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The Pianist

2002
Become a fan of its genres:
8.4/10

Release Date

17/09/2002

Popularity

🍅 Rotten Tomatoes
95%
🎬 Internet Movie Database
85%
Ⓜ️ Metacritic
85%

Music was his passion. Survival was his masterpiece.

Warsaw, 1939. Władysław Szpilman, a Polish pianist of Jewish descent, works at the city's radio station when Nazi Germany invades Poland. The station is bombed while he is on air, and the musician returns home believing that it won't last long. There he learns that the United Kingdom and France have declared war on Germany. His family receives the news with relief and decides to stay in the city, convinced the conflict will be brief. Szpilman just wants to carry on with his life and his music, unaware of what is coming. The film is directed by Roman Polanski, with Adrien Brody playing the lead in a story based on Szpilman's own memoirs.

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Facts about The Pianist

Releases, age ratings, box office, post-credit scenes and more.

Post-credits sceneNone
Age ratingNot recommended for viewers under 12 years old
Spain releaseOctober 25, 2002
Worldwide premiereMay 24, 2002
Runtime2 h 30 min
Original languageEnglish
Original titleThe Pianist
CountriesFrance, Germany, Poland, United Kingdom
Production companiesR.P. Productions, Heritage Films, Studio Babelsberg
Budget$35.0M
Worldwide box office$120.1M
Box office in the U.S.$32.6M
Return on investmentx3.4 Box office hit
Based onThe Pianist by Władysław Szpilman
Śmierć Miasta by Władysław Szpilman
Trailer views39K

More ratings

4.4/5Letterboxd85/100Trakt8.6/10Metacritic (público)3.5/4Roger Ebert

Awards for The Pianist

3Oscars won
57total awards
74total nominations
Oscar 3 7 nom.BAFTA 2Cannes 1

Awards won

  • 2003Academy Award for Best Actor · Adrien Brody
  • 2003Academy Award for Best Director · Roman Polanski
  • 2003Academy Award for Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay · Ronald Harwood
  • 2002Palme d'Or
  • —BAFTA Award for Best Direction · Roman Polanski
  • —BAFTA Award for Best Film · Roman Polanski
  • 2002European Film Award for Best Cinematographer · Paweł Edelman
  • —National Board of Review: Top Ten Films

Nominations

  • 2003Academy Award for Best Picture
  • 2003Academy Award for Best Actor
  • 2003Academy Award for Best Director
  • 2003Academy Award for Best Cinematography
  • 2003Academy Award for Best Film Editing
  • 2003Academy Award for Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay
See 5 more
  • 2003Academy Award for Best Costume Design
  • 2002European Film Award for Best Film
  • 2002European Film Award for Best Director
  • 2002European Film Award for Best Cinematographer
  • 2002Jameson People's Choice Award for Best Actor

The Pianist Cast

Adrien Brody
Adrien BrodyWładysław 'Władek' Szpilman
Thomas Kretschmann
Thomas KretschmannCaptain Wilm Hosenfeld
Frank Finlay
Frank FinlayFather
Maureen Lipman
Maureen LipmanMother
Emilia Fox
Emilia FoxDorota
Ed Stoppard
Ed StoppardHenryk Szpilman
Julia Rayner
Julia RaynerRegina Szpilman
Jessica Kate Meyer
Jessica Kate MeyerHalina Szpilman
Michał Żebrowski
Michał ŻebrowskiJurek
Wanja Mues
Wanja MuesSS Slapping Father
Richard Ridings
Richard RidingsMr. Lipa
Nomi Sharron
Nomi SharronFeather Woman
Anthony Milner
Anthony MilnerMan Waiting to Cross
Lucy Skeaping
Lucy SkeapingStreet Musician
Roddy Skeaping
Roddy SkeapingStreet Musician
Ben Harlan
Ben HarlanStreet Musician
Thomas Lawinky
Thomas LawinkySchutzpolizei
Joachim Paul Assböck
Joachim Paul AssböckSchutzpolizei
Roy Smiles
Roy SmilesItzak Heller
Paul Bradley
Paul BradleyYehuda
Daniel Caltagirone
Daniel CaltagironeMajorek
Andrzej Blumenfeld
Andrzej BlumenfeldBenek
Zbigniew Zamachowski
Zbigniew ZamachowskiCustomer with Coins
Detlev von Wangenheim
Detlev von WangenheimSS Officer
Popeck
PopeckRubenstein
Zofia Czerwińska
Zofia CzerwińskaWoman with Soup
Udo Kroschwald
Udo KroschwaldSchultz
Uwe Rathsam
Uwe RathsamSS Shooting the Woman
Joanna Brodzik
Joanna BrodzikWoman Shot in the Head
Katarzyna Bargiełowska
Katarzyna BargiełowskaWailing Woman
Maja Ostaszewska
Maja OstaszewskaWoman with Child
John Bennett
John BennettDr. Ehrlich
Cyril Shaps
Cyril ShapsMr. Grün
Wojciech Smolarz
Wojciech SmolarzBoy with Sweets
Lech Mackiewicz
Lech MackiewiczFellow Worker
Ruth Platt
Ruth PlattJanina
Peter Rappenglück
Peter RappenglückSS Making a Speech
Ronan Vibert
Ronan VibertJanina's Husband
Krzysztof Pieczyński
Krzysztof PieczyńskiMarek Gębczyński
Katarzyna Figura
Katarzyna FiguraNeighbour
Valentine Pelka
Valentine PelkaDorota's Husband
Andrew Tiernan
Andrew TiernanSzalas
Tom Strauss
Tom StraussDr. Luczak
Cezary Kosiński
Cezary KosińskiLednicki
Paweł Burczyk
Paweł BurczykPolish Workman
Nina Franoszek
Nina FranoszekPolish Woman
John Keogh
John KeoghPolish Officer
Rafał Mohr
Rafał MohrSchutzpolizei
Andrzej Pieczyński
Andrzej PieczyńskiPrisoner
Morgane Polanski
Morgane PolanskiGirl
Grzegorz Artman
Grzegorz ArtmanOther part
Adam Bauman
Adam BaumanOther part
Andrzej Szenajch
Andrzej SzenajchOther part
Zbigniew Dziduch
Zbigniew DziduchOther Part
Marian Dziędziel
Marian DziędzielOther part
Jerzy Góralczyk
Jerzy GóralczykOther part
Jarosław Kopaczewski
Jarosław KopaczewskiOther part
Patrick Lanagan
Patrick LanaganOther part
Dorota Liliental
Dorota LilientalOther part
Norbert Rakowski
Norbert RakowskiOther part
Piotr Siejka
Piotr SiejkaOther part
Tomasz Tyndyk
Tomasz TyndykOther part
Andrzej Walden
Andrzej WaldenOther part
Zbigniew Waleryś
Zbigniew WaleryśOther part
Maciej Winkler
Maciej WinklerOther part
Tadeusz Wojtych
Tadeusz WojtychOther Part
Andrzej Zieliński
Andrzej ZielińskiOther part
Paweł Małaszyński
Paweł MałaszyńskiMan in Ghetto (uncredited)
Axel Prahl
Axel PrahlGerman Soldier - Rummage Bags (uncredited)
Borys Szyc
Borys SzycYoung Gestapo (uncredited)
Rafał Dajbor
Rafał DajborSoldier (uncredited)
Adrian Hood
Adrian HoodPiano Buyer (uncredited)
Ryszard Kluge
Ryszard KlugeJew Working on the Bulding Site (uncredited)
Maciej Kowalewski
Maciej KowalewskiSS Officer (uncredited)
Paweł Zdun
Paweł Zdun(uncredited)
Jacek Wolszczak
Jacek WolszczakMan in Ghetto (uncredited)
Malgorzata Trybalska
Malgorzata TrybalskaZydówka (uncredited)
Dawid Szurmiej
Dawid SzurmiejMan in Ghetto (uncredited)
Izabella Szolc
Izabella SzolcWomen in Ghetto (uncredited)

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KnightfallKnightfall2017–2019 · ★ 7.1

Cast of The Pianist by the numbers

39average cast age in years
11years of age gap between the leads
29%women in the cast
33%women in the crew

The youngest in the main cast: Emilia Fox, age 28 at release. The oldest: Frank Finlay, at 76.

Cast ages at release

Cast heights

Cast nationalities

United Kingdom 2United States 1Germany 1

Crew

  • AddressRoman Polanski
  • WritingRonald Harwood
  • MusicWojciech Kilar
  • PhotographyPaweł Edelman
  • EditingHervé de Luze
  • Production designAllan Starski
  • Costume designAnna B. Sheppard
  • CastingCelestia Fox, Heta Mantscheff, Brendan Donnison
  • ProductionAlain Sarde, Robert Benmussa, Roman Polanski

Trivia about The Pianist

Polanski wanted the utmost realism, so the scenes in which Brody plays were dubbed with recordings by Olejniczak. Brody practiced for many months so that his keyboard movements would look convincing.
Joseph Fiennes was Polanski's first choice for the lead role, but he turned it down due to a prior commitment to a stage play. More than 1,400 actors auditioned at the casting call in London.
As a child, Polanski escaped the Kraków ghetto after his mother's death, so the story had a deep personal connection for the director. He ended up living in the barn of a Polish farmer until the end of the war.
Warsaw's Praga district was chosen as the filming location because of its abundance of original buildings. The art department added period signs and posters to them.

Sources: Wikipedia (English)

Before and After

Part ofBBC's 100 Greatest Films of the 21st Century

What it's about The Pianist

concertnaziresistancewarsaw ghettopolish resistancehomelandholocaust (shoah)hungerworld war iiprisoner of warghettodeportationjew persecutionliberationbiographybased on true storysurvivaltragedybased on memoir or autobiographypianistpolandtearjerkerangrycomplex

Main theme: The Holocaust, Władysław Szpilman, survival

What The Pianist is called in other countries

It was released in 37 countries, each in its own language.

  • SpainEl pianista
  • FranceLe pianiste
  • GermanyDer Pianist
  • ItalyIl pianista
  • BrazilO Pianista
  • PortugalO Pianista
  • Japan戦場のピアニスト
  • South Korea피아니스트
  • China钢琴恋曲
  • RussiaПианист
  • ArmeniaԴաշնակահարը
  • BulgariaПианистът
See the remaining 25 countries
  • CanadaLe Pianiste
  • CroatiaPijanist
  • CzechiaPianista
  • DenmarkPianisten
  • EstoniaPianist
  • FinlandPianisti
  • Georgiaპიანისტი
  • GreeceΟ Πιανίστας
  • Hong Kong鋼琴戰曲
  • HungaryA zongorista
  • Iranپیانیست
  • Israelהפסנתרן
  • LatviaPianists
  • LithuaniaPianistas
  • NorwayPianisten
  • PolandPianista
  • RomaniaPianistul
  • SerbiaПијаниста
  • SlovakiaPianista
  • SloveniaPianist
  • Taiwan戰地琴人
  • Thailandสงคราม ความหวัง บัลลังก์ เกียรติยศ
  • TurkeyPiyanist
  • UkraineПіаніст
  • VietnamNghệ Sĩ Dương Cầm

Where it was filmed The Pianist

FilmingWhere the story takes place

Filming locations

Where the Story Takes Place

Source: Wikidata. Map: © OpenStreetMap contributors.

The Pianist Stats

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Popularity of The Pianist

52KWikipedia views (30 days)
▼ 14%compared to the previous month

Daily visits to their English Wikipedia article over the last 60 days.

Where to Watch The Pianist

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Info provided by JustWatch
More info and links

Soundtrack from The Pianist

Original music by Wojciech Kilar

The Pianist (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
SoundtrackThe Pianist (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)Hanna Wolczedska, Janusz Olejniczak, The Warsaw Philharmonic National Orchestra of Poland, Władysław Szpilman, Andrzej Szpilman & Tadeusz Strugala · 2002 · 11 songs
SpotifyApple MusicDeezer

Songs

  1. 1
    Nocturne, B. 49: Lento con gran espressione in C-Sharp Minor
    4:06
  2. 2
    Nocturne in E minor, Op. 72, No. 1
    4:28
  3. 3
    Nocturne in C minor, Op. 48, No. 1
    5:56
  4. 4
    Ballade No. 2 in F Major, Op. 38
    7:38
  5. 5
    Ballade No. 1 in G Minor, Op. 23
    8:59
  6. 6
    Waltz in A Minor, Op. 34 No. 2 "Valse brillante"
    5:11
  7. 7
    Prélude in E minor, Op. 28, No. 4
    2:33
  8. 8
    Andante spianato et Grande polonaise brillante, Op. 22: Andante spianato in G Major. Tranquillo
    4:32
  9. 9
    Andante spianato et Grande polonaise brillante, Op. 22: Grande Polonaise in E-flat Major. Molto allegro
    9:21
  10. 10
    Moving to the Ghetto Oct. 31, 1940
    1:54

30-second previews on Deezer and Apple Music.

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