The Odd Couple Featuring Beautiful Music Mixed With Extreme Hate

Rating: 9/10 (5 November 2012)

It doesn't come very often that we are bear to witness something incredible that doesn't happen very often that works so well like two peas in a pod. Not only are we engaged to the scintillating sounds of beautiful piano music, while view the misfortune horrors of the epicenter of World War II, Warsaw Poland.
Based on a true story of iconic musician Wladyslaw Szpilman, (Adrien Brody) you get this feeling of pity for the poor man and the horrors he faces throughout the movie and in hopes that nobody has to go through what he had to do to survive in this horrible war. But at the same time, it gives you that sense of gratitude that we (at least I hope) should never take life for granted and that we should love the life we live and to be lucky that we don't live in fear like Mr. Szpilman encountered in war-torn Nazi Poland. To be very blunt, Poland in WWII was no vacation spot, especially if you were of Jewish faith. Picture yourself in that era, your home is in rubble, your family and your friends all perished all the while trying to survive in one impossible situation after another. Left alone and the only food to eat was garbage and picking money off corpses is definitely no way to live. Mr. Szpilman faced this terror and to that it makes him a true war hero. Sure he bared no arms or was a soldier by any means, but his contribution to fighting the enemy was to sooth the savage beast, by way of ear-candy music.
Director Roman Polanski's direction was one of the very best as he captures all the details to near perfection as he recreates the graphic imagery as a ploy to keep it audience gasping in deep emotion.Even the colors depicted here are very dark and drab as it symbolizes an era where bright vibrant colours is nowhere in sight. The green grass will only be given to us if we can stay on towards the end without trying to reach out for tissue paper. We all have the dishonour to explore the cattle scenes, where thousands of Jewish people get carried away on freight trains where they are being put to death. The scene itself is detailed enough to just metaphorically rip your heart out in two, just the locking of the doors and screaming pleas from actual human inside will make even a grown man cry. We also have the displeasure of witnessing the brutal humiliation the Jewish people suffered during these painful times. It's the ultimate insult to injury that truly comes to life here. But the realism is what makes this film so captivating and for that alone I give all my respects to Roman Polanski.
Another reason "The Pianist" is so extraordinary is the performance by Adrien Brody. He practically brings Szpilman to life in all his defenceless struggles to survive and that is by far no simple task. His changes through the film is quite sublime as he goes from a classy and honoured musician to a long-suffering misfit who still feels he has to move on and love music as his only escape through life. His survival instincts really wears you in places you've only dream of before. as the film progresses we see the man's physical torture show as his legs become shattered and his body in constant quivers and his mouth is manifested with scurvy and his eyes lighting up with every minute he survives every deadly predicament. But his magic fingers still manages to stay in tack as he still has the stamina to strike beautiful notes on a dusty and dirty piano.
This movie is a movie no home should be without. The lingering effects will likely stay with you for days or even weeks. We can only hope that these terrible events don't come our way, but with the amount of hate that our world faces, let's not hold our breaths. So the next time you feel blue or manifested with lingering anger, keep this movie within you at all times. It may make us feel better of ourselves and that things can be a lot worse. And that in-spite of the awful events that occurred in this movie, beautiful music is around to sooth the wounds that come alive in "The Pianist."