Larry Silverstein The New York Yankees have won 27 World Series and at the time of the filming of this documentary Intermediate (Junior High) School 318, in Brooklyn, N.Y., had won 26 National Chess Titles. So it's natural for Asst. Principal John Galvin to declare that his chess team are the Yankees of chess, as everyone wants to beat them. It's rather amazing to see the halls of the school lined with plaques, photos, trophies, and banners of the school's chess accomplishments.The film follows the usual pattern of this type of documentary by highlighting a few individuals and following them not only in their chess matches, but illustrates how their families support them and how the students must try and balance their academics and other interests with their chess playing. To just highlight one of those inspiring stories, I'll write about Rochelle Ballantyne, who when the documentary began was an 8th grader at I.S. 318. She was 13 years old but already exhibiting great natural skills and abilities in chess. She talked about her disappointment at seeing so few females trying out for the team but did not let that deter her.Rochelle's mother was constantly stressing her grades and education as a priority, so Rochelle was trying hard to balance the two, while continuing her goal of becoming the first female African American master level chess player ever. Towards the end of the documentary, Rochelles enters the Girl's National Chess Tournament which has a top prize of a full scholarship to the University of Texas.It was also inspiring to see the dedication of the I.S. 318 staff in helping the students. The aforementioned Asst Principal John Galvin as well as Elizabeth Vicary (Chess Teacher/Coach) were very hands on and helpful in motivating the team members. They, along with Principal Fred Rubino (who unfortunately passed away last year) tried to rally the students and parents to fight back against crippling budget cuts which would greatly restrict extra-curricular programs like chess and marching band. At the time of the Great Recession, they organized successful E-mail campaigns as well as raising tens of thousands of dollars through Walk-A-Thons and other campaigns.In summary, I found this documentary, directed by Katie Dellamaggiore, to be quite an engaging and fascinating film. There are some technical chess terms mentioned in the movie, but I would venture to say that it would not hamper any non-players from enjoying it.

bob the moo Hard not to compare this film to Spellbound in that it shows students working very hard in an intellectual pursuit in order to improve themselves and open up new avenues for their futures. This is an unfortunate comparison because really this film is not as good as Spellbound on many levels and, to be honest, even without the direct comparison it is easy to see weaknesses within Brooklyn Castle as a documentary. I say "as a documentary" because as a general film it works pretty well despite running a little longer than it can bear. The main reason it works is because of the characters involved; the teachers are passionate, the students are colorful, engaged and driven and generally the viewer invests in them because of how likable and interesting they are as people. This is something the filmmakers have done well because, while some of the kids are instantly likable, some of them are a little bit harder to get close to and in the edit good selections have been made to bring their characters across the best.In this way we care who wins and loses when the film inevitably comes down to the final contests. All of this is good and I liked the film for that but what disappointed me was that the attempts to speak bigger than them doesn't work as well. In terms of showing the value of after-school activities it is a no-brainer to see that this group of kids benefit greatly but I would have liked the film to do more with stats to show that this is true generally by contrasting with other schools and painting an undeniable picture of the importance of these programs. It does this well through the main thrust but there was room for more. Likewise the impact of budget cuts, it shows them and discusses them but it really doesn't hit it home and to be honest I watched the film thinking that actually 2-4% cut was not that bad and seemed to be well managed. I'm guessing this is not the message the film was trying to present (nor is it the case either I imagine) but the lack of bigger picture on the importance and the lack of bigger picture on the impact of the cuts really missed the opportunity to hit this message hard. The point of the film was not just to entertain with the story of this particular collection of students or this school, but on top of that to use them to make a bigger point and educate and engage the viewer (by drawing them into the former and then hitting their engaged-brains with the latter).It is a shame that it doesn't do this as well as it should because it would have been a much stronger film for it. As it is, the film still works as an entertaining, engaging and uplifting look at these specific students, but just the important messages are not as well delivered as they should have been and that is a real disappointment for this as a documentary. Well worth seeing for what it does well though.

TxMike I enjoy all kinds of documentaries about school age kids and how they can pull themselves above their family situations through talent, perseverance and hard work. Here we look at a Brooklyn public school, Intermediate School (I.S.) 318, where about 2/3 of the students are from families living at or below the poverty level. Many are first generation Americans. But the great thing is they don't know what their limitations might be, they are able to dream and succeed regardless of where their parents are on the social or economic ladder.The documentary covers the years 2008 through 2012, and has to deal with the reduced budgets resulting from the economic downturn of 2009 and following years. At I.S 318 is a fine chess program for students, in fact the school has won over 20 national championships, the most of any I.S. in the country. The documentary follows the team and several of its members, with snippets from their school life and their home life.Back in the early 1970s when Bobby Fischer was winning the world chess championship I, like many other Americans, became keenly interested in chess. In fact I can recall playing chess with co-workers almost every day at lunch for a few weeks, and I learned enough to know how difficult it is to play well. These kids at I.S 318 are remarkable, in that they accept the discipline and hard work necessary to get there. They may not make a living at it but mastering chess sets them up to master almost anything they choose to follow in life.My favorite was Rochelle , a young black girl who was the top player at I.S. 318 when she left that school after the 8th grade. She set a goal to become the first female Chess Master of her ethnic origin, and while she hasn't reached that goal yet, won the National Competition to earn a full ride scholarship to University of Texas.Plus, as a footnote to the documentary, I.S. 318 in 2012 became the first ever Intermediate school to win the National High School Championship.A superb documentary on a superb program and a superb group of kids.

intelearts Brooklyn Castle takes a fascinating look at the success of I318 School in Brooklyn - a middle school that has consistently produced chess champions.It asks how and why and also looks at the wider general issue of how funding is slashing such programs. As with any documentary connecting with both the subject and its protagonists is vital - and here that works - 12 years olds are notorious for being either extrovert to the point of annoying or introvert to the point of silence - but here the balance is just the right side of cool - and it's easy to be swept up in the tales.It works best when showing the tournaments and the chess, and really while the parents' interviews are OK they're not adding to the tale that much. BC is slightly long and more editing would have helped a lot - at times your attention wanders, but it is saved by a very strong story.In addition, there are moments which are wholly captivating - and lift the film - this is a film which does inspire, and makes us believe that great teachers and good teaching can give kids who are otherwise likely to be forgotten a real chance in life.