Review of The Pianist (2002) by Jack P — 25 Jan 2012

Wow. This was a moving film. I don't know what it is about me, but WWII movies always get to me. I don't know, maybe it's a past life thing haha. Adrien Brody is fantastic in this movie, portraying a man who literally goes through hell with literally nothing to call his own.

There are many times in this movie where Szpilman is literally 5 seconds away from death, and he somehow escapes. A man like that obviously deserved to live for some reason, and then you hear his music.

Brody does a great job of portraying that vast passion for music. The last person to help him is honestly the most moving, and the most unexpected, but I'm not going to ruin that for you. Not many downfalls to this movie, there were a few times when you could tell a special effect, especially fire, was obviously green-screened.

Also, it feels like a two and half hour movie. I'm not saying that it is a slow movie, but compared to LOTR, where it doesn't feel like three hours just went by, this one, you know all about every minute of that 2 1/2 hours.

But somehow, it works for this movie, like you're experiencing everything side by side with the character. From a political standpoint, this movie could also be considered a chronicle of the rise and fall of Nazi occupied Poland, all through the eyes of one man.

This side is generously yet skilfully put in. An excellent movie :).