By Alex Silverman
Pianist (not to be confused with the film starring Adrien Brody) is directed by Kazuya Ashizawa. It tells the story of a piano player struggling to play a piece by Beethoven.
The star of this film is Yusuke Honda, who is an international competition winner in real life. We see Yusuke struggle in the beginning with his piece, with his instructor reminding him that Beethoven composed the piece with all his heart, so Yusuke must accept all of Beethoven’s heart. As Yusuke continues to practice, the stress and frustration of not meeting his own expectations begin to take a toll on him emotionally. We witness his moments of doubt, perseverance, and gradual improvement. When he finally steps out to perform, it becomes evident that he has poured as much heart into the piece as Beethoven did. This emotional journey from struggle to triumph is portrayed with minimal dialogue and masterful piano playing, which are the film’s greatest strengths.
I give this film 3 out of 5 stars
Alex is a graduate of Columbia College Chicago with a major in Comedic Writing & Performance and a minor in Writing for Television. Apart from his work as part of the Planet Classroom Network Film Selection team at CMRubinWorld, he is a sketch writer, and pursuing a career in acting in New York City.
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