"Am..., am I disappointing him?"

Rating: 8/10 (15 June 2018)

Taking nothing away from Geoffrey Rush's inspired performance, I thought it curious that he won a Best Actor Oscar for his role considering he was only in the picture for the second half. Of the other contenders in the category that year, I thought Billy Bob Thornton ("Sling Blade") might have done a better job with a similar portrayal of a mentally challenged individual. The frustrating thing to see in the story is how David Helfgott's father (Armin Mueller-Stahl) couldn't or wouldn't understand that the overbearing attitude toward his son was causing him to retreat inward and become more and more anti-social. At least David (Rush) had the initial courage to break away from his family for all the right reasons to pursue his one true calling. As a child prodigy, David appeared to handle his defeats rather competently, but driven as his father was to keep him at home provided very little compassion and eventually led to his becoming an emotional cripple.
Not knowing how much of the story was based on actual fact, it was encouraging to see how David managed to overcome his adversity and find some sense of consolation in returning to his music and finding love with Gillian (Lynn Redgrave). Or maybe it was the other way around, as Gillian showed more of a motherly instinct and understanding of the inwardly tormented pianist. As I say, Geoffrey Rush's performance was outstanding while he was in the picture, though it wouldn't hurt to give some recognition to the two fine young actors who portrayed him at an earlier age - Alex Rafalowicz as the young boy, and Noah Taylor as the adolescent david Helfgott. Both did a commendable job as well.