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Queen of Katwe

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Queen of Katwe
Theatrical release poster
Directed byMira Nair
Screenplay byWilliam Wheeler
Starring
CinematographySean Bobbitt
Edited byBarry Alexander Brown
Music byAlex Heffes
Distributed byWalt Disney Studios
Motion Pictures
Release dates
  • September 10, 2016 (2016-09-10) (TIFF)
  • September 23, 2016 (2016-09-23) (United States)
Running time
124 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$15 million[2][3]
Box office$9.6 million[3]

Queen of Katwe is a 2016 American biographical sports drama film[4] directed by Mira Nair and written by William Wheeler.[5] Starring David Oyelowo, Lupita Nyong'o, and Madina Nalwanga, the film depicts the life of Phiona Mutesi, a Ugandan girl living in a slum in Katwe who learns to play chess and becomes a Woman Candidate Master after her performances at World Chess Olympiads.[6]

Adapted from an ESPN magazine article and book by Tim Crothers, the film was produced by Walt Disney Pictures and ESPN Films. Queen of Katwe was screened at the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival.[7] The film had a limited release in the United States on September 23, 2016, before a general theatrical release on September 30.[8]

Plot

Living in the slum of Katwe in Kampala, Uganda, is a constant struggle for 10-year-old Phiona (Madina Nalwanga) and her family. Her world changes one day when she meets Robert Katende (David Oyelowo) at a missionary program. Katende coaches soccer and teaches children to play chess. Curious, Phiona approaches and learns the game. She becomes fascinated with it and soon becomes a top player under Katende's guidance. Over several years, her success in competitions and tournaments leads to greater competitions, stress, and identity issues. Phiona must learn more than the game as she is exposed to life outside Katwe. Her education, both formally and informally, continues as she dreams of escaping a life of poverty for herself, her mother, and her siblings.

Cast

  • Madina Nalwanga as Phiona Mutesi
  • David Oyelowo as Robert Katende
  • Lupita Nyong'o as Nakku Harriet
  • Martin Kabanza as Mugabi Brian
  • Taryn Kyaze as Night (as Taryn "Kay" Kyaze)
  • Ronald Ssemaganda as Ivan
  • Ethan Nazario Lubega as Benjamin
  • Nikita Waligwa as Gloria
  • Edgar Kanyike as Joseph
  • Esther Tebandeke as Sara Katende
  • Peter Odeke as Mr. Burumba

Maurice Kirya and Ntare Mwine have supporting roles as Theo[9] and Tendo respectively.

Production

Development

Tim Crothers wrote The Queen of Katwe: A Story of Life, Chess, and One Extraordinary Girl's Dream of Becoming a Grandmaster, which chronicled Phiona Mutesi's life. Published by ESPN in 2012, it was optioned that same year by Walt Disney Pictures.[10] Tendo Nagenda, Walt Disney Studios' senior creative executive and of Ugandan descent, developed the project into production.[11] With executive approval from studio president Sean Bailey,[12] Nagenda went to visit Mira Nair at her Ugandan home to tell the story of Mutesi. Nair was captivated by the story, stating, "I have always been surrounded by these local stories but hadn’t done anything in Uganda since 1991. I love any story about people who make something from what appears to be nothing."[13] Nair met with Mutesi, her mother Harriet, and the chess group run by coach Robert Katende. Nair then invited screenwriter William Wheeler to come to Kampala to conduct interviews with the principal figures as a foundation for a screenplay.[14] Nair filmed a short high-concept and presented it to Disney, to alleviate the studio's concerns about the film's story being entirely set in Africa.[14] Wheeler believed that the film could fit within the Disney tradition of films about "underdog" sports stories, noting that: "we were trying to ... gently expand the idea of what a 'Disney film' could be. Disney was very open to wanting to tell an aspirational story about someone from someplace that is not at all familiar to Western audiences ... this could really fit into one of the things that they do very well – which is telling sports underdog stories and finding the ways the story naturally intersects with that genre of film."[15] Nair defined Queen of Katwe as "a radical film for Disney in many ways.... It has beauty and barbarity side-by-side."[12] In January 2015, Disney studio chairman Alan F. Horn greenlit the film into production for US $15 million.[12]

Casting

In January 2015, David Oyelowo and Lupita Nyong'o were cast as Robert Katende and Harriet Mutesi, respectively. They were Nair's first choices for the roles. Nyong'o said that she had decided to play the part after only reading the script's first ten pages, declaring "It was the first time I felt really awakened by a script and super challenged."[16][17] Oyelowo immediately accepted the role, seeing the film as a "subversive work" given the lack of diversity in contemporary American cinema.[18][19] Nair claimed that finding an actress to play Phiona was the most difficult, with the casting search taking from July to December 2014 and the production team auditioning nearly 700 girls.[14] The casting director then found 15-year-old Ugandan dancer Madina Nalwanga in a community dance class, and she was cast as Phiona.[5][20]

Filming

Principal photography began in April 2015.[21][22] The film was shot entirely in Africa, in the slums of Katwe in Kampala, Uganda and in Johannesburg, South Africa. Over one hundred Ugandans worked as extras for the street scenes within the film, eighty of them without any prior experience of cameras.[23] Nair worked with the children by setting up an acting boot camp to help them.[24]

Nair and cinematographer Sean Bobbitt used different visual approaches for the various matches Mutesi plays. Katende, who was present at the shoot, designed the games, while Nair and Bobbitt worked on each shot. The chess scenes were complicated because the call sheet contained actual chess moves. Nair and editor Barry Brown cut the scenes to create some drama.[23] Production wrapped in June 2015 after 54 days of shooting.[2]

Music

The musical score for Queen of Katwe was composed by Alex Heffes.[25] "It's a very thematic and gentle score that is more orchestral than something like Roots, although it's set in Africa," said Heffes. "There are plenty of authentic Ugandan needle drop tracks in the film to set the scene so the score could concentrate more on the music story telling."[26]

Alicia Keys wrote and recorded the song "Back to Life" for the film; it was released on September 1, 2016 by RCA Records.[27] A soundtrack album was released on September 23 by Walt Disney Records.[28]

Soundtrack

Untitled
Queen of Katwe (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) – Standard edition[29]
No.TitleArtist(s)Length
1."#1 Spice"Young Cardamom & HAB3:50
2."Sekem"MC Galaxy3:58
3."Budo!"Alex Heffes2:05
4."Tuli Kubigere"A Pass3:17
5."Bomboclat" (featuring Weasel)Jose Chameleone3:45
6."Brian, My Brother!"Alex Heffes1:00
7."Skelewu"Davido3:09
8."Juicy"Radio and Weasel3:46
9."It Is Fine"Alex Heffes1:03
10."Engoma Yange"Nsubuga Saava Karim4:26
11."Wuuyo"A Pass4:21
12."Oswadde Nnyo"Afrigo Band and Moses Matovu3:29
13."Mbilo Mbilo"Eddy Kenzo3:50
14."Escape from Hospital"Alex Heffes0:57
15."Nfunda N'omubi"Afrigo Band and Joanita Kawalya2:48
16."Kiwani"Bobi Wine4:49
17."The Promise of Harriet"Alex Heffes1:16
18."Kyempulila"A Pass2:26
19."Home Again"Michael Kiwanuka3:31
20."Back to Life"Alicia Keys4:54
Total length:62:55
Queen of Katwe (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) – Deluxe edition (bonus tracks)[30]
No.TitleArtist(s)Length
21."Am I Ready?"Alex Heffes2:16
22."We Have a Champion"Alex Heffes1:15
23."New World"Alex Heffes2:01
24."Phiona Wins Joseph"Alex Heffes2:46
25."At the Threshold"Alex Heffes1:28
26."Father Grimes – Commence Play!"Alex Heffes1:09
27."Such Aggressiveness in a Girl Is a Treasure"Alex Heffes1:20
28."You Make a Plan Mama"Alex Heffes2:43
29."Is This Heaven?"Alex Heffes1:43
30."Like Ghosts"Alex Heffes1:45
31."Olympiad"Alex Heffes4:00
32."The Water Takes Everything It Wants"Alex Heffes3:17
33."Robert Katende, I Am Your Mother"Alex Heffes1:47
34."School"Alex Heffes1:37
35."Entering Rwabushenyi"Alex Heffes1:24
36."You Belong Here"Alex Heffes4:17
37."We Are Home"Alex Heffes2:26
Total length:100:27

Release

Queen of Katwe had its world premiere at the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival on September 10.[31] Disney held the corporate premiere at the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood on September 20,[32] with another screening at the Urban World Festival on September 22.[33] The African premieres were held in Kampala at the Century Cinemax on October 1[34] and Johannesburg at Fourways on October 5.[35] The film held its European debut at the 2016 BFI London Film Festival on October 9.[36] Another screening was held at the Morelia International Film Festival in Mexico on October 22.[37] On November 12, it was screened at the Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival and at the Brisbane Asia Pacific Film Festival on the 24th.[38][39]

Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment will release the film on Blu-ray and DVD on January 31, 2017, with a digital release on January 10.[40]

Reception

Box office

Queen of Katwe opened on September 23 as a limited release in the United States, with an estimated Friday total of $82,000 averaging $1,577 per screen across 52 selected theaters. By the opening weekend, it earned $304,933 averaging $5,864 per screen.[41] It opened on wide release on September 30 to 1,242 screens, and went on to gross $2.5 million in the first week.[42]

Critical response

Queen of Katwe received positive reviews from critics, with David Oyelowo and Lupita Nyong'o's performances receiving unanimous praise.[43][44] Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes gives the film an approval rating of 92 percent, based on 135 reviews, with an average rating of 7.3/10. The site's consensus states: "Queen of Katwe is a feel-good movie of uncommon smarts and passion, and Lupita Nyong'o and David Oyelowo's outstanding performances help elevate the film past its cliches."[45] On Metacritic, the film has a normalized rating of 73 out of 100, based on reviews from 37 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[46] CinemaScore reported that audiences gave the film an "A+" grade.[41]

Film critic Steve Pulaski gave the film three out of four stars and said, "Queen of Katwe's arrival into theaters nationwide comes not only in conjunction with a slew of other potential awards contenders, but as a breath of air refreshing as the kind the fall season itself brings. In a time where the common-good of humanity is seriously questionable and those who are supposed to guide and lead us appear as nothing more than manipulative and divisive, Queen of Katwe inspires as it captivates, telling us a story we may have never heard about but one we'll probably never forget."[47]

Accolades

List of awards and nominations
Award Date of ceremony Category Recipient(s) Result Ref(s)
Critics Choice Awards December 11, 2016 Best Young Performer Madina Nalwanga Pending [48]
Evening Standard British Film Awards December 8, 2016 Best Actor David Oyelowo (also for A United Kingdom) Pending [49]
Toronto International Film Festival September 18, 2016 People's Choice Award Mira Nair 3rd Place [50]

References

  1. ^ "Queen of Katwe (PG)". British Board of Film Classification. September 12, 2016. Retrieved September 17, 2016.
  2. ^ a b Fleming, Jr., Mike (January 9, 2015). "David Oyelowo & Lupita Nyong'o In Talks To Star In 'Queen Of Katwe' For Disney". Deadline. Retrieved April 27, 2015.
  3. ^ a b "Queen of Katwe (2016)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved October 16, 2016.
  4. ^ Carissimo, Justin (May 10, 2016). "Lupita Nyong'o and David Oyelowo star in the new trailer for Queen of Katwe". The Independent. Retrieved August 29, 2016.
  5. ^ a b McNary, Dave (January 9, 2015). "David Oyelowo, Lupita Nyong'o in Talks for Disney's 'Queen of Katwe'". Variety. Retrieved April 27, 2015.
  6. ^ Robinson, Joanna (August 16, 2015). "Why Lupita Nyong'o, Not Superheroes, Represents the Future of Disney". Vanity Fair. Retrieved August 16, 2015.
  7. ^ "Toronto To Open With 'The Magnificent Seven'; 'La La Land', 'Deepwater Horizon' Among Galas & Presentations". Deadline. July 26, 2016. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  8. ^ Siegel, Tatiana (April 8, 2016). "Disney's David Oyelowo Drama, 'Queen of Katwe,' Gets Release Date". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved April 27, 2015.
  9. ^ Gitau, Elly (May 11, 2015). "Uganda: Maurice Kirya to Star Alongside Lupita Nyong'o in Queen of Katwe". The Star. Retrieved August 16, 2015.
  10. ^ Levs, Josh (December 10, 2012). "From slum life to Disney film: Ugandan teen chess star 'the ultimate underdog'". CNN.
  11. ^ Rainey, James. "Tendo Nagenda Named Executive VP of Production at Disney". Variety. Retrieved August 7, 2016.
  12. ^ a b c Watercutter, Angela (September 30, 2016). "The Inside Story Behind Disney's 'Radical' Queen of Katwe". Wired. Retrieved October 2, 2016.
  13. ^ Sperling, Nicole (September 2, 2016). "Queen of Katwe: Watch Phiona gets the best of her chess partner in first match". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
  14. ^ a b c Sulcas, Roslyn (September 8, 2016). "'Queen of Katwe' Makes Moves on a Ugandan Chessboard". The New York Times. Retrieved September 11, 2016.
  15. ^ McKittrick, Christopher (September 30, 2016). "Queen of Katwe: Expanding What a Disney Film Can Be". Creative Screenwriting. Retrieved September 30, 2016.
  16. ^ Sperling, Nicole (September 15, 2016). "Queen of Katwe: The return of Lupita Nyong'o". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved September 13, 2016.
  17. ^ Pallotta, Frank (September 12, 2016). "David Oyelowo and Lupita Nyong'o talk Oscars diversity and 'Queen of Katwe'". CNN. Retrieved September 13, 2016.
  18. ^ Whipp, Glenn (September 10, 2016). "With 'A United Kingdom' and 'Queen of Katwe,' David Oyelowo continues his mission of inclusion". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 13, 2016.
  19. ^ Schneller, Johanna (September 9, 2016). "Disney could be looking at Oscar buzz for 'transcendent' film Queen of Katwe". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved September 13, 2016.
  20. ^ Gettell, Oliver (January 5, 2016). "Disney unveils first look at Lupita Nyong'o in The Queen of Katwe". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
  21. ^ Sefa-Boakye, Jennifer (March 31, 2015). "Lupita Nyong'o Is Filming Disney's 'Queen Of Katwe' Chess Biopic In Uganda With David Oyelowo". OkayAfrica. Retrieved August 16, 2015.
  22. ^ Gerard, Jermey (July 30, 2015). "Lupita Nyong'o Sets New York Stage Debut In Public Theater's 'Eclipsed'". Deadline. Retrieved August 16, 2015.
  23. ^ a b Bhatia, Uday. "From Kampala, with love – Director Mira Nair on her new film, the challenge of shooting chess and making a film in what has been her home for the last 27 years". Live Mint. Retrieved September 16, 2016.
  24. ^ GANTT, DEIDRE (September 7, 2016). "Meet Tendo Nagenda: Disney Exec and Mastermind behind 'Queen of Katwe'". Face2FaceAfrica. Retrieved September 17, 2016.
  25. ^ "Alex Heffes to Score Mira Nair's 'Queen of Katwe'". Film Music Reporter. January 16, 2016. Retrieved January 29, 2016.
  26. ^ Schweiger, Daniel (May 24, 2016). "Interview with Alex Heffes". Film Music Magazine. Archived from the original on September 27, 2016. Retrieved September 27, 2016.
  27. ^ Lawrence, Derek (August 31, 2016). "Queen of Katwe story inspired Alicia Keys to write a new song". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved September 13, 2016.
  28. ^ "Queen of Katwe (2016)". Soundtrack.Net. Retrieved September 27, 2016.
  29. ^ "Queen of Katwe (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)". iTunes. September 23, 2016. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
  30. ^ "Queen of Katwe (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) [Deluxe Edition]". iTunes. September 23, 2016. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
  31. ^ Desta, Yohana (July 26, 2016). "TIFF 2016: Magnificent Seven, Loving, and More Announced for Festival Lineupl". Vanity Fair. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  32. ^ Czachor, Emily Mae (September 21, 2016). "Cast and Crew Celebrate 'Queen of Katwe' as "a Love Letter to Uganda" at Disney Film's Premiere". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
  33. ^ Cox, Gordon. "'Queen of Katwe' Leads the Slate at 2016 Urbanworld Film Festival". Variety. Retrieved August 25, 2016.
  34. ^ "'Queen of Katwe' Ugandan premiere set for October 1". The Insider. September 6, 2016. Retrieved October 9, 2016.
  35. ^ "Queen of Katwe Premiers in Joburg". The New Age. October 6, 2016. Retrieved October 9, 2016.
  36. ^ Barraclough, Leo (July 13, 2016). "Lupita Nyong'o's 'Queen of Katwe' to Make European Debut at London Film Festival". Variety. Retrieved July 13, 2016.
  37. ^ "Queen of Katwe". FICM. Retrieved October 9, 2016.
  38. ^ "Queen of Katwe". Golden Horse. Retrieved October 13, 2016.
  39. ^ "Queen of Katwe". Brisbane Asia Pacific Film Festival. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
  40. ^ Queen of Katwe's Official Website, November 18, 2016
  41. ^ a b D'Alessandro, Anthony (September 25, 2016). "'Magnificent Seven's $35M Opening A Career Best For Antoine Fuqua; 'Storks' At $21.8M – Sunday AM B.O. Final Update". Deadline. Retrieved September 25, 2016.
  42. ^ "'Miss Peregrine' Enrolls Moviegoers On Thursday Night – Box Office". Deadline.com. Retrieved September 30, 2016.
  43. ^ Lawson, Richard (September 11, 2016). "Queen of Katwe Is a Bright and Inspiring Success – Mira Nair has returned to form with this piquant Disney movie". Vanity Fair. Retrieved September 18, 2016.
  44. ^ Berkshire, Geoff (September 10, 2016). "Toronto Film Review: 'Queen of Katwe'". Variety. Retrieved September 18, 2016.
  45. ^ "Queen of Katwe (2016)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved October 6, 2016.
  46. ^ "Queen of Katwe reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved September 23, 2016.
  47. ^ Pulaski, Steve. "Queen of Katwe". The Steve Pulaski Message Board. ProBoards.
  48. ^ "La La Land Leads with 12 Nominations for the 22nd Annual Critics' Choice Awards". Critics' Choice. December 1, 2016. Retrieved December 1, 2016.
  49. ^ Moore, William (November 17, 2016). "Evening Standard British Film Awards - The Longlist". London Evening Standard. Retrieved November 29, 2016. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  50. ^ "TIFF People's Choice Award cements La La Land in Oscar race—The festival also released its full list of winners". Entertainment Weekly. September 18, 2015. Retrieved September 18, 2016.
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