The Pianist
Biography, Drama, Music, War
Universal Studios  (2002) 150 mins R

8.5 (97,415 votes) Top 250: #56
"The best picture of the year." -Michael Wilmington, Chicago Tribune

Nominated for 7 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and winner of 3, The Pianist stars Oscar winner Adrien Brody in the true-life story of brilliant pianist and composer Wladyslaw Szpilman, the most acclaimed young musician of his time until his promising career was interrupted by the onset of World War II. This powerful, ultimately triumphant film follows Szpilman's heroic and inspirational journey of survival with the unlikely help from a sympathetic German officer. A truly unforgettable epic, testifying to both the power of hope and the resiliency of the human spirit, The Pianist is a miraculous tale of survival masterfully brought to life by visionary filmmaker Roman Polanski in his most personal movie ever....

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Cast and Crew
Adrien Brody  ......  Wladyslaw Szpilman
Thomas Kretschmann  ......  Captain Wilm Hosenfeld
Frank Finlay  ......  Father
Emilia Fox  ......  Dorota
Maureen Lipman  ......  Mother
Jessica Kate Meyer  ......  Halina
Director  .....  Roman Polanski
Producer  .....  Alain Sarde; Roman Polanski; Robert Benmussa; Timothy Burrill
Writer  .....  Ronald Harwood; Wladyslaw Szpilman
Notes
Goofs:
Anachronisms: Early during the movie, when the family is listening to a BBC radio broadcast in the autumn of 1939, there's a brief overlap during which we hear a few German words being spoken. These are from a recording of the infamous Sports Palace speech by Joseph Goebbels, delivered in Berlin on 18th February 1943 - well over three years after the movie's scene takes place. (more)

Trivia:
Proceeds from the Amsterdam, Netherlands premiere were donated to the Anne Frank House. (more)

Filming Locations:
Babelsberg, Potsdam, Brandenburg, Germany (more)

Quotes:
Wladyslaw Szpilman: I love to see a woman playing the cello. (more)

Awards:
Won 3 Oscars. Another 43 wins & 42 nominations (more)