The Pianist - Top Fives

Themes

1) Pursuit of an Ideal

a) Hosenfeld is guided by his principles and ideals, choosing to help Szpilman rather than kill him or turn him in.

b) The Szpilman brothers do not join the ranks of the Jewish Police, as they disagree with the act of beating and manipulating their fellow Jews. Even though a better quality of life could be theirs through their cooperation, they choose not to join, abiding to their own ideals.

c) The Jews of the ghetto rebel against their Nazi oppressors in the name of freedom, and faith. They die honorably in the name of their ideals.

2) Perseverance

a) During his stay at the second safe house, Szpilman falls ill. He perseveres through this challenge and is able to survive to see his liberation.

b) The Szpilman family survives two years in the Warsaw ghetto amid the chaos, corruption and death that surrounds them.

c) During the last few months of the war, Szpilman weathers the cold Polish winter in the attic of an abandoned building to see the end of the war and his freedom.

3) Personal Resourcefulness

a) Szpilman thinks of hiding the family’s savings in the violin, where the Nazis won’t be able to find it.

b) Prior to leaving the ghetto, Szpilman makes sure he has a safe place to stay once he is out. He asks his friend to contact a source outside the ghetto who can offer him safety.

c) When running from the Nazis, he plays dead in the middle of the street, effectively avoiding detection.

4) Isolation

a) Szpilman is forced to reside in apartments alone for long periods of time. He cannot make any noise and is in a constant state of hunger.

b) Once Szpilman leaves the hospital and crawls over the wall back into the ghetto, he is met by a dead and barren landscape, and is forced to survive in a dead environment.

c) After his family is taken away, Szpilman walks through the deserted ghetto and courtyard, surrounded by dead bodies and the belongings of the living dead.

5) Ruling Passions

a) In the opening scene, Szpilman continues to play the piano, even though the station is being bombed and his coworkers are urging him to stop.

b) During his time in isolation, Szpilman practices the piano by playing an imaginary keyboard. He uses his passion for music to combat his boredom and loneliness.

c) After the war, his passion for music undoubtedly helped him to continue living without his family and the comforts of his previous life.

Scenes

1) The Caramel
During their time in the ghetto courtyard, the Szpilmans pool their money together to buy a small caramel. The caramel is then split into six miniscule pieces, and shared among the family. I think this scene is important, as it is the last family activity the Szpilmans enjoy. The atmosphere of the scene is one of sadness and helplessness, as each character knows that their end is near.

2) Man Eating Food off the Ground
While Wladyslaw tries to find his brother at the police station, he witnesses an old man attempt to steal the food of an old woman. The two opponents fight over the small can of food, which eventually ends up on the ground. The man immediately falls and starts eating the food directly off the road. The woman, in a state of raw anguish, walks away sobbing. None of the bystanders make an effort to help, as this act has become a common occurrence in the ghetto. I think this scene is important as it illustrates the level to which their society has stooped…from fine art and business to the very basic human instincts of survival.

3) The Executions
This scene occurs after the masses are deported. Only the able bodied men remain to do the Nazi’s dirty work. Before the workers are sent to their quarters, a few of the men are randomly selected and are ordered to lie down on the pavement. They are then systematically executed. They last man death is prolonged, as the German soldier has to reload his gun. Amid the obvious wrongs being committed in this scenario, the most disturbing thoughts are those of the last man. What is he thinking while the German reloads? Perhaps he is thinking of running, attempting to escape death. Perhaps he is frozen with fear. Perhaps, he is simply yearning for the German to hurry up, and release him from this hell.

4) “Food is more important than Time”
While Szpilman is in the second safe house, he gives his watch to his caretaker, so that he may sell it to purchase food. This scene demonstrates the slow erosion of complex human characteristics to the basic instincts. Szpilman no longer cares for time and his valuable possessions, only his hunger.

5) Seeing the Outside World
After most of the Polish Jews are deported from the ghetto, only the workers remain. Szpilman is one of these workers. Their job is to dismantle a part of the wall that separates the ghetto from the outside world. The dynamics of the scene are excellent. The monochromatic grays of the ghetto are replaced by a full pallet of colour. The dirty clothes of the Jews are met by the prim and proper wardrobes of the market goers. All of this contradiction illustrates the level of disparity existing between the Jews and the rest of the population.

Motifs

1) The Wall
The most prominent motif in the movie is the idea of the wall and the similarities and differences of its opposing sides. The most obvious example of this is the giant brick wall separating the ghetto from the rest of Warsaw. Inside the ghetto, conditions are ghastly. Desperation, poverty and death run rampant. Nazis venture into the ghetto to randomly murder Jews, instilling a powerful sense of fear which controls the people. On the other side of the wall however, the characteristics of normal society are still present. People walk through a bustling market, purchasing the ingredients for their next meal. The ideas of isolation and segregation are greatly reinforced, literally and figuratively, by the wall.
Although the main purpose of the wall is to maintain a social gradient between the two communities, Szpilman discovers that he is subject to similar conditions, regardless of his location. Discrimination, hunger and fear follow him out of the ghetto and into the real world, where he is constantly running from the Nazis. For example, the woman in the adjacent apartment tries to catch him when he leaves the first safe house, exclaiming “Jew, Jew!” as he runs down the stairs. Szpilman is constantly hungry outside the ghetto, often more so than when he was inside the confines of the wall. He is also constantly fearful of his life, even contemplating suicide when the Nazis enter his apartment building.

2) The Star
The Star of David also acts as a device that segregates the Jewish community from the rest of society. The armband that the Jews have to wear brands them inferior to the rest of the population and subjects them to harsh discrimination. For example, Nazi officers openly mock and humiliate Wladyslaw’s father, forcing him to walk in the gutter while everyone else walks on the street. The non-Jewish bystanders do nothing to help, either out of fear of repercussion or pure apathy.

3) The Piano
In an abstract way, I think that the piano represents hope in the movie. At the start of the movie, Szpilman plays passionately, continuing to play even as the very building he resides in is being bombed, signifying strong hope. After a few months of occupation, the Szpilmans are forced to sell their piano, perhaps signifying the deterioration of their hopes of safety and security. The next example occurs after Szpilman has escaped the ghetto, where he pretends to play in the apartment. This action again represents Szpilman’s dwindling hope for his well being. In the hospital, he pretends to practice in a weary and unenthused fashion, reflecting his perspective of his current situation. When Szpilman meets Hosenfeld, he plays gingerly at first, but then becomes more involved and plays with increased passion, illustrating and foreshadowing his fate. Finally, after the war, Szpilman is shown playing in the studio and in concert with conviction and enthusiasm, signifying the restoration of his hope and ideals.