The Pianist (DVD)

At first i thought that The Pianist was a odd name for a war film, but then when i saw it, it all made much more sense. This is not a war film as such, more a film set during the war (second). It follows the life of Wladyslaw Szpilman as he and his family are moved out of thier houses in Warsaw and sent to the concentration camps. Szpilman doesn't share the fate of his family but is set to struggle alone in an empty Warsaw. The title to me is how that to him it doesnt matter that he is a Jew, its just who he is. But what really matters is that he is a Pianist. Its a simple profession and one that doesnt make him a hero, or anything special. Yet it ...  Read the complete review

A review of the Optimum DVD, available from amazon for £5.50 at time of writing. This is a hugely acclaimed, multiple-award-winning film from 2002. It tells the true story of classical pianist Wladyslaw Szpilman and what happens to him and his family during the Second World War. Szpilman - whose memoirs the film is based on - is a Polish Jew, and following the German invasion we witness the escalation of German atrocities towards him and his fellow Jews - the petty regulations, the casual brutality, then the ghetto, the murders, the deportations and slave labour. It's not exactly a cheerful film, but it's essential viewing. There are broadly ...  Read the complete review

Winner of three Oscars (and nominated for four more), two BAFTAs, and the coveted Palm d'Ore, The Pianist certainly has the credentials. Anyone who has read Szpilman's original biography, also titled 'The Pianist', will already know that the narrative is gripping enough, but combined with amazing direction by Roman Polanski, and breathtaking performances by many of the actors, specifically Thomas Kretschmann and the fabulous Adrian Brody, the story is taken to an entirely new level. Certainly Polanski's finest work, The Pianist follows the true story of Wladyslaw Szpilman through the horrors of the Warsaw ghetto during the Nazi occupation of Poland. The film ...  Read the complete review

Watching (and reviewing) a Holocaust drama is an experience of mixed emotions. Can you ? and SHOULD you ? say that you enjoyed it? Are you MEANT to enjoy it, or suffer through it? When you assess it, is it right to comment on its merits as a piece of art, or should the subject matter override all other considerations? I studied Holocaust literature and film at university, and this was a debate we often had. We came to no conclusions. So please excuse me if I seem to come from what to you is an insignificant arty-farty perspective, or if, on the other hand, you think I let the subject take over and cloud my judgement. I find myself in something of a quandary. ...  Read the complete review

How do I start to review one of the most amazing films I have ever seen? When I first heard about The Pianist, I knew immediately that it was something I would have to see. I read a lot about World War II, my main interests being Hiroshima, the Holocaust and Anne Frank. So the subject area of the movie was enough to attract my attention. For once, I didn’t care who acted in it. I hired this out on DVD for my birthday, but watched it the day after. I had expected it to be depressing, which is why I had delayed seeing it, but it wasn’t. Yes, it was horrific, harrowing and bleak, but it was much, much more. It was beautiful, moving, charming and ...  Read the complete review