Review of The Piano Teacher (2001) by Ricardo C — 31 May 2012

Haneke's most thrilling endeavor and no less dense. Plays like a thorny dysfunctional drama for Hollywood audiences and acts as a fully functional reel to them despite omitting one of the most vital components in film composition (It'll be made clear when you watch it).

And this doesn't detract for any type of viewer either. Most of any arthouse director's repertoire is lost and blank to consumerist film goers whereas others attempt to draw them in and so they're still enjoyable, which is what we're given here.

If you're going to include shock, at least guide it properly like artistic provocateurs. And if you're going to be artistic, structure it to appeal to inherent human needs, you know. For the art crowd, however, it remains an acidic character study, collectively almost like a two-faced story line (Wouldn't be reading too much into the plot if it wasn't as pertinent to the film outline).

This was back when the director was still underground some, so its shock in terms of acting and subject matter is uninhibited, as many viewers will readily point out. It's best to experience The Piano Teacher's edginess and danger, in particular Huppert's act, as humbly and unbiased as possible even though it's already been inflated about in cine circles.