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Adrien Brody, Thomas Kretschmann, Frank Finlay, Maureen Lipman, Emilia Fox ... see more see more... , Ed Stoppard , Julia Rayner , Jessica Kate Meyer , Ruth Platt , Michal Zebrowski , Katarzyna Figura , Anthony Milner , Daniel Caltagirone , Lucy Skeaping , Nomi Sharron , Richard Ridings , Roddy Skeaping , Valentine Pelka , Wanja Mues , Frank Lipman

Filmmaker Roman Polanski, who as a boy growing up in Poland watched while the Nazis devastated his country during World War II, directed this downbeat drama based on the true story of a privileged mus... read more read more...ician who spent five years struggling against the Nazi occupation of Warsaw. Wladyslaw Szpilman (Adrien Brody) is a gifted classical pianist born to a wealthy Jewish family in Poland. The Szpilmans have a large and comfortable flat in Warsaw which Wladyslaw shares with his mother and father (Maureen Lipman and Frank Finlay), his sisters Halina and Regina (Jessica Kate Meyer and Julia Rayner), and his brother, Henryk (Ed Stoppard). While Wladyslaw and his family are aware of the looming presence of German forces and Hitler's designs on Poland, they're convinced that the Nazis are a menace which will pass, and that England and France will step forward to aid Poland in the event of a real crisis. Wladyslaw's naïveté is shattered when a German bomb rips through a radio studio while he performs a recital for broadcast. During the early stages of the Nazi occupation, as a respected artist, he still imagines himself above the danger, using his pull to obtain employment papers for his father and landing a supposedly safe job playing piano in a restaurant. But as the German grip tightens upon Poland, Wladyslaw and his family are selected for deportation to a Nazi concentration camp. Refusing to face a certain death, Wladyslaw goes into hiding in a comfortable apartment provided by a friend. However, when his benefactor goes missing, Wladyslaw is left to fend for himself and he spends the next several years dashing from one abandoned home to another, desperate to avoid capture by German occupation troops. The Pianist was based on the memoir of the same name by the real-life Wladyslaw Szpilman; the book was first published in 1946 as Death of a City, but was banned by Polish Communist officials and went out of print until 1998, when a new edition was issued as The Pianist. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

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94% liked it

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96% liked it

178 critics

R, 2 hr. 28 min.

Directed by: Roman Polanski

Release Date: December 27, 2002

Keywords: sad, emotional, war, depressing

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DVD Release Date: May 27, 2003

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Stats: 13,716 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (13,716)

  • fb1664868775
    January 4, 2013
    fb1664868775
    A beautiful and moving film. Hightened by Polanski's closeness to the subject and Brody's stellar performance. A must see.
  • fb701560354
    October 23, 2012
    fb701560354
    Adrien Brody and Thomas Kretschmann give tremendously haunting performances in Roman Polanski's The Pianist. The film does not seek our tears or sympathies, but instead tells the story of Polish pianist Wladyslaw Szpilman just as it is, and that makes it all the more emotionally... read more involving. It's length and use of minimalist music may prove too boring or non-dramatic for some, but the Chopin interspersed throughout gave it more than an actual score could. In conclusion, The Pianist features a haunting central performance by Adrien Brody, and despite it's length and a familiar shell story, this is told differently and is more emotionally involving than other films of this subject matter.
  • garyX
    August 15, 2012
    garyX
    Roman Polanski directs the harrowing story of Wladyslaw Szpilman, a Polish pianist and Jew who survived the horrors of the holocaust in WWII. Adrian Brody' performance is the centrepiece as it is a very personal journey as you watch with despair and revulsion as Polish jews are s... read moretripped of their livelihoods, their rights and their dignity by a brutally oppressive regime. It's unusual in that rather telling the story of a man involved in a war, it's more of a spectator's point of view; in fact the later scenes in which Brody is entirely alone, disheveled and scavenging for food in a decimated wasteland feel a little sterile. The absence of human interaction means it lacks the emotional impact of something like Schindler's List, but it is a shocking and horrifying tale, made all the more so when you consider that Szpilman was actually one of the "lucky" ones.
  • flixsterman
    July 15, 2012
    flixsterman
    I am awestruck and inspired. 3 well deserved Academy Awards (Best Actor, Best Director, Best Screenplay).
  • fb1463751009
    June 30, 2012
    fb1463751009
    "The Pianist" is shockingly raw and depressing vision of the Holocaust that is portrayed through the eyes of Roman Polanski. I don't feel right to pick at a movie about such a sensitive issue but there seems to be one gaping problem: emotional attachment with the main characters.... read more Brutal attacks and killings are made to so many Jewish characters on screen that it begins to become numbing. The first death that occurs thrusts audiences out of their comfort zone and into the Holocaust time period, but it happens over and over and over. It is difficult to pinpoint the climax of the movie. Although this is a story about a real survivalist, there didn't seem to be any true development or growth that occurred throughout the atrocities. Not to say that if the real person never truly did, that it has still gotta be in the movie... but then what would this movie be? A movie that portrays the cold deaths of the Holocaust? This is one gaping flaw that prevented this movie from being a masterpiece.
  • ironclad1609
    February 9, 2012
    ironclad1609
    Roman Polanski's Oscar winning drama is probably the strongest film about the persecution of the Jews during World War Two, and leaves even more of an impression than Spielberg's Schindler's List. The story follows the family of pianist Szpilman's family as the Nazi occupy Warsaw... read more and the resulting, horrible events in the Polish ghettos up to the trains going to the concentration camps. Thanks to the kindness of strangers and pure luck Szpielman survives in the ghetto and is later hidden in what feels like eternal situations of solitude throughout the city. The film is brutal and doesn't leave out the ugly sides, but never abandons hope. Szpilman is a survivor who does what it takes to make it through somehow. That makes for a gloomy, sad, but also enthralling film carried by Adrien Brody's outstanding performance. The final straw to his survival is so surprising and heart-warming that it feels like a ray of light between all the madness and murder you've witnesses for two hours. A moving, unforgettable testimonial of the darkest chapter of the 20th century.
  • TheDudeLebowski65
    January 26, 2012
    TheDudeLebowski65
    The Pianist is a terrific film. The film is one of the better films starring Adrien Brody. Director Roman Polanski directs a terrific film about a Jewish pianist who tries to survive the Holocaust by playing the piano. I think that this Adrian Brody's best film, and he gives a st... read morerong performance. This is a powerful story about survival, and how one man used his gift to survive one of the greatest crimes ever committed. The Pianist is a stunning film, that I thought was among the best Holocaust films. Schindler's List is a better film, but The Pianist is among the best of the genre. Like I previously stated, this is Adrien Brody's best film, and he truly delivers a great performance. This is a solid film that is powerful to watch, and though it's depressing, it shows the will of survival of people face with incredible odds. This is a wonderful film that is entertaining and has everything you'd expect from a solid drama film. Roman Polanski crafts a unique film that is both equally sad and hopeful. The Pianist is a must see film with a great cast, and Polanski's directing is top-notch and that's what makes The Pianist such a memorable film to watch. Aside from Schindler's List and the Boy with the Striped Pajamas, The Pianist is one of the best film set during the Holocaust. A truly good film that will definitely appeal to viewers that are interested in the subject.
  • paulkoh110
    January 9, 2012
    paulkoh110
    A slow masterpiece that doesn't need guns or wild sex to grab the audiences' attention. Its one of polanski's best and the one epic that redeemed his career after a streak of mediocre films.
  • DreamExtractor
    September 11, 2011
    DreamExtractor
    The Pianist is the second greatest holocaust film ever, and is a masterpiece. Wladyslaw Szpilman (Adrian Brody) is a Jewish Pianist at the beginning oh the Holocaust, and as he continues on, he struggles to survive, find shelter, and make it through the horrors he must witness a... read morend the losses he must face. The storyline is an incredible one, we follow one man through his long journey of World War 2 and as he tries to hide from German forces, and the horrors within this film is as disturbing as Shindlers List. Adrien Brody deserved the Oscar, he had the personality that made him perfect for this role, and this takes us through his entire loneliness as a Holocaust survivor, and he basically takes us on this scary and horrible journey with him. The plot was genius, they seemed to grab every piece of informartion about the holocaust survivor and the horrors they had to see and do and put it in this movie, so that we can pity and feel their pain. The Pianist is a genius work of art, and future generations will enjoy this beautiful take on the horrible holocaust.
  • fb1216165431
    September 10, 2011
    fb1216165431
    The Pianist is a true account of Polish-Jewish musician Wladyslaw Szpilman, survivor of the World War II German occupation in Poland. Baring the painful scars, haunting memories, and lasting grief of World War II with its brilliant visual and narrative style, The Pianist is bound... read more to make a personal emotional engagement with history. Outstanding.

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Critic Reviews

Geoff Andrew
February 9, 2006
Geoff Andrew, Time Out

Old-fashioned in both visual and narrative style and in its overall restraint, the film clearly benefits from the director's first-hand knowledge of the territory. Full Review

Roger Moore
January 16, 2003
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel

Brody is a sublimely haunting presence at the heart of The Pianist.

Peter Rainer
January 16, 2003
Peter Rainer, New York Magazine

It's Roman Polanski's strongest and most personally felt movie. Full Review

David Ansen
January 14, 2003
David Ansen, Newsweek

In going home to tell Szpilman's story Polanski seems reborn: once again he's become a filmmaker who matters.

Richard Schickel
January 13, 2003
Richard Schickel, TIME Magazine

We admire this film for its harsh objectivity and refusal to seek our tears, our sympathies. Full Review

Joe Baltake
January 10, 2003
Joe Baltake, Sacramento Bee

This material means something to Polanski and, because of this, he brings personal details that might have evaded another filmmaker. Full Review

Rene Rodriguez
January 10, 2003
Rene Rodriguez, Miami Herald

Brody tracks Szpilman's descent from smug celebrity to feral, starving man with uncommon subtlety. Full Review

Peter Travers
January 9, 2003
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

A portrait of hell so shattering it's impossible to shake.

Moira MacDonald
January 3, 2003
Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times

The Pianist is a devastating story of survival, and a tribute to the redemptive powers of art. Full Review

Mick LaSalle
January 3, 2003
Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle

The Holocaust has been the subject of many films. The Pianist is one of the great ones. Full Review

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Facts

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    • Captain Wilm Hosenfeld: I have important and good news for you. There are rumours circulating that resettlement measures are again going to be taken. I want to assure you personally that no such measures will be taken now or in the future. Posters will be going up also to this effect. As proof of our good will, we want you to select a delegate, who will be permitted to go into town once. a day to buy, on each worker's behalf, five kilos of potatoes and one loaf of bread, which you will be allowed to take back into the ghetto. Now, why would we do that if we meant to resettle you? You can do good business on what you don't eat. Isn't that what you Jews are best at? Making 'geld'?
    • Wladyslaw Szpilman: What are you reading?
    • Henryk: If you prick us, do we not bleed? It you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge?
    • Wladyslaw Szpilman: [seeing that it is Shakespeare's 'The Merchant of Venice'] Very appropriate.
    • Wladyslaw Szpilman: I don't know how to thank you.
    • Captain Wilm Hosenfeld: Thank God, not me. He wants us to survive. Well, that's what we have to believe.
    • Wladyslaw Szpilman: Halina
    • Halina: What?
    • Wladyslaw Szpilman: It's a funny time to say this..
    • Halina: What?
    • Wladyslaw Szpilman: I wish I knew you better
    • Halina: Thank you.
    • The father: One caramel for 20 zloytas? Fine, we will split it.
    • Wladyslaw Szpilman: [taking off his watch] Here, sell this. Food is more important than time.
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The Pianist Trivia

  • What movie did Adrien Brody win an Oscar for Best Actor?  Answer »
  • The movie "The Pianist" takes place during what war?  Answer »
  • "Music was his passion. Survival was his masterpiece." Name The Movie...  Answer »
  • Winner of the Golden Palm at Cannes 2002.  Answer »
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