Kasimdzhanov on the French, Disk 2
I just finished watching a ChessBase DVD by Rustam Kasimdzhanov on the French - one of three - and I was pleasantly surprised. GM Kasimdzhanov, a former FIDE world champ, has a 3-disk series on meeting the French, and the second disk examines 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.f4 c5 6.Nf3 Nc3 7.Be3. His coverage comprises 14 clips that together run 3 hours and 17 minutes: one clip is an Intro, one a brief theoretical overview, 12 clips covering 11 games, and a final summary "Outro".
The disc is a success in three respects (I will note a couple of limitations later). First and foremost, Kasimdzhanov does an excellent job of illustrating the importance for White of the d4 square, and in demonstrating how he can use it (especially with a good Nd4 vs. bad light-squared bishop) to win thematic French endings. The careful viewer will not only learn some theory, but will really understand how to win (some of) the resulting positions. (Note: this thematic ending is far from the only idea discussed on the disk, but it receives coverage in keeping with its importance.)
Second, Kasimdzhanov does a decent job of presenting in outline the important variations White needs to know. Of course he can't cover everything, but much of what is important is at least touched upon. The viewer playing White is unlikely to see anything concepts after 7.Be3 he won't have been prepared for by the video's host.
Third, it's a fantastic source of really beautiful games. Many of the 11 games were new to me, and even just for the pleasure they provided the disk was worth my time. Kasimdzhanov's choices were brilliant, as the games were not only extraordinary but thematic as well.
Now for the limitations. First, and this is true of most video DVDs not supplemented by databases, the total amount of information is far less than one gets from a book or a database. Of course, one doesn't want too much information, because then one isn't sure what to focus on and what to disregard, but for strong club players (approx. 2000 and up) a bit more info is probably necessary.
Second, Kasimdzhanov doesn't say too much about what White ought to avoid. He does present many of Black's ideas, but I don't recall any Black fantasies/White horror stories that are the counterparts to the Nd4 vs. bad bishop White fantasy/Black disaster. More specifically but along the same lines, Kasimdzhanov sometimes omits mention of theoretical improvements for Black. Here's one example, albeit one that's probably not relevant to his repertoire.
After 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.f4 c5 6.Nf3 Nc6 7.Be3 cxd4 8.Nxd4 Bc5 9.Qd2 O-O 10.O-O-O a6 11.h4 (Note: Kasimdzhanov's "official" recommendation here is 11.Qf2) 11...Nxd4 12.Bxd4 b5 13.Rh3 b4 14.Na4 Bxd4 15.Qxd4 f6 16.Qxb4 fxe5 17.Qd6 Qf6 18.f5 Qh6+ 19.Kb1, he continues to present the game Kasparov-Short, Amsterdam (VSB Euwe Memorial) 1994, which was brilliantly won by White. Kasimdzhanov is rightly enthusiastic about Kasparov's idea with 18.f5!!, and continues to present the game, which went 19...Rxf5 20.Rf3!! Rxf3 21.gxf3. White is a pawn down with a bad kingside structure, but Black's retarded development and White's attacking prospects given him the advantage. What Kasimdzhanov doesn't mention is the move 19...Nf6!, which has been played quite a few times since Kasparov-Short (most prominently by Stellwagen and Brynell), and Black's results have been excellent. Even if it turns out that White can prove an advantage there, it's not the sort of position one can figure out on spec.
I would suggest, therefore, that if you're over 2000 OTB or a correspondence player, you supplement this disk with something else, like a quality database and/or a book like volume 6 in fellow former FIDE champ Alexander Khalifman's "Anand" series. But for just about anyone else, this DVD will give you all you need to face 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 with confidence. Highly recommended.
[Full disclosure: I do a weekly show with ChessBase, so I have some motivation not to write a negative review. However, there isn't and never has been any pressure on me to write any reviews at all, so my positive feelings about this disk are genuine and unsolicited.]
The disc is a success in three respects (I will note a couple of limitations later). First and foremost, Kasimdzhanov does an excellent job of illustrating the importance for White of the d4 square, and in demonstrating how he can use it (especially with a good Nd4 vs. bad light-squared bishop) to win thematic French endings. The careful viewer will not only learn some theory, but will really understand how to win (some of) the resulting positions. (Note: this thematic ending is far from the only idea discussed on the disk, but it receives coverage in keeping with its importance.)
Second, Kasimdzhanov does a decent job of presenting in outline the important variations White needs to know. Of course he can't cover everything, but much of what is important is at least touched upon. The viewer playing White is unlikely to see anything concepts after 7.Be3 he won't have been prepared for by the video's host.
Third, it's a fantastic source of really beautiful games. Many of the 11 games were new to me, and even just for the pleasure they provided the disk was worth my time. Kasimdzhanov's choices were brilliant, as the games were not only extraordinary but thematic as well.
Now for the limitations. First, and this is true of most video DVDs not supplemented by databases, the total amount of information is far less than one gets from a book or a database. Of course, one doesn't want too much information, because then one isn't sure what to focus on and what to disregard, but for strong club players (approx. 2000 and up) a bit more info is probably necessary.
Second, Kasimdzhanov doesn't say too much about what White ought to avoid. He does present many of Black's ideas, but I don't recall any Black fantasies/White horror stories that are the counterparts to the Nd4 vs. bad bishop White fantasy/Black disaster. More specifically but along the same lines, Kasimdzhanov sometimes omits mention of theoretical improvements for Black. Here's one example, albeit one that's probably not relevant to his repertoire.
After 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.f4 c5 6.Nf3 Nc6 7.Be3 cxd4 8.Nxd4 Bc5 9.Qd2 O-O 10.O-O-O a6 11.h4 (Note: Kasimdzhanov's "official" recommendation here is 11.Qf2) 11...Nxd4 12.Bxd4 b5 13.Rh3 b4 14.Na4 Bxd4 15.Qxd4 f6 16.Qxb4 fxe5 17.Qd6 Qf6 18.f5 Qh6+ 19.Kb1, he continues to present the game Kasparov-Short, Amsterdam (VSB Euwe Memorial) 1994, which was brilliantly won by White. Kasimdzhanov is rightly enthusiastic about Kasparov's idea with 18.f5!!, and continues to present the game, which went 19...Rxf5 20.Rf3!! Rxf3 21.gxf3. White is a pawn down with a bad kingside structure, but Black's retarded development and White's attacking prospects given him the advantage. What Kasimdzhanov doesn't mention is the move 19...Nf6!, which has been played quite a few times since Kasparov-Short (most prominently by Stellwagen and Brynell), and Black's results have been excellent. Even if it turns out that White can prove an advantage there, it's not the sort of position one can figure out on spec.
I would suggest, therefore, that if you're over 2000 OTB or a correspondence player, you supplement this disk with something else, like a quality database and/or a book like volume 6 in fellow former FIDE champ Alexander Khalifman's "Anand" series. But for just about anyone else, this DVD will give you all you need to face 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 with confidence. Highly recommended.
[Full disclosure: I do a weekly show with ChessBase, so I have some motivation not to write a negative review. However, there isn't and never has been any pressure on me to write any reviews at all, so my positive feelings about this disk are genuine and unsolicited.]
Posted by Dennis Monokroussos on
Friday May 2, 2008 at 11:16pm
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.f4 c5 6.Nf3 Nc6 7.Be3.
You had Nc3 for Blacks 6th move. It is no big deal.