The Match

The average rating of this film can go and get stuffed. This film is so good, but it's probably is an acquired taste. This film is based on the historical events in the 80s and 90s between Cho Hun-Hyun and Lee Chang-Ho, two GOATED Go professionals. Reviews on this appear to not have a basic level knowledge of the game Go which perhaps disconnects them from the film, unlike myself, even with the lowest of levels of knowledge of the game. They probably assume that the film should go beyond the mechanics of the game so people unknowing of the game can enjoy it just as much as I did, but I'd disagree. The film is a surprisingly accurate retelling of the events, albeit including dramatised moments or events which is understandable. Lee Byung-Hun's performance is very compelling and is even acknowledged by Cho Hun-Hyun himself. A criticism someone had was that they didn't really care for the characters that much, however, I believe that because they are based in real people, you can't denote a film for its characters where there technically isn't, it's how those people behaved imitated by actors. You can't judge a retelling of historical events' characters on their writing like you would a fictional one because there is none. In all honesty, I never thought a game of Go could be that tense, and that engaging. The way it's filmed, the use of music really fuels the stakes at hand of each major game they play. It's actually so good, I'm still in awe to be honest, probably to some of your surprises but I genuinely loved it. This has definitely helped me in realising average ratings, or critics' reviews mean very little.