everything else. I think I would be more satisfied with Jolene’s character that way especially as the only black character in the entire show.
@juliestevens6931
3 ай бұрын
I found this presentation format fascinating. Thank you.
@chillin5703
3 ай бұрын
On Jolene: not all "conversations" about race are worth having.
@Robynhoodlum
3 ай бұрын
As someone who is neurodivergent (though not autistic) and was considered “Gifted” growing up. I can’t agree more with the point that the cost of genius is anxiety and social isolation. It wasn’t until I gave up trying to live up to expectations (others and my own) that I finally stopped being anxious. I loved the scene at the end where Beth is walking in Russia and you can see the relief and the freedom from all her anxieties. She’s at peace with herself finally. It’s easy to assume that’s because she won the tournament, or is finally sober, but it’s just as much the support of her friends and the verification that she isn’t alone and unwanted. I agree that the drug addiction distracts from the fact that all her anxieties are in her own head, but I also know anxiety, depression, and PTSD can all be very self-destructive on their own. I feel like the director leaned on the addiction as a visual for the internal turmoil and didn’t trust that the audience would pick up on Beth’s mental state if she didn’t have a visual cue as well.
@fae567
2 ай бұрын
Two things : Autistic people often have drug problems. It (alcohol, weed, etc) can help us be more social, feel like we either can unmask or mask better depending on the person, or helps reduce stress or overthinking. Neurodivergency is not a scientific term, it's an umbrella term that often includes mental illness too. Funnily enough, personality disorders included. That varies depending on who you ask, but at least from my experience, it's often included. Other than that, great video. And thank you for mentioning Jolene's role, queer relationships and autism. I was definitely not expecting it when I clicked.
@gucctea4169
3 ай бұрын
idk i think faithful adaptation works in some cases, like the hunger games series, sure it's slightly tweaked but for the most part it's very faithful to the books. i think real mastery in screenplay is having a great story in a different medium and being able to translate it in an enjoyable yet faithful way that captures its essence. most of the time a story written will be perfectly fine on its own. i don't think changing too much about the source material makes a movie/show particularly good and i don't think a completely faithful adaptation makes the movie/show necessarily bad. sometimes it just works.
@nathankeel6667
3 ай бұрын
Love this good cop bad cop style of critque of this show and different agnles and arguments for interpretations of the show wail it being over a chess game super cool.
@Critic115
18 күн бұрын
With the dialogue, that just shows how brilliantly the book was written; that it can be taken nearly word for word and put on screen.
@louimmature
3 ай бұрын
i aint never seen a video essay like this; keep up the good work pookie
@mjp121
2 ай бұрын
Normally the frequent links to Patreon would annoy me, but they were tastefully done in moments where a beat of silence added to the script. The invitation to join at the end though prompted a rueful “OH REALLY?”
@JeffiesLife
3 ай бұрын
I really wish they’d make more movies exactly a dialogue from the books
@Zvox
24 күн бұрын
8:25 i've said for many many years that we need to almost completely end the practice of doing movie adaptations of books, for the sole reason of the fact that the vast majority of book adaptations includes massively important plotlines being scrapped or they rush through all the major plot sequences and the point of these events in the story completely lose meaning, and then none of the characters get fleshed out or feel like people. the only way to adapt a book to a movie WELL is to, as mentioned in the beginning of the video, get the general gist of the plot and themes, and then completely throw the book out the window and rewrite it from the beginning. when i was in middle school, my favorite book was Ender's Game. i remember hearing they were making a movie adaptation and being so excited, but then i knew the moment the trailer came out that the movie had no idea what made that book great. it wasn't these action sequences that the movie seemed to focus on, though the book definitely did have action, it certainly wasn't orson scott card because fuck that guy. it was the characters. it was ender's sensitivity and strong sense of guilt. his morality. his tactical creativity and genius. his anger and resentment toward the people that ran battle school and kept putting him in these fucked up and traumatic situations. his relationship to bean and his other friends in spite of the battle school constantly working to isolate him. the movie successfully shows absolutely none of that, because they're trying to sell a sci-fi blockbuster about child soldiers with a 120 minute runtime which just...isn't what ender's game even is. it's awful and doesn't really work narratively on any level. however, ender's game is almost perfectly paced to be adapted into a 10-12 episode miniseries. there are so many chunks of the book that can be perfectly segmented into an episode of television, and do a wonderful job of developing character and emotion. another excellent example, compare the film "the golden compass" to the first season of "his dark materials". one is an adaptation that was so bad that the other two books didn't even get film adaptations, the other is a fantastic series that did a wonderful job of adapting one of my all time favorite book trilogies to a visual medium over 3 seasons, and even makes pacing and story structure improvements to the books. almost every single time i've seen a film adaptation of a book ever since i saw that dogshit ender's game movie, i've had the thought "this would work so much better as a series" and i think that's true 90% of the time, except in the cases that the filmmaker read the book and got something specific out of it that they wanted to say. anyway sorry for yapping, good video.
@dichotomae
Ай бұрын
The games in the queen's gambit are depicted in enough detail that they can be analyzed mostly all the way through, which GothamChess did in a video that i like so much, I watched the whole show again so I could watch each game analysis right after the episode the games were from. I think this is mostly due to the big boards at the tournaments for spectators that show the position every once in a while, and the moves that led to that position can mostly be inferred.
@R-zg4zg
3 ай бұрын
Such a great video! I seem to be on a bit of a media analysis binge at the moment and I really liked the conversation aspect. Can't wait to see what else you create this year.
@lizziele5212
Ай бұрын
i was listening to this in the background until i heard that the queen’s gambit was supposed to be a sports anime. picked up my phone so fast to see a sick intro. i wonder if they’ll be open to making an animation for this book, it’ll be interesting to see since there are things that you can only do in animation and i wonder what will change
@sachter6947
3 ай бұрын
I gave you a like at the begging and wanted to give another at the end, but i forgor i already liked it and felt sad. Great video mate, Hope you blow up and get the rewards you deserve for making such high quality videos!
@Sarah.H5
2 ай бұрын
Firstly, I love the smokey eye look 😍 Secondly, I think the format of expressing arguments as two opponents across the chess board is inspired. I think this allows you to present nuance, and raise thought provoking questions without the viewer thinking you're just offering the "correct" viewpoint. Sadly, I think that's how media criticism is consumed now - as though it's the marketplace of ideas. Well done, there's some excellent ideas and arguments in this essay.
@RebekahDianneLove
3 ай бұрын
Amazing video!!! Love how you constructed the opposing arguments
@duckduckdeer
2 ай бұрын
There’s a very high correlation between neurodivergence and addiction, especially ADHD… given your explanation, it could be seen as externalizing her “genius”, IF in Beth’s case her addiction is partially an attempt at self medicating her “neurodivergence”, or “genius”, not self medicating mental health issues. Definitely a grey area but a slightly different take that more directly links a cost to genius.
@madmanhimes
Ай бұрын
That joke about it becoming a sports anime immediatly made me remember hikaru no go, the anime about go.
@241Cookies__
3 ай бұрын
I want you to know this video essay inspired me to pick up the novel, both as a study for my own writing and for enjoyment. Thank you.
@andrethevirgin
4 ай бұрын
If this story made you realize how much you love not understanding Chess, then March Comes in Like a Lion will really help you not understand Shogi!
@littlemonztergaming8665
2 ай бұрын
The idea and execution of this video is really impressive and inspiring, being able to express all your thoughts in a compelling manner similar to the show- Drawing many parrels to the show and asking hard questions that you don't have quite good answers to. It was really fascinating to see where you'd go next and what your two personas represented, a lot of assumed meta-commentary was going through my head through out it. Then you addressed very fair criticisms with their full merit, truly coming to your own opinion based on all these thoughts. Many will strawman at most, but exploring this was very fun.
@zeroanonymity9736
3 ай бұрын
This is a FANTASTIC way of depicting that internal struggle liking and disliking a piece at the same time. A wonderfully shot and paced allegory for it, I love it.
@mackenziepryor6149
3 ай бұрын
This is such a creative idea for a video, I love getting to hear both sides
@samial
14 күн бұрын
I think sometimes the cost of genius can be that we think we are somehow above the problems of “normal” people. As another autistic person who was labeled “gifted” as a child, it can be very distressing to realize that you can’t always rely on logic to solve your problems, especially when those problems are social or emotional in nature; or when we hit a wall in developing skills where we can no longer skate by on raw talent alone. Our intelligence can also sometimes be used to rationalize our way even deeper into our problems because we can make a convincing argument to lie to ourselves. And even when we realize we have a problem (addiction, for example), we feel ashamed and guilty for having that problem because we feel we are “too smart” to be making such poor decisions, and are less likely to seek help because of that shame and the belief that we can and should solve our problems alone. So to me the cost of genius is at least partly about the internalization of the incredibly high expectations placed on an intelligent child, and then having to face the reality as they grow older that they can’t rely on raw intellect for everything, and that we are just as human and vulnerable as anyone else.
@Paper.8ag
3 ай бұрын
I like to think that from her natural talent for chess, formed an addiction to winning it, coping with losses by filling the gaps with other addictions, and then the other addictions kept nipping hr addiction to winning in the butt.
@milkbox103
3 ай бұрын
I love how you dress your videos up to fit the theme of what you're covering!
@matthewmoraes1377
3 ай бұрын
how does the video only have 18k views and the channel 50k subs, tammy whole time watching i thought this was a 500k+ sub viral video. kudos to you
@earthlingphilosophy3531
2 ай бұрын
I would like to say as an autistic female that there is a high rate of co-morbidity among especially autists who were not diagnosed young in life. Which tends to be porportionally more women because we are diagnosed in 1/16 the rate of males. These are illnesses or states such as social anxiety disorder, generalized anxiety, major depressive disorder, PTSD/CPTSD, agoraphobia, persistent avoidance disorder. Alcoholism, self harm, suicide, drug abuse is also especially high in "high functioning autistics" as a form of self medication and coping. I myself have experienced some of these things. I personally do not think the autistic population connection to Beth because she is "gifted". We connect to her because we see our own struggle in life reflected back to us. We see the yearning, the need to be good at something. We see how Beth takes personal issue with her failures. We see he form problematic attachments to men. We see her struggle to form lasting friendships and not know how to maintain those friendships. We see her find drugs and alcohol and realize how they seem to calm her. I think it is true Beth is gifted with chess but she is also obsessed and possessed by chess. I personally think have a special interest one is so possessed by is a good thing, it gives meaning. As long as one doesn't attach their entire self worth to it as Beth does.
@Iyla_Basil
28 күн бұрын
I have one issue with the approach of forgetting the book in order to write a screenplay, the movie Eragon. On the surface, it's a coming of age story about a child and his dragon, but they abandoned all of the key character notes in order to create that story, not to mention doing so poorly, while simultaneously ruining every characters personal arch moving forward
@elixerstarlight
28 күн бұрын
love the way this video was formatted
@janethayes5941
3 ай бұрын
I think when The Great Gatsby was made into a movie with Robert Redford, they did an excellent job of staying very close to the book.
@JeffiesLife
3 ай бұрын
Also, can’t believe you don’t have more subs this was a phenomenal presentation
@CadetRedShirt
4 ай бұрын
Great video! I did really love the series, and i feel like the cast chosen really helped the strong story
@SuperPuper000
2 ай бұрын
The final dialogue is like a tense third act, bravo!
@thinkingofthings5593
Ай бұрын
I think the addiction theme was so superfluous in this show. Her big character flaw on display is clearly that she is socially passive. She does never initialise an important interaction, people just keeps showing up to help her. (It was instructive to see that in the book she actually reached out to her sister for help, while in the show she just showed up.) That is what makes the last game resolution so frustrating to watch. She does not over come this problem. I would have liked to see her call all of her friends and they get together on her initiative and figure out how to win the game together. Instead they reach out to her, and then she is not using their solution, but instead she can see the solution on the ceiling without drugs. Addiction is what writers give a character after they realised that they have created someone too flawless. She did not need it (as a character).
@lorettabes4553
3 ай бұрын
25:38 This is a strength of adaptations. Stories that are short enough can get more time for other characters (I'm thinking Heartstopper). It's awesome.
@ArthurGiantCat
3 ай бұрын
This is still one of my favorite shows and this great video essay (in what's become such an oversaturated market imo). Really excited to check out the rest of the channel :)
@ragingbirdgod
Ай бұрын
this is an amazingly made video. incredibly engaging and well done. i hope you get all your flowers 💐
@chrussublah4264
2 ай бұрын
as a black queer person im going to strongly disagree about Jolene. I personally dont think leaving out 4 very pervasive stereotypes (predatory lesbian, the jezebel, the angry black girl and the magical negro) makes the story or the friendship less compelling. You could achieve an antagonistic relationship without the inclusion of attempted SA imo. This whole idea of "it has something to say about race" but what did it actually try to say in the book? It doesnt add any value to me. There are ways it could be written that still show the racism in the 60s without slapping multiple offensive stereotypes on Jolene. The idea that Beth saying one of the worst slurs you could say to a black person gains that black persons respect is WILD to me. It's painfully obvious that a white person wrote it, who was yet to evaluate their own biases and question WHY they wrote a black girl the way they did. Them leaving that whole disaster out, counts as a point in the adaptations favor in my book. And again, I just want to ask, what exactly did this add to the story? What exactly did it have to say about racism in the 60s? And yeah no, the stereotype of a predatory lesbian trying to force themselves on another isnt really what I would catergorize as a "queer moment" It shouldnt be cut because it's more explicit to watch than read, it should be cut because it's a regurgitation of an old and pervasive stereotype about gay people being predatory that persists to this day. A stereotype that leads to a "hide your kids" sentiment in the present day, when it comes to queer people. I feel kind of split on cleo, because she is still in the position to be bad and a corrupting force in beths story. Like you said yourself. its not groundbreaking. I'd argue it's just not that good. Every reference we get to queer people in the story is in a sort of negative light. Townes being gay to explain away why he didnt make a move is a bit silly, when it's implied through the story, that Beth herself if Bi\ Bi-curious with Cleos inclusion in the story. There is other ways to explain why he didnt, like her being underage or just not being into her like that.
@clouyd
Ай бұрын
this was a wonderful watch!
@stephcannon2106
3 ай бұрын
I Really love the format you did! Great job!
@Critic115
18 күн бұрын
I think that whether it's been "done before" is irrelevant to whether an adaption is good. It's extreeeemly rare to see a completely new technique in filmmaking.
@caitlynnrosey
Ай бұрын
This video is top tire, loved the format of the chess game within the conversation. Elequently spoken and researched.
@lordaaa9945
3 ай бұрын
My god this video was so well put together. Amazing script, excellent acting great pacing that knew exactly when to introduce more complicated concepts into the discussion. It started very slowly with just how the show follows the book a lot and turned into a deep discussion of mental illness, neuro divergence, and how the show vs. the book handles that without you even knowing how much further you gone into this discussion when watching the video. A slippery slope of learning(?)
@hiitsjustdee
3 ай бұрын
Only watched the intro so far, and DAMN what a good one at that! Hooked me while having my morning coffee. Excited to watch the rest :) Edit: Speaking of compelling, your dialogue with your different characters from opposing viewpoints is so well done, I'm subbing and checking out your other stuff! Love the style and the breakdown!
@confused_reader
3 ай бұрын
holy, this et up was great, and illustrated the points about how dialogue and emotion can show the tides of a chess game, rather than having too look and the board and try and teach the audience what is happening.
@SamasBananas1
3 ай бұрын
Another piece of chess media that absolutely slaps is Hatley High. Extremely good Canadian film
@mjp121
2 ай бұрын
Unrelated to subject your hair game is on point in both styles and the outfits look sharp. The two sides were a wonderful narrative device
@Quon_the_Destroyer
2 ай бұрын
Damn good video. Enjoyed the thing you had going with the two players having an argument while competing in chess. And I’m glad they didn’t move onto monopoly, things wouldn’t have ended so nicely if that was the game being played.
@somerotter
Ай бұрын
How a novel translates to film and how well it does really depends on the source. Something like No Country For Old Men was basically a screenplay already, while something like Ulysses is all but unfilmable.
@2inpress232
3 ай бұрын
I LOVE LOVE LOVE the way that the video is presented what an incredible work
@cokeandhalozz
2 ай бұрын
Ungodly low subscription count for this mastery in youtube cinema. Great work
@GiveBackAll
Ай бұрын
This video deserves my subscription. Brilliant quality, and I definitely learned much about screenwriting
@andrewhallock2548
2 ай бұрын
This just appeared in my feed and was brilliantly done. I haven't seen the entirety of the show. I watched the first three episodes, however. Interesting take and I love the ending of this video.
@saberg1082
Ай бұрын
They did something similar with "Good Omens" and it worked beautifully.
@TAMMYOS-lm7nf
2 ай бұрын
I cannot believe I just watched someone debate themself while also playing chess WITH THEMSELF for 5 minutes and not get bored.
@anonymouslystupid5857
3 ай бұрын
i like that it focuses more on beths addiction a lot of people including me suspect beth is autistic, and a lot of levle 1 and 2 autistic people rely on drugs to function and a lot of them become addicts. bc this world isnt built to help us and our obsessions run wild drugs can help enhance that focus and drive, but it can also be a distraction. i really like how they chaged the last game she lost to be blamed bc of her impulses. its when beth is given a clear ultimatum, drugs or chess. she cant have both anymore and drugs arnt doing what she wanted anymore. bc thats how drugs work, at first you control it and use it but after awhile its out of your hands and its punishing you and evryone around you. thats why we see her loose the few people who cared about her, and when she got sober they had her back. but thats just how i saw it
@Veronensis
3 ай бұрын
Best tv/film analyses I've seen on youtube in quite some time!
@jonathan-._.-
2 ай бұрын
"genius" is very often misused as synonymous with a very focused set of experiences that give you a very whole view of that field but usually expose a lack in others
@idab9958
3 ай бұрын
It kinda bothered me that Beth's queerness wasn't more explicit. She and Cleo aren't actually shown in the same bed and they both wake up with their clothes on. The obvious subtext _is_ that they hooked up, but it is absolutely possible to deny that that's what was going on if you're the sort of person who doesn't want to see queerness represented in media. It all felt like a bit too much of the "if you know you know, wink wink" kind of representation to me.
@FilipKatalenic
2 ай бұрын
I love that they actualy played an opening called the queen's gambit.
@choirmeyer
3 ай бұрын
And now I want to watch the series again. :) Cool analysis. Oh and - this whole discussion demonstrates the achievement of the show is that it leaves analysts a LOT to talk about and discuss. That is I think, what made the show so fascinating. The show brought up the complicatedness of being a genius, and struggling with addiction because of her anxieties and/or her genetics/and or life overall - without stating explicitedly what caused which where. My thought is regardless of if they chess and additions are causations or correlations, the story is one of personal decision making and growth. It's about HER thoughts on the subject. And much like a book, or a movie, or even with your best of friends, you may not know their internal thoughts at all on the subject. Only what they choose to share. The masterpiece in this work is how her thoughts are shown, and just like in real life - we only know what is shared. Does it matter what attributed to which? Only to HER. And this work really makes a point of that. And, the changes made were made, I think, to keep the focus on this.
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