Overview
After a long voyage from Scotland, pianist Ada McGrath and her young daughter, Flora, are left with all their belongings, including a piano, on a New Zealand beach. Ada, who has been mute since childhood, has been sold into marriage to a local man named Alisdair Stewart. Making little attempt to warm up to Alisdair, Ada soon becomes intrigued by his Maori-friendly acquaintance, George Baines, leading to tense, life-altering conflicts.
The acting in this film is extraordinary. Really, top-notch stuff as you might expect from this cast. That said, the movie didn’t come near the quality that I had hoped that it would. I think the core problem that I have with it is that I just didn’t feel the developing love story. I think part of this is the lack of speaking by one of the leads and then the lack of loving interaction between the two leads. It didn’t feel like they were in love – we were just kind of told that they were. It’s a fine film – I just didn’t see how it would rank among the all-time greats.
IHATEBadMovies.com reviews The Piano

Movie title: The Piano
Movie description: After a long voyage from Scotland, pianist Ada McGrath and her young daughter, Flora, are left with all their belongings, including a piano, on a New Zealand beach. Ada, who has been mute since childhood, has been sold into marriage to a local man named Alisdair Stewart. Making little attempt to warm up to Alisdair, Ada soon becomes intrigued by his Maori-friendly acquaintance, George Baines, leading to tense, life-altering conflicts.
Date published: 2021-01-02
Director(s): Jane Campion
Actor(s): Holly Hunter, Harvey Keitel, Sam Neill, Anna Paquin, Cliff Curtis, Kerry Walker, Tungia Baker, Ian Mune, Genevieve Lemon, Pete Smith, Te Whatanui Skipwith, Bruce Allpress, Rose McIver, Neil Gudsell, Jon Sperry, Verity George, Stephen Papps
Genre: Drama, Romance
My Review
The acting in this film is extraordinary. Really, top-notch stuff as you might expect from this cast. That said, the movie didn’t come near the quality that I had hoped that it would. I think the core problem that I have with it is that I just didn’t feel the developing love story. I think part of this is the lack of speaking by one of the leads and then the lack of loving interaction between the two leads. It didn’t feel like they were in love – we were just kind of told that they were. It’s a fine film – I just didn’t see how it would rank among the all-time greats.
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My Review - 7/10
7/10