Movie: The Pianist

 

Cast: Adrien Brody, Thomas Kretschmann, Frank Finlay, and many more!

If you like World War II movies or Holocaust, you may like this movie, as much as me. I watched a lot of World War movies because it gives me a picture of how terrible the world was like at that time. Since we live (and born) at a time when peace and harmony are upheld, we can't feel a terrible feeling, either from the survivor or the fighter. So these movies can give up a part of the pictures of World War. This movie was derived from a true story of the pianist, Wladyslaw Szpilman that survived World War II and inspired to be a movie.

But before that, I must warn you. If you cannot stand war, brutish, and violent act, it is better you don't watch it because the movie showed how savage the killing was.

This movie was set in Poland in 1939 and it was focused on Wladyslaw Szpilman as a Jew and his family that lives there. When World War II was announced on the radio, and they were informed that Hitler was attacking Poland, they made a cautious movement because they knew that Germany wanted to destroy an entire Jews community in the world.

It also showed how barbaric was Germany during World War by punishing the citizen, specifically the Jews, and outcasted them from the community. They were transferred to an isolated place rather than living with other Polish on their own land. They were prohibited to have a normal business and must follow the curfew that set by them. At night, they will come to random houses in the Jews place and killed the family at their own will. The scene was really traumatic because they vividly showed how cruel Germany was.

After that, the Jews were transferred to the death camp to be killed including Wladyslaw's family. Wladyslaw Szpilman was exempted from going there and instead was placed in a factory to be a labor. After moving there, Wladyslaw Szpilman made a plan to escape and seek help. Wladyslaw Szpilman spent his life in a safe flat and he always peeking out of the window, seeing the soldiers run back and forth. He was then escaped his flat to find food even though he was scared to death.

The end of the movie was, of course, he was survived as I said above and as we all know, Germany was defeated and the victory went to the Allies. He overcomes the worst possible for his life. Even so, he was still traumatic and Polish was paranoid about Germany, and this scene was really heartfelt because when the siren was loudly chimed, the people were still being cautious. All the buildings were destroyed and the whole place was a disaster.

After finishing this movie, we will speechless for seeing how brutal was the war. The character of Wladyslaw Szpilman was picturing how we will be in a war. He was not a fighter, but he wants to stay alive. He was simply a layman that watched the whole war scenario and trying to, at least, save his life. He was alive because of the non-Jews sympathy and assisted him through his hiding.

At the end of the day, we are all like Wladyslaw Szpilman - we are not heroes, but to stay alive, is our rights.

p/s: this movie won several awards; Academy Award, Palme d'Or, BAFTA, and a few others. This movie also made Adrien Brody the youngest winner of the best leading actor in Academy Award.