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    Grand Piano

    Reviewed by
    pietroantoni@

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    Grand Piano - Spanish made and directed film spoken in English, 2013 on DVD 2014.

    I hadn't the slightest clue as to what to expect with GRAND PIANO, usually having a rough idea of most films I plan to see. People love this movie or hate it immensely; there's no middle ground! Unfortunately, not that many saw it in North America as it had a very limited release. Perhaps the word I should be using is, fortunately. The central figure Tom (Wood) is a world renowned pianist who does pull off a pretty decent performance in spite of much that doesn't ring true as the film plays in REAL TIME. Any clever person would note the impossibility of 'factual' truth with so many flaws, so many unanswered questions. If I were to ask 10 people to write a full synopsis of the movie as it unfolds on screen, I doubt any individual would do a competent job or even come close to the accuracy of an intricate plot with unseen layers. Grand Piano does get bogged down in its quirks and quarks of confusion. Yet ON THE SURFACE IT seems AS NORMAL AS APPLE PIE. Though the plot can lie in the realm of absurdity, the look and the feel of the movie seem quite grand. Indeed, If I were to take my thesis of this movie to the extreme, the film could be considered so bad that it becomes somewhat good, the entertainment value mainly due to the many flaws already mentioned. The Cusack character is a mysteriously written one, one heard repeatedly as the orchestral music blasts its way through the enormous Chicago Symphony Hall. But one fails to understand his menacing stance, unable to pinpoint clear motives for his actions. In this beautifully photographed work within the confines of the Hall, there is always a robust ticking forward much like Phantom of the Opera to eventually affect all present. In action sequences that do NOT involve WOOD or CUSACK. It's fair to say they are extremely poorly written and directed. The character of Wood's wife and friends only sketchily drawn, just cardboard figures that one can possibly do away with altogether... but not quite. Wait till you hear what is presented as an ENCORE as most classical recitals clearly conclude with one or more encores. The vocal piece is haphazardly thrown in to give Wood enough time to get to the heart of the action. At an end, you must pay EXTREMELY close attention to the VERY FINAL SCENE so not to miss what most do, what in fact, I would presume, has motivated the 'dastardly villain' of the Cusack character. I have a notion that both the writer and filmmaker know all along that several matters in the film would be both puzzling and obscure and counting on these faults to create tension in this action thriller bound in such limited space. Grand Piano certainly is enigmatic but on closer scrutiny one realizes it's not at all. It's simply effective because much feels like flawless viewing. Too much is unexplained, floating ideas creating a false sense of suspense for the regular cinema goer. Those more observant will denounce the film as lame, pretty much a mess and worst of all laughable. I felt little if any suspense viewing this so-called action thriller. Grand Piano becomes for me a PIECE OF ABSURD ART. It appears pretty confusing because IT IS However, a few things caught my imagination so I will not score it as low as I wanted to...

    4
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    pietroantoni@  21.12.2014 age: 36-49 14,551 reviews

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