The Dark Horse
2014 · Movie · 124 min · ★ 6.3 · 87% critics
A former speed-chess champion living with bipolar disorder searches for stability and purpose after leaving care. In a tough New Zealand community marked by prejudice and violence, he throws himself into mentoring a struggling youth chess club, hoping to keep kids off the streets while trying to rebuild his own life.
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Watch free on Tubi — also streaming on Shout! TV.
2 hours to watch.
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Details
- Years
- 2014
- Release date
- 2014-07-17
- Language
- English
- Runtime
- 124 min
- Max quality
- HD
- Critic score
- 87/100
- TMDB rating
- 6.3/10 (146 votes)
- Box office
- $1,900,000
- Budget
- $2,100,000
About
You’ll likely enjoy this if you want an intense, uplifting drama about mental health, community, and mentoring at-risk kids, with a New Zealand setting like Whale Rider; Not for you if you need a light, fast-paced watch.
Pros: inspiring true-life story; strong lead performance; heartfelt community focus | Cons: slow, long runtime; familiar underdog beats; hard-to-hear dialogue
Themes
- chess
- new zealand
- based on true story
- auckland
Awards & recognition
- IFFR audience award · 2015
Cast & crew
Cliff Curtis
as Genesis
James Rolleston
as Mana
Kirk Torrance
as Noble
Sia Trokenheim
as Nurse
Andrew Grainger
as Clive
Xavier Horan
as Jedi
Roseanne Liang
as Nurse
Miriama McDowell
as Sandy
Rachel House
as Vagrant Woman
Wayne Hapi
as Ariki
Directed by James Napier Robertson