Given the inspirational true story behind this film — an illiterate girl from the slums of Kampala (Uganda) becomes a chess whiz and champion, dramatically changing the course of her life and the lives of her family and friends — I can’t complain too much that Disney has Disneyfied this tale where almost everyone seems less than 3-dimensional and possessed of hearts of gold under sometimes tough/rough exteriors. Filming (partly) in the slums of Kampala gives the story a realistic edge and a chance for Africans to be stars in their own stories. Not that exiting the theatre feeling uplifted is a bad thing.
