Watching this back to back with another overly praised film was probably a bad idea. I was disappointed in both. The other film was the Jack Nicholson Oscar nominated role and although I watched it yesterday, I have already forgotten it's name. Unlike many reviewers, I have seen many films dealing with the Holocaust. I have not become immune to the subject and frankly, Polanski does start to touch on the horror and the random acts of inhumanity. However, the pianist character left me cold. A man who is almost completely devoid of any character. Neither a hero or a villain, but just a dull, cold fish. He barely shows fear and certainly aside from two moments when he looks upset (family taken off and little boy beaten to death) is robotic. I saw no Oscar performance here, found the constant leaping from subject to subject disorienting and had no time to really get to know anyone in the story but the robot. I am not sure what Polanski's goal was in making this movie but it came off as neither drama nor documentary. Too little of everything except perhaps, historical accuracy.
Review of The Pianist
