Bravo, yet another Holocaust film!

Rating: 10/10 (20 January 2003)

The reason I found this film to be so compelling is because yet again another movie expresses the destruction of humanity during the Holocaust. I don't think this topic can ever be "overdone", and I'm glad that a film about the subject is made consistently every few years. The beauty of this film is that our protagonist is not a "hero" in the classical sense. He's an artist struggling to survive. Living in a life of music and beauty didn't prepare him to run from the Gestapo. We don't see him jumping out of windows and landing on his feet, nor do we see him beat up the bad guys, or ever really fight back. Instead we see him stumble, run, and beg for his life. His character illustrates what a "real" person did to escape brutality. Brody's performance is amazing! The depression and isolation Szpilman must have felt is portrayed so convincingly. The parallels with the classical music works extremely well. The music lived within Szpilman just like his will to live did. Neither of these could be taken away nor locked up. A definite 10+ from me.