The Munich “Tatort: ​​Zugzwang”: Chess is war!

This appearance is a provocation: In the first round of the World Championship Candidates Tournament in chess, the Frenchwoman Natalie Laurent (Roxane Duran) competes against the American favorite Theodore Boyle (Max Befort) in a see-through blouse – a clear violation of the rules. Just last year, the long-time world champion Magnus Carlsen argued with the World Chess Federation about whether he could wear jeans to a tournament – ​​which wouldn't even irritate his opponent. The dispute attracted a lot of attention – just as chess in general continues to be surprisingly popular, even in films. In the successful Netflix series "The Queen's Gambit", a young woman tries to assert herself in this male-dominated field.

This is also the central theme of the Munich "Tatort: ​​Zugzwang" (Tatort: ​​Zugzwang). In the first scene, a woman falls from a hotel balcony – she is the second of the French star player. In her bathrobe, the chess-loving forensic pathologist Steinbrecher (Robert Joseph Bartl) finds a white rook – which is also a trademark of Nathalie Laurent. When a pawn in chess marches to the last line and transforms into a queen, the queen is represented by an upside-down rook. Naturally, the story plays with the symbolism and peculiarities of the game of chess – author Robert Löhr sought advice from Bundesliga player Makan Rafiee. Crucial moments on the chessboard are commented on by Niclas Huschenbeth, a grandmaster who wittily and expertly presents World Championship games on a YouTube channel. Of the Munich detectives, Croatian-born Ivo Batic (Miroslav Nemec) is the most knowledgeable about the royal game, as everyone in the Balkans plays. He knows: “Chess is war !”

And the violence continues at the Candidates Tournament in the luxury hotel: Several people are attacked by a strange nerve agent as potent as the ominous "Novichok." And since the president of the World Chess Federation, an Azerbaijani named Kamran Hasanov (Husam Chadat), formerly served as an officer in the Russian army and is a misogynistic scoundrel, he becomes the target of Batic and his cohorts. Unfortunately, the portrayal of this stammering godfather quickly turns into a caricature.

Checkmate: Excitingly staged exchange of blows on the board

Far more interesting is the character of star player Laurent – ​​Roxane Duran's dazzling performances evoke associations with Lewis Carroll's classic "Alice in Wonderland," which takes place on a chessboard. The "Tatort" repeatedly asks why, in a game in which the queen is the strongest piece, women have so far been unable to keep up with the best men. Laurent himself knows that only 40 of over 2,000 grandmasters are female. The only woman ever to compete with the world's elite was the Hungarian Judit Polgar. This "Tatort" makes a woman the winner, at least in the media's eyes – and portrays her male opponents, like the American Boyle, as complete nerds. The entire tournament doesn't feel like a serious world championship, but more like a show event in a luxury hotel. Director Nina Vukovic succeeds in playing with the game of chess so richly that even chess fans should have fun, and it might even pique the interest of laypeople. Only the title "Zugzwang" is all too banal: After all, White and Black must move one after the other. However, the final, quite exciting exchange on the board is decided by the rule "Touched – Moved" – which would have been a more appropriate title.

Tatort: ​​Zugzwang. Sunday, April 27, 8:15 p.m., ARD