Grand Piano (2013)

A pianist with stage fright endures a performance under the eyes of a mysterious sniper, who will shoot and kill him if a wrong note is played.

Director:

Eugenio Mira

Writer:

Damien Chazelle

Stars:

Elijah Wood, John Cusack, Kerry Bishé

5 wins & 12 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Elijah Wood	...	Tom Selznick
John Cusack	...	Clem
Kerry Bishé	...	Emma Selznick
Tamsin Egerton	...	Ashley
Allen Leech	...	Wayne
Don McManus	...	Norman Reisinger
Alex Winter	...	Assistant
Dee Wallace	...	A & V Interviewer
Jim Arnold	...	Janitor
Jack Taylor	...	Patrick Godureaux
Beth Rollan	...	Emma's Publicist (as Beth Trollan)
Amy Gwilliam	...	Emma's Assistant
Harris Gordon	...	Emma's Agent
Ricardo Alexander	...	Executive (as Richard A. Newby)
Brendan Murphy	...	Mover #1

Storyline

A pianist with stage fright endures a performance under the eyes of a mysterious sniper, who will shoot and kill him if a wrong note is played.

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Plot Keywords:

stage | pianist | stage fright | die hard scenario | falling to death | 

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Taglines:

Play one wrong note and you die.

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Genres:

Horror | Music | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for some language

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official Site

Country:

Spain USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 October 2013 (Spain)

Also Known As:

Sans fausse note

Filming Locations:

Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$2,964, 9 March 2014, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$22,353, 13 April 2014

Company Credits

Production Co:

Nostromo Pictures,Solution Entertainment Group,Atresmedia Televisión

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

During its limited theatrical release, the film was screened at only one New York City location: Quad Cinema, New York's first multiplex theater (opened in 1972).

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Goofs

The big concert starts at 9:30 PM, a strange time for any concert, let alone a standard classical one.

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Quotes

Clem: [via earpiece] You think you can bargain with me? You're not in control, Tom. The audience is control. And right now, I'm your audience.

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Crazy Credits

At the end of the credit roll we hear The Impossible Piece being played while the title shows.

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Connections

References The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T. (1953)

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Soundtracks

Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child
[Traditional]
Performed by Alice Ella
Courtesy of Cutting Edge Music (Holdings) Limited

User Reviews

Urgent Suspense Prevails

Tom Selznick is an acclaimed concert pianist. However, after messing up a key performance, he withdrew from the public eye. He agreed to perform again at a concert-tribute to his departed mentor. But as he began to play, he noted a threat written on his sheet music. He should play perfectly to the note, or his wife will die.

Elijah Wood plays Tom with his trademark wide-eyed style of acting. This film is practically a one-man show for Wood as all the focus was on him as he played for his wife's life while trying to psych out his unseen adversary. The constant look of fear on his face made this film work. For a non-piano player like myself, Wood's piano playing looked wonderfully realistic.

The villain was played by John Cusack, whom we only hear for the most part as his chilling voice dictated what his captive should do. Cusack succeeds to convey that sinister feel by his vocal inflections alone. We only see his face for a brief while towards the end which was honestly a bit anti-climactic.

The glamorous Kelly Bishe plays Tom's wife Emma, a celebrated actress who organized Tom's comeback event. Too bad, there really was not much for her to do here. I have to say though that I loved her haunting vocal solo (if that was actually her singing).

Actually the whole situation was impossible. While Tom was passionately playing complicated pieces, he was in constant communication with his hostage-taker via an earpiece. During certain movements in the concerto, Tom was actually able to run off the stage to go to the dressing room to investigate. He can even text while playing piano!

I don't really know what kind of superhuman ability Tom has to keep on playing perfectly while all of this stressful things were swirling around him. If you are able to suspend your disbelief in the incredibly improbable flow of events unfolding on the screen, you will get drawn into the excitement and tension of it all.

This film is not very long, only an hour and twenty minutes. The whole situation was bordering on the absurd, yet the way director Eugenio Mira staged it, urgent suspense still prevailed. The cinematography was lush. The editing was well done. The music was otherworldly in its beauty.

I enjoyed it. The middle section really had me on the edge of my seat. The concluding act was rather over-the-top, but overall this was a neat thriller that is worth to check out. 6/10.