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Roman Polanki’s last film, “The Pianist”, brings to life a different kind of hero in the character of Wladyslaw Szpilman, that of the unlikely survivor of the horrors of the Holocaust. Wladek Szpilman is the embodiment of the passive character who, as a result of the kindness of others and a good dose of luck, comes to light more as a witness and survivor of the Warsaw Ghetto rebellion than the committed hero we are accustomed to see. ... The film then follows the life of this most unlikely survivor as a tool to capture the atmosphere of life under the Nazi occupation of Poland. ... Whenever he is out of luck, it is either outside help or his skills as a pianist that seem to come through and save him. When the entire ghetto, including his family, is placed on trains and taken off to Treblinka, he is thrown aside and saved because of previous knowledge of his talent. ... Even when the Russians finally occupy Warsaw, almost in tears and having given up, he invites his own death as he approaches an old lady wearing a German officer’s coat and is almost shot. ... Wladek in so many of these situations chooses simple the passive role, never taking anything to heart and possessing any signs of heroism. ... Even after seeing Jews return to Warsaw dressed in concentration camp uniforms, he doesn’t envision signs of hope in regrouping with his family. ...
Polanski’s parents were sent to Auschwitz and escaped from the Krakow ghetto; therefore, making this film was very personal for him. In “The Pianist”, Polanski wisely aims for simply telling the story. ... He succeeds at that with the fabulous scenes of Warsaw destroyed and the terror in the Jewish persons eyes. ... In the ghetto, he would play for people at an upper class café, something that kept him alive in more than one way.
Approximate Word count = 1485
Approximate Pages = 5.9
(250 words per page double spaced)
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