Movie review: Private Tropical 16 "Sun, beach and chess" (2005) (Kathy Undersun, Jennifer Acetone, Veronica de Arousa)

The most recognized board game is, without a doubt, chess. The infinite combinations that can occur on those sixty-four black and white squares, the great battles that were resolved this way during the Cold War, and its unknown origin have turned it into a myth. Max Bellocchio wanted to pay homage to this "sport" in the sixteenth film of the saga. The number of pieces is no small matter, as each opponent has 16 pieces at the beginning of the game: eight pawns, two rooks, two knights, two bishops, the queen, and the king.

Part 1 of Sun, beach & chess

Part 2 of Sun, beach & chess

TRAILER of Sun, beach & chess

At the beginning of the film, austere white letters on a black background (the colors of chess) already announce the film's seriousness. Sun, sand, and chess are a clear statement of intent. Tropical elements characteristic of this saga, in keeping with this noble game that has transcended borders and was already beginning to enjoy its true revolution in 2005 with the popularization of the internet.

The film opens in the heart of Europe, in Budapest, the city where Grandmaster Géza Maróczy died. A middle-aged man wanders through the center of the Hungarian capital until he stops in front of a shop window to read something carefully.

The place in question is Andrassy Avenue, right in front of the Budapest Opera House

The gentleman seems very interested.

Chess player Tony Baron approaches the travel agency and reads the signs and confirms that the company specializes in organizing chess retreats. It's the establishment he's been looking for. Trips where chess enthusiasts can meet other premium compulsive gamblers—compulsive gamblers nonetheless—and enjoy a few days off in a tropical paradise, improving their chess strategies and perfecting their openings.

Manager Bruno's shirt already takes you back to the resort or a Basquiat painting...

Bruno begins by asking if he heard about the agency through advertising or the internet, but Tony replies that he learned about them through Mr. Schmid, who could be German Grandmaster Lothar Maximilian Lorenz Smith, who was still alive when this film was shot.

He then goes on to explain that the trip is all-inclusive for just 2,500 euros: flights, hotels, full board, and, of course, simultaneous games, opening theory, high-level tactics, and registration for the Colonial Tournament, held in the resort's garden.

Tony Baron is excited

Tony Baron, a doctor at Saint Rochus Hospital, doesn't want his wife to find out about his trip. Tony's constant mood swings during his preparations, frustration over losing moves, and his fluctuating ELO ratings brought the couple to the brink of breaking up, and she took a stand: chess or me. Therefore, Tony wants to keep it a secret that he still enjoys chess. Now that his wife has been away for two weeks to take care of her mother, he wants to take advantage of this opportunity.

The "bulocrat" Bruno explains that, in order to preserve his privacy, they don't deal with physical paperwork and that it's not necessary to sign printed documents. Therefore, he won't receive an invoice or anything like that, making it impossible for his wife to find out about his chess trip.

A handshake is better than any signature on manila paper.

After reaching this verbal agreement, Bruno urges him to go up to the second floor, where his secretary Monique will finalize the details so he can travel as soon as possible.

Monique is a high-level chess player

Finally, you have to sign the papers...

Tony Baron doesn't seem surprised to see that the helpful girl actually hands him some documents to sign, which, she explains, are related to insurance. The insurance company must have its own internal policy, and a zero-paper contract doesn't usually guarantee the legal certainty necessary for this type of contract.

After finishing the paperwork, Monique, a FIDE master, challenges him to a blindfolded game before boarding. Tony Baron sits down on the couch and begins with a smug A4, implying that Monique won't stand a chance during the game.

Nothing like a blindfold game that starts with an A4

To the Caribbean

Driver to welcome the chess grandmasters

Upon landing at Gregorio Luperón Airport in San Felipe de Puerto Plata, driver Armando Jaleo greets Tony Baron, carrying a 40-centimeter-long white bishop carved from sandalwood. This is how he'll recognize him in the crowd.

Then they climb into a modest Honda Civic VII sedan and head to the resort where the retreat will take place. As soon as they park, they are greeted by the impressive Denise, a FIDE Master player who has reached nearly 2400 ELO on more than one occasion and now works for Bruno from this resort in Cabarete (Dominican Republic).

In position for bullfighting

Striking headdress in the hair that contrasts with the grandmaster's light beige overcoat

Denise greets Tony Baron with kindness and an almost apologetic attitude. She warmly welcomes him to the Dreams Host Residence, a resort specializing in chess retreats for Westerners and Asians. Memorable games have already been played within its walls, and its Colonial Tournament is gaining an ever-increasing reputation within FIDE.

Logo of the resort

Mr. Baron will be staying in the Fianchetto Suite, located in a pied-a-terre by the sea. It's curious that he's been assigned this room, since Fianchetto isn't a system of play Tony regularly practices, except when facing the King's Indian or the Grunfeld Opening. Denise tells him her room is the Scheveningen Suite, so he can come and find her whenever he wants to play a game. She'll always be available, she tells him.

The bishop is now pointing towards the large diagonal

Something truly important also happens during this meeting. Denise points out that, since it's an all-inclusive resort, she doesn't need cash or credit cards, so she urges him to keep them in the safe. It's clear that the Dominican Republic has a higher crime rate than Europe, and burglaries occur in hotel rooms because the maids have meager salaries.

In reality, with this gesture Tony Baron is offering him a chess ambush...

A trap is a move that appears to be advantageous for the opponent, but which actually hides a trap that can lead to a loss of material or even a checkmate.

From the gates of the Fianchetto, Tony Baron scans the horizon

and this is what he sees

This exotic resort is the dream destination for every chess player. Tony Baron watches with great inner peace as several young women attend a class on the Bellón Gambit. However, he soon loses sight of them and heads to the Scheveningen Suite, where Denise is spending the night.

It comes in like a splinter cell, or not even that, because a two-door house is hard to guard...

Tony carries a video camera in his hand

The camera is a pair of sunglasses and leaves them on a shelf, in the purest Mission Impossible style

Many chess Grandmasters have obsessions, and Bobby Fisher's, for example, is quite well-known. His placing a camera in the room of his eventual tournament opponent, Denise, may have been intended to spy on the openings she's perfecting. The camera points toward her bed, which is where high-level chess players train.

Tony Baron has finished installing the camera and is walking through the garden of Dreams Host Residence (Villa Coco Mar)

Image of Villa Coco Mar today, with the roof remodeled

Aerial view of Google Maps 

All the resort from above

He leans against the beach fence and decides to enjoy the view

By the shore, two blondes from a magazine are playing a very complex game, featuring piece sacrifices and brilliant moves with advanced tactics. Tony Baron focuses more on their sculpted bodies than on the board, because flesh is weak. They look like twins from a distance, although that may be due to their identical platinum blonde hair color and the haze that brushes the Cabarete beach.

They are playing with two boards, which increases the difficulty

Bellocchio spins a fine line with a scene in which a white queen and a black pawn appear

Armando Jaleo returns to action, transforming from a helpful chauffeur into a necessary collaborator in a fraud scheme. He's going to be the mule who takes the credit cards to Budapest to extract as much money as possible from their respective checking accounts. We're not told why these cards need to cross the Atlantic to carry out the heist, but Armando assures us he'll be back on Monday.

Honda Incivic...

The scene was filmed in Villa 10a of Hacienda El Choco, but with the tribal techamen. This villa was filmed from a car years later and can be seen in this video of Youtube

Tony Baron knows a FIDE master: Marc

At the villa's restaurant, Marc and Tony Baron meet and decide to share a table. That's when Marc, who has come to the chess retreat to finally raise those 50 ELO points that are preventing him from obtaining a certified title, explains that he's taken advantage of his wife's move to Greece to visit this resort. He's packed more books than underwear, although all the books are about chess tactics, and someone once said that there's one thing worse than not reading: reading biasedly... or only about one subject. Erudition is severely crippled in such cases...

Furthermore, Marc, who is more of a sucker than the guy who announced check to the queen, explains that he's left his credit card in the safe because everything here is free. He mentions this as a test, to see if Tony Baron is surprised or if he's also been coerced into leaving his cards at the mercy of the agency...

It doesn't seem to be the sharspest pencil, of course.

On the other hand, the insecure Marc, who doesn't want his real ELO to be revealed among those present, asks Grandmaster Tony Baron if he's already checkmated... but Tony replies that he's just arrived and hasn't even been able to play a game, contenting himself so far with watching the girls learn openings or play on the fine Caribbean sand. That's when Marc urges him to go to Villa Alekhine, where there are always two players willing to play a few games. Tony Baron doesn't think twice and says goodbye without further delay.

Bed gambit

Jacqueline and Nora are discussing Fischer Random Chess (960 Chess) when Tony Baron enters the scene. After a brief exchange, they play a few games, and poor Tony is defeated without much effort. This greatly unsettles the players because a Grandmaster doesn't usually make these kinds of concessions. They even believe he's trying to flirt with them by letting himself lose. Tony defends himself by claiming he drank too many cocktails during dinner with Marc. It's common knowledge that alcohol affects memory, concentration, and decision-making. At a blood alcohol level of 0.10, errors can become unsustainable. And, of course, even the best scribe makes a mistake... it could be a bad day.

However, Tony had been drinking only Remoras, a sweet, lemon-flavored, non-alcoholic cocktail. That's why, as soon as he returns to the Fianchetto Suite, he gets to work in front of his laptop. Now we realize the true purpose of the sunglasses in the Scheveningen room, because they record a phone conversation between Denise and Bruno about credit cards.

Discovered check...

and the queen falls

Denise isn't exactly the princess of the pea, and not only would she not notice the legume under the soft mattresses, but she also doesn't realize that a video camera has been placed in her own room, even though it's obvious because they're wearing men's sunglasses.

Tony Baron is surprisingly happy after discovering the operation

The next day, on the beach in Cabarete, Denise is again cordial to Tony Baron, although she refuses to play a game against him. She always uses excuses like lack of time and overwork, postponing the chess battle indefinitely.

This is difficult to understand for a chess player, for whom the available time is always spent playing chess. The past is only taken into account when remembering mistakes and inaccuracies on the board, and the future only has meaning if it is transformed into brilliant and exceptional moves. The present is invested in continuing to learn, immersed in this playful universe and, at the same time, an inexhaustible source of dopamine. J.G. Ballard once said that the most prudent and effective method for dealing with the world around us is to consider it completely fictional, and at this point chess players are true experts because the board is a way to distance themselves from reality and focus on the next five moves.

Tony Baron is always drinking...

As soon as they suggest he place the chess pieces, he decides to leave.

Tony Baron is left without Denise's company, but by his side is a young prodigy who is studying the enigmatic Colle system, with which she intends to pull off an upset at the Colonial Tournament, for which there are fewer hours left with each passing day.

Colle: a closed opening for a solid gaming system

Nearby, in another villa, Marc and Steve enjoy a break by the pool and, despite being in the preparation phase, decide to go to the city of Sosúa to see the carnival parade. The picturesque carnivals of the Caribbean in particular, and throughout Latin America in general, are very special and lively. Steve, a mediocre player, is still relying on crazy openings like the Englund Gambit. He's not a major character in this film.

Marc y Steve want to go to Carnival

Denise approaches the pool, and that's when Marc asks Denise to return his credit card so they can go to the city. She stiffens like a beam and diverts the two chess players' attention by offering them a two-handed game against her. It's a great offer they can't refuse, so they gladly accept.

Woman's Tools...

Photograph of the village of El Choco where this scene was filmed

This villa in the web Ocean Side Realty

That evening, Tony Baron continues to insist on convincing Denise to challenge him to a chess match and decides to have dinner with her at the villa's restaurant. He's the kind of guy who believes that "no" is already there, so anything that happens will be a win-win situation. For now, he's there with her enjoying a tasting menu.

Denise, with her typical elegance, gives him the runaround again

The Hungarian Grandmaster uses reverse psychology and tells her he wants to play chess with other women, although he makes the mistake of adding that he could teach her the secrets of the Italian Gambit. Nothing works, and Denise remains elusive to him. She reminds him that there are international masters at the club who are more than willing to learn theory from a player who boasts a 2700 ELO rating.

An important call

As soon as Denise excuses herself, Tony calls someone and introduces himself as Cervino. He talks about an ongoing investigation and asks for more time so he can complete all the inquiries and tie up loose ends.

Next, Tony Baron (Cervino) goes off with two international masters who beat him up again on the chessboard. They laugh it off and again believe it's the Hungarian's alcohol addiction that allows such bizarre situations.

Misterious calls

The next day, Denise calls Bruno to arrange Armando's return with the credit cards. He's already exposed himself too much and doesn't want to take any more risks. Everything needs to be in place by the time the Colonial Tournament begins. Cervino (Tony Baron) records the entire phone conversation and accumulates evidence... The king is starting to feel trapped by his own pieces...

There is a hidden bird

He already has the queen in his sights

On the eve of the Colonial Tournament, Tony again asks Denise to play a few games, but she again declines. It's curious because such insistence leads us, as outsiders, to think that what Tony is really looking for is something else, and that he's completely in love with this deceitful blonde... We'll never know... or will we? In any case, it could be love at first sight or simply a marked anchoring bias: she was the one who offered to play a private game as soon as he arrived at the hotel... That first impression has made a deep impression on the Grandmaster.

but it is a tactical resource...

The Colonial Tournament is about to begin

The women's section is already starting the games

Tony doesn't show up at the Colonial Tournament, claiming a tropical illness... In reality, he's terrified of the board for logical reasons, though we don't yet know them... It's no longer possible to blame stochastics for his poor run against much weaker opponents. We'll soon find out. Meanwhile, the scumbag Armando Jaleo finally returns from Budapest with all the credit cards of the retreating participants.

The black pawn queens on the eighth rank...

Armando Jaleo breaks the news to Denise that Bruno is about to leave (his flight lands two hours later), and minutes later, Tony receives the bank cards back before heading to the airport. The Grandmaster tries to kiss Denise, but she averts her face. A very sad ending that reveals the love and attraction Tony feels for the secretive girl.

Denise, more than a trickster, she's a lectern, because with that upright posture,

it seems like she's carrying a stick stuck in her back.

The aegis worn by Tony Baron covers less than a thong

And just when we think Tony has left for the airport, he appears, hidden behind a rather low umbrella, filming from a distance the entire conversation between Bruno and Denise about the tragic incident. Bruno does some simple calculations, and they manage to withdraw almost €50,000 from the bank's current accounts, of which €9,000 is for her.

The modus operandi was as follows: Bruno had the clients sign documents requesting an increase in the maximum cash amount per card, and told them it was for insurance... He lied to them so he could go to the ATMs to withdraw as much money as possible without raising suspicions at the bank. Added to this, the fact that they have no receipts for the trip (the agency is a pioneer of the zero-paper policy) and the fact that their wives could also find out they'd been playing chess... puts them at a crossroads. The latter is still another crime, but in this case, extortion.

There's a turning point here that reminds me of something that's always amazed me about Beethoven: that pause before launching the orchestra. Then a strange tone begins, unexpectedly intensifying, and the music begins... That's what happens when Tony Cervino enters the scene, and Denise and Bruno collapse...

Tony explains that he's not a doctor, but an INTERPOL officer on a special mission. He's done a Bryan O'Connor and infiltrated the resort to investigate. His boss gave him the dossier on this chess retreat company, and he had to spend over a year training to become a connoisseur and reach 1,500 ELO points. This way, he could pass himself off as a Grandmaster with a serious alcohol addiction. Besides, it never hurts to learn to play chess because knowledge takes up no space; José de Letamendi once said that a doctor who only knows medicine knows nothing about medicine...

Tony Cervino has policemans as pawns

Recorded by a CCTV

Denise's reaction is to argue that she's merely a housekeeper, but Bruno doesn't understand that and tells her that if he goes to prison, she'll also accompany him because she's up to her ears in the plot.

That's when Tony Cervino pulls an Alonzo stunt by posing the "You want to go to jail or go home?" dichotomy, like in the film Training Day. Tony isn't one of those cops who takes things lying down... for that matter, he's even sneakily planted a hidden camera in the girl's room... With his surprise appearance and his invective, he aims to stir up tensions between the two criminals, but also offer them a win-win solution.

You want to go to jail or go home?

Tony asks for fifty percent of the profits from now on, and at first Bruno is hesitant. Denise insists because she has her whole life ahead of her, although given Bruno's stubbornness, for a few moments she seems to be sowing seeds...

After much pleading, Bruno reluctantly agrees. However, there's something else: Cervino wants payment in naturals... "He who forgives died on the cross," they say, and now he has Denise tied hand and foot. With no other options, the queen leaves with the cunning bishop Cervino, who will finally collect a good piece... She refused to accept the exchange of queens and has now lost the game.

The stalemate king... No checkmate, but no chance of winning

Bruno is the king, who becomes active towards the end of the game although he's present from the beginning: it's obvious given that he's the most valuable piece. Denise is the queen, who uses all your attacking potential to help the criminal plan succeed. Armando is a pawn, but a passed pawn, as his importance increases, going from being a mere conductor to participating as a necessary collaborator in the crime. It's common knowledge that passed pawns allow for great tactical resources in the middlegame.

Regarding Monique, she's the rook Bruno castles with during the opening, and Jacqueline and Nora are the knights, due to their ability to make unexpected leaps that attempted to break the "stonewall" system that Tony Baron (actually Tony Cervino) had set up as a defense.

Opposite, Tony would be the light-squared bishop in a spaced game, and Marc the dark-squared bishop in a closed game... and Steve a sacrificed pawn on the third move of the French Opening...

A very well-told chess story... Bed Gambit deserves a sequel or even a multi-part series, because Tony Cervino's character could evolve into a policeman who quits his job to become a real Grandmaster.

THE END

RATING: 8/10

Info:

Private Tropical 16 "Sun, beach and chess"

Year: 2005

Genre of the plot: police, crime

Paradise destination: Cabarete, República Dominicana

Actors: George Bull, Kathy Undersun, Jennifer Acetone, Veronica de Arousa, Horst Sharon, Kevin Thong, Philippe Bean

Where can I find it: Private or Google

Link to spanish version