Someone Had to Explain the Chess Scene In Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows

[@andershoffman7196]

And when the world needed him most, he returned

[@heatherperleberg7816]

I'm commenting for no other reason than to compel others to do the same thing.

[@sams8759]

I have been compelled

[@Fred-ff6bv]

@@heatherperleberg7816 only the penitent man can pass.

[@murdockjmatt]

@@heatherperleberg7816 you have compelled me to increase this videos status within the algorithm

[@ianbrewer4843]

Great movie

[@fitzsimmons6064]

I think what Moriarty losing is supposed to show isnt that he's dumb, its just that with all his intellect, he let his ego get in the way. He thought he won from the beginning of "the match", so he underestimated his opponent. And that is something you never do with the Sherlock Holmes.

[@ethanwhite2210]

Well stated.

[@lukerabon7925]

It's also the only reason Holmes wins the actual fight at the end as well. Moriarty couldn't imagine Holmes sacrificing himself to win and protect the people he cared about. He underestimated how much Holmes cares for the people in his life. Moriarty would have them killed if he escaped, so Holmes moves to sacrifice his actual most powerful piece (himself) to win and safeguard his family.

[@scotthadden9816]

I mean the second time they meet, Holmes is already able to discern through handwriting, that Moriarty is intelligent, but also narcissistic. That he's smart enough to play craft the scheme he does, but is so blinded by his own hubris, that he believes at ANY point, should something go wrong, he can work his way around it. THAT is why Moriarty, despite being incredibly intelligent, looks shocked at the realisation that he's played his hand way too strong, and now that it's been stopped, he has nothing left to do, but lose.

[@kendrajade6688]

@@lukerabon7925 Sacrificing your King to win the game is a pretty ballsy chess move.

[@speed150mph]

I just want to point out that you might just be the devil. At the time I’m writing this, you have exactly 666 likes and 6 comments not including this one. 😂

[@tylerduncanson2661]

Since this was a 5-minute blitz game, you could argue that Moriarty’s moves at the end were an attempt to run out Sherlock’s clock literally and metaphorically. Since at that point he thinks that Sherlock doesn’t have the notebook, he probably expects a fight for it.

[@salemalrez5513]

What a great comment good theory

[@tbdwoods]

yep that totally tracks...I dig it, well done you!

[@ShadowOfCicero]

I always treated the line, "The game is over," as also meaning that Sherlock had flagged. In other words, Moriarty had won the chess game regardless of what the next moves would have brought.

[@origamiscienceguy6658]

They had both stood up and walked away from the table by this time. I don't think the clock was a concern to either of them.

[@NonApplicable1983]

Whenever Holmes wasn’t looking, Moriarty would start physically eating his pieces.

[@kavijackson868]

🤳🏽🤣😂

[@nimbusws2566]

Well… we know he was not averse to violence or breaking the rules.

[@jacobrutzke691]

Hey chess peices are yummy

[@Chrono_Mitsurugi]

@@jacobrutzke691 Boxing champion, war profiteering, kills plants, eats yummy chess pieces. Moriarty is a Marine.

[@RomanvonUngernSternbergnrmfvus]

@@Chrono_Mitsurugi rah murder death kill

[@EAKugler]

The reason Moriarty continues the game isn't because he's stupid, it's because being the smartest person in the room makes you willing to push for your opponents to make mistakes.

[@cpgautam172]

hoping the opponent will make a bad move is accepting u have lost the game, but sherlock is big dumb dumb, which we know is not true.

[@grotus5549]

Gotta reinforce just how much smarter you are than the other guy somehow

[@Aztesticals]

You would be surprised how easily you can trip up a much better opponent in chess with a well calculated fake strategy. Something that looks like it should be part of a plan but in reality was made completely at random. I was on jv in highschool and every time I really tried to play the guy who had the top spot at our school and 2 in some large regional area I think it's like all of east coast hs. Lost hard every time. Except for the time I decided to just throw in random moves occasionally

[@thomasmartin8362]

But he's clearly been outfitted by Holmes, so he's NOT the smartest person in the room.

[@smallone2351]

@@Aztesticals You would be surprised how wrong you are, chess players hardly fall for any bluff thrown out by opponents. And well calculated fake strategy you talk about doesn't exist, you're literally making stuff up to make yourself looks smarter

[@KianaWolf]

Incidentally, my first thought after hearing certain MCU events was, "Does this mean RDJ's free for more Sherlock?" You aren't alone in thinking they're underrated.

[@AnEnemySpy456]

I think the third one is in the works but I'm not sure. I feel like people underrate these movies just because they have action in them which to some people automatically makes them "dumb" which is such a blood boilingly shallow take.

[@DoveCalderwood]

@@AnEnemySpy456 It is in the works, or so I've heard

[@snowdenwyatt6276]

@@DoveCalderwood It's on the docket so to speak with Dexter Fletcher directing instead of Guy Ritchie. Supposed release date this year but still listed as being in "pre-production". With only eight months to go in the year, it's possible it will be pushed to next year, but if it goes into actual production within the next few months it could still make the end of the year. It's current status is better than "planned" or "announced" and actually means things are being done (casting, location selection, and possibly even set construction) but it's still possible for it to be significantly delayed or even scrapped (pretty unlikely though).

[@caltheuntitled8021]

@@AnEnemySpy456 Even in the original material, Sherlock was a boxer and freakishly strong. The action isn’t out of place.

[@ChaoticNeutralMatt]

Looking forward to it

[@SoulSukkur]

To be fair, Moriarty CAN see several moves ahead. That's how he and Sherlock do their synchronous mind fight. I think the whole "my empire is ruined" bit was more surprising to him than the parallel chess game ending. He was probably planning to play it off all snarkily like "Hm, if only real life was so simple, eh Holmes?"

[@mitchell4681]

Fantastically said, I think his ego also played a part too

[@oscarogilvie1048]

or he thought the bluff after taking the Queen was going to work. winning the psychological war was his plan all along

[@jakecollin5499]

​@@mitchell4681ya it's safe to say there was a fair amount of ego involved in this scene 😂

[@benupdegraft6686]

What a weird niche. Don't stop doing movie board game analysis

[@edmontonboy99]

I hope there’ll be a movie scene where the mafia play a game of monopoly as a symbolism of their business empire, and power over the least fortunate.

[@schueltar]

@@edmontonboy99 Im holding out for candyland..

[@The_Jovian]

@@edmontonboy99 well met, fellow Albertan

[@edmontonboy99]

@@The_Jovian Cool, how’s it goin?

[@mcfarvo]

Yep, this is the only type of video I watch of his. Good stuff

[@CSelH]

I fucking loved the RDJ Holmes. It's ridiculous, it's cliched, it tries to be smarter than it is, and it's fucking fun. Both movies had amazingly fun scenes, and the casting combination of those two as Holmes and Watson is severely underrated.

[@alexnoman1498]

Exactly! They were just really good. Not stiltedly victorian, but fun and technically proficient.

[@flaviacaribe4993]

As Red from OSP said, it is refreshing seeing a Holmes and Watson that actually like each other

[@cailleach8416]

And the music fucking bops

[@virtualryan5683]

DISCOMBOBULATE

[@dopendous]

it also happens to be one of the most accurate adaptations of the character to date!

[@PainCausingSamurai]

You could argue that Moriarty and Sherlock playing the game to completion was just part of their larger strategy and love of the dramatic, since they're trying to keep each other talking while buying time to consider how a fight will play out.

[@ChaoticNeutralMatt]

Like an onion. Many layers

[@temkin9298]

@@ChaoticNeutralMatt like ogres.

[@jacobcombs1106]

@@temkin9298 Or parfaits

[@MLaak86]

Holmes is the one who pulls Moriarty into playing longer by needling him right where he knows it'll hook and hurt.

[@pileofcheese5017]

Extra point: after Sherlock checkmates moriarty, and wins, Moriarty can also checkmate Sherlock in one move. In real chess he can't, because the game is over. But in the real-life game, after Moriarty lost, he decides to make Sherlock lose too, by flinging him over a balcony.

[@lukeroberson2115]

Sherlock was the one who chose to go over the cliff.

[@samuelelliott8453]

​@@lukeroberson2115yeah but he was saying Moriarty could still kill Holmes and get away with it in that moment even though hed lost in his overall scheme

[@XeroFailGames]

​@lukeroberson2115 exactly holmes realized that pulling that would be the last thing he'd expected

[@RomanvonUngernSternbergnrmfvus]

@@samuelelliott8453 Holmes knew that as soon as he sat down the odds of him leaving alive were next to 0 It’s layered and it was all ogre but the crying at that point.

[@UltimateDurzan]

@@RomanvonUngernSternbergnrmfvus I see what you did there... Shrek would be proud.

[@woot12598]

"Ma, the Animorphs guy is back with more board games! Get the popcorn!"

[@PainCausingSamurai]

Animorphs guy?

[@woot12598]

​@@PainCausingSamurai He has a few Animorphs videos and they're top tier.

[@MySqueezingArm]

@@PainCausingSamurai I found his channel via his animorphs videos, and I suspect many others did the same.

[@PainCausingSamurai]

@@woot12598 Oh, I hadn't looked at his other videos. I just thought maybe he worked on the old tv show.

[@XXpettywigginsXX]

Yeah I just showed up because I love these movies and then I saw this comment and was interested.

[@olivermorin3303]

You missed some extremely subtle foreshadowing at the beginning of the scene: "I think you've just lost your most valuable piece." This seems like some very basic, entry-level symbolism, since the queen is definitely the most powerful of all the pieces on the chessboard... ...but wait, isn't the king the "most valuable piece" on both sides? Moriarty is assigning importance to the wrong target here. He's threatening a piece that is completely disposable, and leaving himself open to attack in the process. It's almost as if he thinks the queen is a king, like the most capable piece would naturally be the most valuable... But that's not the case at all. Holmes isn't the king of his own side of the chessboard, like Moriarty thinks. He's the *queen*, a powerful but disposable piece.

[@Sylvia-t1f]

That's an amazing observation. Moriarty, being a narcissist, sees himself as simultaneously his most capable and his most valuable piece and thus assumes Holmes is the same. Instead, Holmes understands the hierarchy and knows his own life doesn't compare to everyone Moriarty would kill.

[@JamesNewham]

i will not remember this comment for the great analysis of the pieces of chess and the movie, but the fact you called Sherlock Holmes a *queen*.

[@Joe-xo4yg]

@@JamesNewham Not his best disguise, I’ll admit 🙃

[@marwanbasil6890]

@@Joe-xo4yg touché mon ami

[@klausstock8020]

I was about to comment that "the king can't be taken, it can be put into checkmate" (which would imply Moriarty considers himself invulnerable even when cornered with no way to escape). However, the game in the movie is a blitz chess game which is won by actually taking the king...or have your opponent run out of time. Time is as valuable as the king here. Both don't seem to care. Ah well, probably over-analyzing the thing.

[@Calpsotoma]

Moriarty is placing the black queen on the board to remind Sherlock what he already took from him. The ending could be read as "Moriarty is stupid" but it's more like "Moriarty is proud and stubborn and won't admit he lost".

[@ChaoticNeutralMatt]

Even to himself

[@cetomedo]

Also the man isn't looking at the damn board, of course he's not going to remember the locations of every piece for minutes while the board is constantly changing *and* calculate 8 moves ahead. It's like he wants to lose

[@mihailmilev9909]

@@cetomedo lmao

[@mihailmilev9909]

@@cetomedo blind chess is a thing tho

[@cetomedo]

@@mihailmilev9909 No yeah absolutely, it's just not something you do against someone you see as a capable player, while the stakes are too high for you to try to challenge yourself by not looking at the ****ing board

[@VodShod]

I saw the Sherlock 3 part here 19:15 and I was so excited, so I looked it up... based on what I found the film was canceled, I almost cried. It was like finding a chest from a literal treasure map showing where a rich guy stored his money and it turns out the person used up all his fortune and became broke before they died.

[@MacInTheBox]

"rich guy"...? Guy Ritchie...? Coincidence? I THINK NOT

[@amandapineapple1845]

There are two tv series in the works at HBO to look forward to with Robert Downey jr. Here's hoping they actually get made. Too bad Guy Ritchie doesn't seem to be involved but I'll take what I can get of this Sherlock and Watson xD

[@tbdwoods]

the real life equivalent of "the real treasure was inside you all along"

[@xxxdumbwordstupidnumberxxx4844]

@@amandapineapple1845 they are apparently still working on an actual movie sequel alongside the tv shows.

[@sirdryden42]

Also, Moriarty apparently doesn’t check his notebook for DAYS after his encounter with Sherlock at the dock. The fake book that Sherlock slipped into his pocket just sits there, unopened. For literal DAYS.

[@ChaoticNeutralMatt]

It might be off, but if he had no further business to record then he wouldn't need to open it. He knows what's in it.

[@olivermorin3303]

@@kerbe3 Nope; Scotland Yard still had the red notebook and Moriarty's cipher, so they could still seize Moriarty's assets. Moriarty had already lost when he confronted Holmes at the balcony; all that mattered at that point was stopping World War I.

[@kerbe3]

@@olivermorin3303 Yes but had Moriarty found out about the fake ledger a few days earlier he might have been able to start concocting another scheme or even find a way to get the assets back.

[@olivermorin3303]

@@kerbe3 Almost certainly.

[@davidrutherford6311]

The problem is that in the time the movie is based on you probably needed days to get an object across from Europe to England. There is no express or air mail, you can't scan the pages and email them to Scotland Yard (or Watson's new wife). So unless Holmes wants to spent a day or two sending the pages one at a time as telegrams they need a few days grace before Moriarty discovers his book is gone and someone on the internet complains about plot holes instead of lazy writing.

[@Kenvie2000]

19:55 Real chess masters usually don't find out mid-match that they lost all of their wealth and all of their life plans/goals have just been thwarted. So, what I'm saying is Moriarty is a LITTLE (sarcasm, he's a lot) more distracted than an actual chess grandmaster in a game.

[@SpoopySquid]

Moriarty: "That water looks awfully cold..." Holmes: "Yes, I did not account for the cold. Or the rocks."

[@benjaminoechsli1941]

"Why, Sherlock!? _Why!?_ We were just in the other room!"

[@schelfie1986]

Throat punch, Throat punch, Throat punch, Throat punch, Throat punch, Throat punch, Throat punch, Throat punch

[@timothymclean]

Moriarty: "I, on the other hand, accounted for the cold but not the water." Holmes: "And the rocks?" Moriarty: "I do not believe any preparations could account for falling onto rocks from such a distance." Holmes: "Indeed." _(yeet)_

[@TW-sq5ix]

All the reasons this movie was “overshadowed” or “overwritten” are all the reasons I love it. RDJ’s Sherlock is my favorite rendition and the movies are phenomenal overall.

[@andrewpaul7021]

@2:54 that's not the queen Moriarty picked up but the king. Queens go on their respective colors in the starting position, so the black queen would start on a black square. Moriarty picked up a piece that started on a light square so that would mean either he grabbed the king or the board was set up incorrectly, which I doubt someone of high intelligence would do. I would interpret this scene as Moriarty tentatively "removing" the king (Holmes) from the game. He did say in the scene that due to the respect he had for Holmes he hadn't killed him and was saying should he continue to hamper his efforts he would have no problem deciding to kill Holmes. The reason he told Holmes that he killed Adler was a scare tactic to get him to back off. @4:08 I think the reason for the shot is since it's the king, he's putting Holmes "back in the game"

[@LordRavenscraft]

Son of a gun, I think you're right. They flipped the colors of the board in the final scene from the Larsen match and I think I got that inversion stuck in my head the whole time. But I think you're right, that was meant to be the king (it's also the tallest piece on the board), and I think your read on the meaning is pretty dead on.

[@escaperoomleander1948]

At 3:09 as Holmes is removing the handkerchief from the board, you can see that every piece is there...Moriarty doesn't have the removed piece yet. And those are queens on their own color, correctly set up. The error here is that the kings are shorter than the queens, which is not normal...the kings usually are the tallest piece on the board. But. Where's the cross? The king usually is topped by a cross, where the queen has a circular crown with several points...just as she has in the film. So where's the cross? My guess? The director or production designer had it removed, due to its religious connotation. Never mind that nearly every set has the king with a cross and the tallest piece on the board...I think someone didn't like the cross and had it filed off. Removing the cross from the king made it shorter. Now it's no longer the tallest piece on the board. That said, there *are* chess sets with no cross for the king, but the king is always tallest in these sets. Which is why I suspect the movie set used an altered king, lopping off the cross, making him shorter than the queen, which is the piece Moriarty took off the board.

[@MrDabrain75]

I think Moriarty's shock may have been more at the unraveling real life chess game, than the loss on the board. He knew his loss was coming several turns before at least. But he didn't see how that could be true in reality. The unraveling of reality alongside his real loss is what truly stunned him.

[@ld4846]

These guys technically aren’t even playing chess, they’re playing chess boxing. I guess you can forgive Moriarty for not thinking far enough ahead at the end of the chess match, if he’s getting ready to outbox him later right after.

[@bobgilbert1953]

This breakdown is amazing, but there's something that I feel maybe should have been mentioned. The boxing match that plays out between the two of them in their minds is essentially the same game as the chess match, with the same level of comparative advantage and disadvantage, but the sides reversed. And then, when Holmes saw that victory was impossible, he flipped the board.

[@Thomas_H25]

I recently discovered your channel and was blown away by your "Liar's Dice" Analysis, so it is really great to see you cover this "A Game of Shadows" Chess scene that I love so much, really an intellectual masterpiece. I just want to add my own little theory about your "Moriarty is a Dummy" part at the end and why I believe his behaviour fits perfectly into the theme of this movie: As perfectly explained in the analysis an expert in chess should be able to calculate ahead to see the checkmate coming from the moment of the Queen sacrifice and we can assume that both Moriarty and Holmes are easily capable of this, given they were able to play out the final moves mentally without moving the pieces on the board. So why would Moriarty then be surprised by the result of the game? My head-canon: Because he knows just as well as Holmes does that Holmes can win the Chess Game but never the actual physical fight following afterwards. This is proven in their final mental battle after the checkmate occured. Both reached the same conclusion: Holmes cannot win this confrontation and would die by Moriartys hands. The movie plays on the parallels and differences between these two masterminds. Moriarty and Holmes have clear respect for each other and see each other mostly as equals. This is why Moriarty is convinced that Holmes will not dare to finish the game. Finishing the game means escalating the matter into a physical fight that will end in Holmes' demise. This is a decision that Moriarty would never take if placed in the same position, he would only ever sacrifice others but never himself. So seeing himself in Holmes, he believes that the correct action for Holmes is to forfeit his winning position and leave to live another day. He miscalculates that Holmes is indeed willing to sacrifice himself, just as Sherlock hinted at during their first meeting. He is not surprised by the chess moves, but rather Holmes' conviction to throw his life away for the greater good. That is the crucial difference between them, the one character trait that Moriarty cannot understand even with all his intelligence, because it completely contradicts his own nature. Most likely I am interpreting way too much into this scene, but given the depth of your video, I wanted to put some effort on my own into this theory as this duel of minds is simply brilliant.

[@WindsorMason]

This, indeed.

[@beefpelican]

This is an excellent head canon. I don’t think it was intended by the writers, since it’s just movie standard that someone losing a chess match is always stunned by the last move of the match, but your interpretation is better than the movie’s.

[@KaranC17]

This makes perfect sense!

[@vineethkrishnankalathil]

And like the movie .. Criminally under-rated comment ..

[@ComicalViolence]

Absolutely this and I don’t think you’re over analyzing. I believe the underlying idea is that Evil Cannot Comprehend Good, and that’s why the writers wrote in the dialogue several times about self sacrifice. To tell us directly that it would go down like that at the end of the day. No matter how surely it would appear otherwise.

[@kbob9625]

The craziest thing about all of this is that Sherlock had to have switched the notebooks when strung up on the meat hook. That means he had previously drawn the fish pun animation before he even got there. The crazy thing is that Moriarty didn’t use the fish analogy until Sherlock was strung up like a fish by the meat hook. That means Sherlock knew how the convo would go so precisely that he knew a fish joke was coming…

[@abehambino]

When he visits Moriarty at the university towards the beginning, they discuss the fish. The scene with the meat hook is a continuation of the previous encounter

[@kbob9625]

@@abehambino ah ok. I must have missed that. Def makes more sense.

[@suezuccati304]

"Omg you're such a dick to the people helping you" Yes, so this is, in fact, chess

[@ducks7015]

Chess. A game of attrition.

[@Sweetroll_Wolfie]

"That's totally barbaric!" "That's wizard's chess."

[@mattevans4377]

Except there's a reason for it. It insults Moriarty's intelligence. And it doesn't even have to be true, Moriarty just has to believe it's true, and since he's a narcissist, he does.

[@sycani]

Matt Evans j

[@X-SPONGED]

​@@mattevans4377yep, it's dissing both Moriarty and the inspector in secret which is hilarious and so in character for RDJ Holmes to do. He's the master of intellectual roasting

[@Indecisiveness-1553]

I just noticed that Moriarty walks away from the table during the climax of the scene, meaning he’d have to remember it. He’s certainly capable of doing so, and in a completely mental game there would be no issue, but character-wise, he thinks he knows what pieces are important, literally and metaphorically. He probably wouldn’t bother remembering the rest of them when he stands up, which is why he didn’t see the discover check coming-he didn’t bother to remember the rook in the first place!

[@Halo-lg7rq]

That is a pretty plausible explanation. Its easy to lose track of pieces when following by memory, at the same time these guys are supposed to be masters and insanely good at calculating moved so like NM Sam said its really weird that he kept playing on. I like to think he was buying time, after all they didnt know what was happening in the ballroom right?

[@joshuacollins385]

I thought Moriarty was just pushing the queen back into its starting place from off the board, kind of setting up the board for the real game they're about to begin

[@irrelevant_noob]

If only one could move the queen into that place like that while the pawns were lined up for the start of the game... :-B

[@joshuacollins385]

@@irrelevant_noob You'll have to explain

[@irrelevant_noob]

@@joshuacollins385 guess you haven't played much chess using physical pieces?! Then at least pay a bit of attention to the board at 2:47 ... maybe then you'll see that the queen wouldn't FIT between any two of the three pawns in front of her.

[@joshuacollins385]

@@irrelevant_noob I don't see what you mean. I thought he picks up the queen, then puts it back down just off the board pushes it back into its starting place between the black king and the queenside bishop.

[@Forslimjims]

@@joshuacollins385 It's framed weird but I believe you're right about what they were going for, the framing and possibly the way they decided to shoot it make it look like the queen is sliding between two pawns (through the pawn line) to get back to its starting position which would mean the queen's pawn would have to be missing.

[@ahmed4363]

"Holmes vs Moriarty" "Aristotle vs MASHY SPIKE PLATE!!"

[@emilydivis6369]

Thank you for pointing out that a master player won't be surprised by getting checkmated! I love both chess and movies. Usually, I'm not a fan of the "this guy's a genius, so let's do a chess metaphor!" trope, but I really appreciate how thoughtful and detailed this particular movie was with it. Especially how Moriarty had already lost the game several turns before it ended - mirroring how Holmes had already bested him long before this confrontation. I'll be charitable and assume Moriarty's shock is not at his own literal checkmate, but at the figurative checkmate he's currently experiencing (or, just realized he's experienced). After all, he'd probably care about proving he's a superior chess player to Holmes, but probably only a little. ... Two more movies to add to my re-watch list.

[@neetumehta16]

The movies are ABSOlute beauty ! This vdo deserves millions of views. Thanks much. If only i knew how to suppress some words i'd be much enthusiastically showing this vdo to my kids too

[@philipschorr5145]

Personally I like to think the queen to knight pawn is paying off the idea that moriarty isn't above cheating when pushed, also pulling a double call on trying to derail Holmes and get him to check the board and drop his defenses.

[@ChaoticNeutralMatt]

I suppose cutthroat would be an interpretation

[@Fonnessu1992]

The thing is that if you factor the queen giving check, there is no reason at all to cheat as you could reach the same position without. My personal theory is that the queen check was maybe filmed and was ultimately not included in the final cut for pacing/editing reasons.

[@erinfinn2273]

@@Fonnessu1992 I'd reckon that that's the real reason. Often times when filming, there's times where saying "No body will notice" is deemed necessary, even though us, the pedantic nerds that love these movies will over analyze it to death. Might have possibly been some scene with a minor/unknown character attacking Watson and company only for Holmes to have anticipated it. Who knows how many additional story beats/threads are on the cutting room floor?

[@nihkhdtigerson1599]

It would also show that he is not willing to sacrifice his queen like Sherlock did as the better move would be to D6, threatening the rook that checkmates him. If doing so he would have been able to escape a while longer at least. x:x

[@AalbertTorsius]

Moriarty doesn't grab the Black Queen; it's the Black King. Also, in that scene, the White pieces are set up incorrectly as it has the King and Queen swapped.

[@gagestah]

This is a great breakdown of a really interesting scene! Obviously there's a lot going on in the movie already, cutting back and forth between Sherlock confroting Moriarty, Watson and the others in the ballroom, and all of the flashbacks, but the mechanics of the chess game going on add another fun layer to the scene! Thanks for providing such a well-informed breakdown! (Also, I love your nails! Excellent touch)

[@callmelimitbreaker]

*Video pops up on recommended* Is this the same dude who made the long video on the Liars Dice scene? Yup. Alright, fine, subscribed. Hahahaha

[@TalynDerre]

Same.

[@jhucci]

Discovered you recently, and I'm really enjoying your stuff, man. I love that I've found a fellow Animorph appreciator, and the video you did on Joker helped really capture some of my misgivings about the film. And I'm really loving this burgeoning "Someone Had to Explain this Scene" series. Keep up the awesome work. Yours is a channel worth subscribing to.

[@ChaoticNeutralMatt]

Ditto

[@airnando7880]

It’s 2022 and they still haven’t made that damn third Sherlock, I meant to watch this video last year. This was amazing and I loved every second of it!!!

[@jfei64]

The great irony is the mental fighting they did is actually exactly like what real chess grandmasters are like and yet chess movies can never properly convey that for climax reasons. I was actually watching a video about when Bobby Fischer played against a cpu and what he said he liked the most was that the cpu didn't resign and allowed him to finish his combination.

[@elenadirectorofmiiss7942]

His mind isn’t on the game, it’s on the revelation of Holmes’ deception to get to the notebook and his moves in the moment to kill Holmes.

[@The1on]

I think I only saw the first RDJ sherlock movie, but these movie game breakdowns are still fascinating

[@scoople6]

Holy crap your breakdown of this really elevates the scene in a way that is absent in the film. Obviously in the film the tension and pacing is excellent but going move by move on the board and seeing how each move thematically mirrors the plot and actions of Holmes and Moriarty is remarkable. Especially that discover check with how it matches that Holmes had his winning move setup for ages with the Red Book swap and was just waiting for the right moment to reveal it. And that whole juicy, well thought out layer to that scene is hidden away only to be understood by people who take the time to play it out (like you in this video) or to people who are really good at chess and can keep up.

[@SoralaxPlays]

"Instead, they fight a series of proxy battles using people as pawns." Am I crazy, or did you just quote your own description of the Ellimist and Crayak

[@renatocorvaro6924]

Sherlock and Moriarty were based off Ellimist and Crayak. True story, don't bother looking it up.

[@SoralaxPlays]

@@renatocorvaro6924 Sherlock and Moriarty are their in-game avatars.

[@angusmarch1066]

The fact that game of Shadows literally came out ten years ago, hit me like a ton of bricks. Where did the time go???? And yeah, in that case they really could have left the reveal until the third movie! 🤣🤣

[@Crested_Hadrosaur]

I got into you with your Pirates Liars dice video and am so glad you made another one in that style. I watched some of your other stuff and enjoyed it. I would love it if you made more. I hadn't seen this film and hadn't thought about pirates in years but I didn't realise I needed these videos

[@daithiodonnell2825]

This video got suggested to me and I immediately sat down and watched all your videos in one go. Fantastic work.

[@jackpollard550]

You are one of my favorite recent finds on KZbin. I loved your Liar’s Dice video, and this was just extraordinary! I’m not the best at chess, but it fascinates me to see people analyze it. Keep up the great work!

[@bitchymoroseandloud3066]

I’ve personally always wondered if Moriarty wasn’t lying. We see Irene Adler fall, yes. But we never see her after that. We never see the body for gospel. We only have his word that she’s dead. Makes me question his pushing the Queen at the beginning.

[@TheSchultinator]

While I understand your position, I'd argue that spontaneously coughing up blood is a pretty good indicator that that person is f*cked without help, which was exactly what happened.

[@BibleJames]

Additionally, she was no longer of use, therefore expendable, making Moriarty more than capable of killing her via poison, also it is Moriarty, of course he killed Adler.

[@spikesagitta]

That scene was cool, and the way they played out the fight scene in their head before even starting, and then Holmes cuts the gordian knot by pushing him and Moriaty off the edge.

[@eschw2444]

As cool as it is, it's done so quickly and Watson showing up so fast proves that NEITHER man anticipated Watson. Who almost certainly would have been able to turn the tide of the fight in favor of Holmes, rendering his murder-suicide attempt against Moriarty pointless.

[@Sylvia-t1f]

@@eschw2444 Actually wrong. Remember, though they have stolen Moriarty's fortune, there's not necessarily *any* evidence directly against Moriarty in the book. Even if there is, with his connections and intellect his arrest is unlikely at best (hence Moriarty's comment along the lines of "They respect a man's privacy here, especially if he's rich."). Moriarty has to die or he will proceed to kill everyone he can in revenge. If Watson joins in, either Moriarty lives on or Watson gets tried for murdering an unarmed man in his rooms.

[@Wingsaber]

Crazy how the 3rd movie was supposed to come out in 2021 and yet we're still waiting for it

[@psimoes2000]

I feel Moriarty knew he'd lose the chess game, his whole thing is that no matter what small victory Sherlock gained, he'd still lose the war.

[@ChaoticNeutralMatt]

After a point, sure. He thought he'd won. Expected Holmes to walk away, but then he fought on and something was up.

[@Gustav_Kuriga]

Moriarty opening with an illegal move makes sense for him though. It's an illegal move, he's willing to "break the rules".

[@cadencenavigator958]

Hey neat, I just showed my girlfriend the Liar's Dice analysis like, a few days ago.

[@Satherian]

Yeah, I sent the Liar's Dice video to my friends who love Pirates of the Caribbean

[@dopendous]

funny, I didn’t even realize this was the same channel lol

[@brandenchristensen7465]

It's also interesting to think that if Moriarty had another move after his check mate he would put sherlock in check mate. Which is essentially what he does by fighting sherlock and them both falling off the Tower

[@icymoons]

yeah!! and instead of going through with the fight they both knew would happen, sherlock made his final move and ended the game.

[@isaacvogel2195]

I cannot fathom how small your channel is when all of the content is so damn good.

[@theinacircleoftheancientpu492]

Just to point out, as a serious chess player myself. When you get to a certain playing strength it is usually considered polite to concede the game rather than forcing your opponent to play all the way to checkmate, essentially you are recognising that it would be unreasonable to expect your opponent to make a mistake at that point. For beginners this is obviously pointless as stalemate is always a possibility.

[@mattc3581]

Indeed, kinda like a gimme in golf, you don't make the guy putt from 6 inches, just let him pick up the ball and move one. (Though as you say for beginners, not the case. When you've seen a king and two queens vs a king ending finish in a draw, not through stalemate btw, you realise they probably need to play it out.)

[@groofay]

I stumbled onto your channel a few weeks ago through the Animorphs videos, which sparked my re-reading of it after some 15 years. And even though I'm not even into Sherlock Holmes much, this video had my attention the whole way through. So it's good to see you still making videos!

[@Subjecttochannel]

None of your videos I've watched have been on topics that I had any interest in before hand, but somehow each and every time you manage to enthrall completely within the first minute

[@buonalaminestrina]

Once in a while KZbin recommendations do in fact work and I'm so glad I clicked on that Animorphs video when it showed up! Your channel is amazing and I hope you keep on doing this.

[@ClockworkWyrm]

What an excellent break down and analysis, very entertaining. I was always kind of conflicted and saddened that Sir Arthur made the decision to bring Holmes back: on one hand it means more Holmes, which I think is wonderful, but on the other Holmes' death at Reichenbach Falls was such a momentous victory and sacrifice from an ostensibly selfish person and that sacrifice is cheapened by his survival.

[@xxlibbyxx117]

YAY!!!! Missed your videos!!!!

[@thearmchairpsychologist27]

This channel is great. It's like the way I love to nerd out about movies and all my friends hate it, except more elaborate and well put together.

[@d3j4v00]

Subscribed for the animorphs, stayed for the deep cut cinematic board game analysis.

[@QueerSupervillain]

I kind of feel lke, Moriarty, when he starts bluffing, starts only thinking One Move Ahead rather than several, but also like.... the curse of Hubris. Moriarty consistently thinks he's winning, and when that illusion is shattered, and he loses his edge

[@ChaoticNeutralMatt]

Had to disagree. I assume he took it as they were done up until Holmes made the next move instead of leaving. He'd won the war, why keep up the charade. And Holmes continuing hooked him, as it were. *shrug* All guess work of course

[@chaddickhaut140]

The problem with "No _________ would ever do _______" arguments is that they ignore human fallibility. People, in fact, regularly commit blunders that belie their experience and expertise for a whole host of reasons. When writers rely overly much on that fact, it leads to the trope known as "The Idiot Ball", and ironically it becomes yet another example of such blunders. 😉

[@shambhav9534]

@@smallone2351 You have to remember, the movie is set in 1866. Even I, a terrible chess player might not rock up the stage, but would definitely cause some rumble back then.

[@robandsharonseddon-smith5216]

Stunning content. Makes a dramatic scene even more exciting. Brilliant.

[@gunnarc1113]

Anyone else ever notice that Moriarty's plan in Game of Shadows is basically the same as Moriarty's plan in the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen film?

[@RaptorJesus]

Yes. Difference is, this one doesn't *suck.*

[@erinfinn2273]

@@RaptorJesus Shame as well, since League of Extraordinary Gentlemen is a kickass graphic novel. Just...came out at the wrong time I think...

[@RaptorJesus]

@@erinfinn2273 Eh. League is unfilmable. It's like a Western Super Robot Wars, there's just too much stuff with too many different levels of copyright, trademark, so on. Yeah, the main cast is all Public Domain, but there's so much *beyond* that. It's just a legal nightmare.

[@mono2822]

When Moriarty moves the queen forward in the first shot. He is showing 2 things, 1 he is willing to break the rules and use pieces that aren't his. 2 he used the lose of Holmes queen that he took to make the first move. From there it also foreshadows that the set on Holmes side is I complete. He needs a new queen. And as we see in the movie he gets her. That although he calls her a bishop, she is then mentioned later on that she is the queen.

[@Batchall_Accepted]

I feel so vindicated at hearing you pissed off at the fact that they took all the weight out of his sacrifice at the end, almost everyone I've mentioned that to disagrees because *WhaT iF sEqUeL?*

[@griffinoconnor1523]

Ikr! They could’ve just waited until the sequel to make that reveal, especially since there’s already a Sherlock Holmes story where he comes back from the dead after falling off the cliff, so I’m sure audiences would still know that the character could potentially come back.

[@Calpsotoma]

It could be a franchise thing, but it's also pretty rare for a movie aimed at a mass audience to kill off its lead regardless. It could end up pissing off the audience like "all these other people died then Sherlock died too?" And they conflate the negative feeling of that with the movie just being bad.

[@farmerboy916]

TO BE FAIR, it's also like... damn near canon with the books. It ends on a good cheeky note, and anyone who gives a damn about the original source material knows he survives. And he was canonically in hiding after faking his death; hell, it could be argued to be both a nod to and improvement on the original. Because the original absolutely was meant to be his permanent death, and was a revival of the character after public clamor for it. Especially in a world where they didn't know if they'd get another movie, which they really didn't, it was a wise choice. If anything, you'd only keep it a secret to play INTO the potential third act sequel, whereas this both leaves it potentially open but also creates a nice amount of closure if the series ends. Which frankly, it should end where it did.

[@RelativelyBest]

Eh, martyrdom is very overrated. I personally don't see why survival should make an act of self-sacrifice less noble or heroic. It's being willing to risk your life that's admirable, not the actual dying part. So, all things considered, I strongly prefer it whenever the hero manages to survive.

[@AnEnemySpy456]

Not really. Everyone who knows anything about Sherlock Holmes knows he survived the fall so no one was going to be fooled by the movie pretending he was actually dead.

[@dreamcanvas5321]

20:38 - Moriarty's surprise at losing makes perfect sense if his surprise wasn't the chess game itself, but the "real" game with the "true" stakes. Or, alternatively, if he'd overestimated his ability to foresee each possibility on the board without even looking. This is also perhaps represented by the fact that they're playing the game away from the board: They are each so self-confident that they can remember the positions of the pieces without looking and play effectively. In the true "game", this is represented by the fact that each knows the other's pieces, yet Moriarty realizes too late that Holmes has outdone him in peering through the fog of war. With this interpretation, it's perhaps even fitting that Moriarty made an illegal error in play. He was good, but Holmes was better and more than happy to let Moriarty make his own mistake which in no way derailed his ultimate victory.

[@fedos]

A major part of me wants to go watch the movie before watching this.

[@ChaoticNeutralMatt]

I watch to watch it now that I've watched the video :P

[@catfishGentleman]

Another upload, we have been blessed!

[@GreatgoatonFire]

Fun story about chess. Back when I was a teen I played in a DnD game and the Dungeon Master has this pretty intricate, if clunky, set-piece for a adventure. Everyone in the party were trapped in small pocket dimensions that were linked to chess pieces. So each time our side took a enemy piece there was a short one-on-one fight between the linked-player and some monster. I was given the role of playing chess for our side... I can't play chess worth a damn. So we got battered. One of the other players had to step in and play for us so we all wouldn't die.

[@r.coburn3344]

This kind of breakdown is amazing, I don’t think anyone else is doing it quite like you just did. Keep it up, I say!

[@GravyInMyVeins]

I rewatched both of the RDJ Sherlock movies recently. I don't know if they're good adaptations, but they sure are fun. This analysis makes it even better. :D

[@XxXFlyingArmBarXxX]

I love love love both Sherlock films. I wish Guy would do 10 more, when Sherlock breaks down his fight scenes is some of the finest work with the slow motion scenes

[@petwisk2012]

That scene is incredible, i love that movie and its a Shame that the trilogy is tô This day incomplete

[@achillesis8521]

Another thing I noticed besides the ego of Moriarty, was that he let his own emotions get the best of him as well. It is paralleled to their first encounter together and their last. Moriarty practically showed to Holmes that he could reach in and break him any time he wanted, and that he did by taking away his true love. However, Holmes did not show emotions and remained playing the game. At the end, Holmes backfired on Moriarty by demonstrating that he was indeed ahead of him and took his one true love away from him as well, that being the professors wealth; and the professor out of the huge ego he had, showed that he broke down by saying to Holmes that we was going to go after the doctor and his wife. Almost like a toddler ranting. He couldn’t handle losing in that moment, unlike Holmes who stayed playing when he took his loss. Truth be told, Moriarty could have maintained himself in the game still, but his emotions and ego got the best of him.

[@beechteeth]

I am? In love with this??? Please keep this up.

[@dasupertramp5855]

I have a whole new level of appreciation for this film now. Great video, thank you 🍻

[@kajteksubko761]

I think that Moriarty palings to the end can be read as his unwillingness to stop fighting at the moment when he could still keep something. In chess it was pride. But if he just stopped and gave up he would be alive. Sherlock shows ability to finish what he started. He won't let Moriarty walk away if there is a way to stop him. Even if he needs to sacrifice himself.

[@momsaccount4033]

Here’s my idea (which I admit is very handy-wavy) about why Moriarty is seemingly shocked by his loss in the fact of the revealed checkmate. To put it simply, he be coping hard. I’d like to imagine the scene wanted to portray Moriarty as so confident of his victory that even if he saw that he was losing in the back of his mind, something in his brain tells him that there is no way he of all people would lose anyways. I propose that he was deluding himself into thinking that he was safe, and that the moment the facts were presented to him is the moment that he is forced to face what he wanted to ignore. Again, this is very hand-wavy, and there is barely anything in the movie to suggest that this is what happened. This is just what I personally think to explain what happened that makes it feel more sensible to me.

[@ZrinNZ]

This makes me want to try and plan out some kind of vast conspiracy in my D&D game for my players to slowly unravel. But I am nowhere near smart enough to make it work.

[@danielabilez3619]

Eventually you will have an antagonistic person disguised as a friend. He hates you to the point of becoming consumed. He will want to destroy you. To defeat him you will have to become centered and balanced.

[@juliang8676]

Also I love these movies and had NO idea they were making a new one! Also I think alot of people discovered your videos from the liars dice and the joker video which are both brilliant if anyone hasn't watched them yet

[@camerongooch9606]

I wouldn't call it stupid its simply human pride and arrogance. Arrogance made it possible to exploit Moriartys red book. An injured, weakened, and already beaten in previous moves with irene sherlock Moriarty saw as no threat. And pride made it so that even if he lossed he would lose swinging the way he intended to do.

[@ClashBluelight]

doyle also brings holmes back to life. the end is exactly inkeeping with the original in that sense.

[@mitchellmarinac6893]

I love the use of "the arbiter" from the chess musical. This absolute commitment to your videos is why I keep coming back to watch.

[@LOVEMUFFIN_official]

The queen push is him putting the piece back in its proper place.

[@Starlitcasualty]

I stumbled onto your animorphs videos and have now watched all of your videos. I'm so glad KZbin put your videos on my feed!

[@neonnwave1]

My thoughts: -Moriarty placed the queen back in its place because he probably thought Watson became Holmes' queen now, given how much Holmes values him not only as an ally but as a friend. Or he just wanted the board to be complete because a chess board looks better with all pieces present and standing. -While Moriarty was trying to start an inevitable war, it seems more likely that he was trying to escalate it in order to occur either prematurely or sooner rather than the expected time. With his fortune and supplies, making the demand occur sooner would be better than waiting. He had the opportunity so why not take it? -Moriarty's shock comes from his ego. As Holmes pointed out briefly in the movie, Moriarty is a narcissist. Having been bested after thinking he has won is a HUGE blow to one's pride. He was also probably hoping Holmes wouldn't notice the plays that are present. Once Holmes revealed the move, he knew he was screwed. Or he was panicking to defend himself and get the upperhand on Holmes while they were having their exchange of who won the game of shadows, thus wasn't operating at 100%. He was also probably putting a poker face to hide his true feelings.

[@poisonpotato1]

So his notebook was so important he checked it constantly yet never checked it once it was switched

[@TheLord-ce5wf]

When Moriarty put the peice back it symbolized his underestimation in Sherlock during their their destruction banter and didn't realize Sherlock would sacrifice everything to win. Sherlock essentially got a pawn to Moriarty's side and got the queen back in thier exchange, thus placing the queen back symbolized the official start of the game.

[@YAH93]

I dunno why, but I could watch this over and over again, as well as the Liars Dice analysis. I really like your way of explaining everything.

[@Draconis_Eltanin]

Honestly these games in movies analysis are awesome! Stumbled for animorphs but stayed for everything else. (Still need to read them) Also great to do list. :D

[@kaufmanat1]

People like these explanations of convoluted scenes in popular movies. Keep em comin man. Great stuff.

[@cookies23z]

I really liked the movies, ngl. I watched and enjoyed them, tbf, I only watched one, didnt realized there was more until I randomly stumbled upon another and had a wonderful time of it. Time to watch what I assume will be a very cool video about a movie I also enjoyed :) edit: omfg, "cant remember which one is which" sht, you got me, I enjoyed both but cant for the life of me remember which is which ngl second edit: ok, I DO remember this one is second, but I remember some scenes out of order a lot.

[@antonyslaughter]

The movies were overshadowed by a detective show that’s only Sherlock by name

[@omegadeadpool4987]

I thought only Filmento and I appreciated this masterpiece! Glad to know there are three of us

[@SunGawdRa]

I can't express how much I love this movie, and this ending. These guys are like super soldiers to me. Or more accurately samurai, meeting each other on a bridge, figuring out every strike and stroke before they even draw their swords. That ending was like three or four battles in one. This was a great breakdown too. If I could defend Moriarty (kinda), I don't think he cared about the match much at first. Then he started panicking around the end, and fell into Holmes' trap when he hit full on rage mode.

[@TalenLee]

Of COURSE a reference to Chess. I mean Chess. That other Chess. Hell, you know what I mean. Also: Have you read Gaming the Stage by Gina Bloom?

[@Overclownfidence]

18:40 its important to note that this was how Doyle intended to end the sherlock holmes series with the detective going out in a blaze of glory and stopping the ultimate criminal, allowing him to focus on other literary pursuits however it was met with such a large fan out lash that he was sadly pressured into continuing the series. it's a shame it couldn't see the ending he wanted but in my headcannon this is how it ends since it's how Doyle intended to end it.