The Piano (1993)

Director:

Jane Campion

Guionista:

Jane Campion (written by)

Release Date:

12 noviembre 1993 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Plot:

A mute woman along with her young daughter, and her prized piano, are sent to 1850s New Zealand for an arranged marriage to a wealthy landowner, and she's soon lusted after by a local worker on the plantation.

Plot Keywords:

Minister | Neighbor | Rainstorm | Female Nudity | Newlywed

Awards:

Won 3 Oscars. Another 53 wins & 25 nominations

Comentarios de los usuarios:

"I think of my piano in its ocean grave, and sometimes of myself floating above it." - Ada

Cast

Holly Hunter	...	Ada McGrath
Harvey Keitel	...	George Baines
Sam Neill	...	Alisdair Stewart
Anna Paquin	...	Flora McGrath
Kerry Walker	...	Aunt Morag
Geneviève Lemon	...	Nessie (as Genevieve Lemon)
Tungia Baker	...	Hira
Ian Mune	...	Reverend
Peter Dennett	...	Head Seaman
Te Whatanui Skipwith	...	Chief Nihe
Pete Smith	...	Hone
Bruce Allpress	...	Blind Piano Tuner
Cliff Curtis	...	Mana
Carla Rupuha	...	Heni - Mission Girl
Mahina Tunui	...	Mere - Mission Girl

También conocida como:

Leçon de piano, La (France)
Pleasure (Australia) (working title)
The Black Keys (Australia) (working title)
The Piano Lesson (Australia) (original script title)
Lección de piano, La (Argentina) [es]
Piano, El (Spain) [es]

MPAA:

Rated R for moments of extremely graphic sexuality.

Duración:

121 min

País:

Australia | New Zealand | France

Idioma:

English | British Sign Language | Maori

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sonido:

Dolby

Clasificación:

Brazil:16 | Iceland:12 (video rating) | Iceland:L | Philippines:R-18 | Argentina:16 | Australia:M | Chile:18 | Finland:K-14 | Germany:12 | Hong Kong:III | Netherlands:16 | Portugal:M/16 | Singapore:M18 | South Korea:18 | Spain:13 | Sweden:11 | UK:15 | USA:R | Malaysia:(Banned)

Filming Locations:

Henderson, Auckland, New Zealand

Company:

Australian Film Commission, The

Trivialidades:

The play performed in the movie is an adaptation of "Bluebeard", which is a French fairy tale recorded by Charles Perrault about a man who marries, kills his wives after they fail a test, stashes their bodies in a small chamber, then marries again. In the original story, the main character (Bluebeard's current wife) escapes her psychopathic husband and finds happiness elsewhere.

Goofs:

Continuity: When the boat leaves the island, Ada trails her hand in the water, which is still and calm. On long shots, it is foaming from the action of the oars, and the boat on the water.

Quotes:

Ada: At night! I think of my piano in its ocean grave, and sometimes of myself floating above it. Down there everything is so still and silent that it lulls me to sleep. It is a weird lullaby and so it is; it is mine.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (2001)

Soundtrack:

The Flowers of the Forest

"I think of my piano in its ocean grave, and sometimes of myself floating above it." - Ada

The New Zealand sensation 'The Piano' doesn't move very fast but that's because it doesn't have to. Jane Campion's critically-acclaimed film is about a mute woman in the 1800s, Ada (Holly Hunter - Broadcast News) and her young daughter who narrates the film through her mother, Flora (Anna Paquin - X-Men) who journey to a small tribe town in New Zealand where Ada is arranged to marry a wealthy and stern man, Alisdair Stewart (Sam Neill - Dead Calm). Ada is a shy and sad woman, but the one thing she adores more then everything else is her piano which her new husband forbids. Ada is upset and finds a way to still be able to play her piano with the help of Alisdair's friend George (Harvey Keital - Bad Lieutenant) who begins taking lessons from Ida and ends up in a tangled love affair resulting in a powerful and sad climax. 'The Piano' is a very well-written film, but it is very slow-paced towards the beginning. It's not a wildly entertaining film, but I think the movie appeals to people who find authentic costumes, designs and crafty film-making more engrossing then say car explosions. Holly Hunter is simply amazing in a role he damn well deserved her Oscar for. Anna Paquin is also extremely powerful in her role for which she won the Oscar for Best Actress in a Supporting Role, making her the youngest actress ever to receive an Oscar. Unfortunately the Academy seemed to forget to nominate Harvey Keital for a Supporting Actor Oscar who was absolutely brilliant in every frame he was in. Rounding out the cast, Sam Neill and Kerry Walker are also very good. Jane Campion does an excellent job directing which earned her a 'Best Director' Oscar nomination. 'The Piano' scored eight Academy Award Nominations in 1993 including Best Director, Best Actress - Holly Hunter, Best Supporting Actress - Anna Paquin, Best Original Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Costume Design and Best Picture, but was totally out-shadowed by Spielberg's masterpiece 'Schindler's List' which opened that same year. All in all I highly recommend giving 'The Piano' a shot if you appreciate the precision and craft that goes into good film-making. Grade: B+

MADE MY TOP 300 LIST AT #191