Rematch Series Review: Memorable performances and good moral standing hide weak writing

The story of an underdog often shows the humanity behind ambition, highlighting the hardships, failures, and challenges of the hero to inspire the viewer and give weight to their victory. But what if the challenge lies in something you cannot see? In a world of entertaining sports, chess is one sport where the struggle is internal, as it poses its set of psychological challenges. Rematch highlights the challenges faced by Garry Kasparov as he goes up against a peculiar rival: the IBM supercomputer Deep Blue. The series poses an important question to its viewers: Is the continual development of artificial intelligence good for humans?

Director: Yan England
Cast: Christian Cooke, Sarah Bolger, Aidan Quinn, Orion Lee, Tom Austen, and Tine Dyrholm

Streamer: Lionsgate Play

Garry Kasparov is known for his deep concentration. The series effectively highlights this concentration through the skilful use of tracking shots. Kasparov is displayed as a strategist. He is a man who will go over every scenario to find the perfect way to outsmart a machine, which can do hundreds of calculations within minutes to beat Kasparov. Rematch employs tracking shots to visually convey the intense focus of Kasparov’s thought process. These shots, interspersed with the strategic use of elapsed time, effectively heighten the drama and tension. Adding to the intrigue is Christian Cooke’s performance as Kasparov. Neglecting the accent, Cooke portrays the restrained complexity of a man who has tasted victory and wants to continue to be victorious, because he is scared of losing. In key moments of the series, where Kasparov is shown to explode due to his hesitation to accept losses, Cooke’s portrayal of a man uncomfortable with his own anger but not unable to keep it in hits the mark.

Beyond Cooke, Sarah Bolger’s performance as Sarah Brock, a representation of capitalism, makes up for a memorable counterpoint to Kasparov. Brock serves as Kasparov's ideological opposite. Even though the show tries to redeem Brock to make us root for her, Bolger still convinces us of the ambitious nature that influences the competition. With them, Orion Lee and Tom Austen, as PC and Paul Nelson, highlight the tragic sacrifices made by people when the odds are stacked against them. As the inventor of Deep Blue, PC, Orion Lee portrays the vulnerable nature of a man who is unable to stand up for himself when Brock and others take credit for his inventions. Meanwhile, Austen as Nelson lands perfectly as a man who wants challenges continuously in his life to prove himself.

But Rematch falters in its writing. In its attempt to create a labyrinthine psychological drama, it continues to stick in the corner of generic writing. Like a chess game, the key to a good episode is to form good strategies for the opening, the middle, and the end. Every episode of the series starts with a cold open, where you expect the motive for the episode to be detailed. But they are faulty enough for you to keep guessing where the episode will go. As the episode unfolds, you realise that the motive is not substantiated properly, as the episode moves away from the cold open, with nothing to tie the beginning and the rest of the episode. In a dramatic series, the ending should land the point of one episode and act as a lead-in to the next to keep the viewers on edge. But the episodes here do not have proper endings.

Rematch deals with an important subject matter in the digital age. It shows the efforts man can go to replicate the computing power of machines. Its discourse on the power of the mind is necessary in the age of brainrot. But in the end, the series has its own flaws. It serves up some half-complete writing that propels a weak story of a legend. Nevertheless, Rematch is worthwhile for someone who is interested in an easy weekend watch and/or who is interested in learning chess.