The Pianist

War. In school we are often taught about the attrocities of war and while we do understand that war brings out a different and more primal side of people, we don't really get how much it can change a person.

Roman Polanski's film, The Pianist, is the story of a Jewish man in WWII era Poland. From the sublte forms of discrimination and propaganda fueled racism aimed at the Jewish communities to the more overt displays of hatred and intolerance, the audience is shown the indignities and dehumanization that millions of people in Europe suffered back then. And it was not just the Jews who were the victims of this cruelty, those who were seen as socially undesirable such as the old and disabled.

At the start of the film the persecution of the Jewish community was more subtle (ex. not letting Jews go to certain establishments) but as it progressed it all became more obvious which made it hard to watch at times. One of the things that was captivating about the film and made it hard to watch is it's brutally honest portrayal of the conditions that people have suffered. The way that scences were lit also added to the mood of the film. Warmer lighting was used for happier or more naitral scenes such as those with the Szpilman family which was a stark contrast to more serious scences which used colder bluish light which made things seem bleak and gray.

The conditions portrayed in the film show how people will always want to survive and it is this innate sense of survival that forces people to lose their inhibitions. The protagonist goes from being a dignified and respected pianist to a mere skeleton of a man who is forced to scavenge for food and drink out of a bucket of water that was probably used to mop floors. Even when all hope, dignity, and humanity is seemingly ripped away from the protagonist, he still found it in himself to muster the courage to live another day which was striking.

Music also played a crucial role in the film. It was not just used to set the mood of scenes like in most films, but in this film it was one of the few things that the war could not take away from the protagonist. Music became not only his escape, but also his salvation when he played for the German officer. As the protagonist played for his supposed enemy, the music became his way of expressing his sorrow, anger, and all the other emotions he had felt since the oppression of Jews began. It became the bridge that connected two people who were conditioned to hate each other by the different societies in which they were parts of. Music helped both of them transcend the hate and prejudice that had both been instilled in them and helped them connect as people. Not as a Jew. Not as a German. Just as people.