MovieChat Forums > The Pianist (2003) Discussion > First time ever!!!!!!!!

First time ever!!!!!!!!

posted 10 years ago by stonekeeper_ever
18 replies | jump to latest

I consider myself a very hard person to shock. I love ultraviolent Asian movies such as I saw the devil and the chaser. I even watched the movie The man behind the sun. (google it) I know none of those movies is related to the pianist but it's just to compare the degree of 'shockness'. One of the only movies that ever left me with my mouth literally open in shock was Requiem for a dream. So I realize that blood, violence and gore doesn't affect me much but human suffering does. And God knows I never saw as much suffering as in this movie. (I don't know it's if it's comparable but I still have to watch the Schindlers list). For most part of the pianist I was frozen on my seat in shock and awe.
No for the sake of discussion, What was the scene that shocked you do most in this movie? And what other movie shocked you as much as this one?

[–] stonekeeper_ever 10 years ago

Yeah, no one cares.

:(
'How can you shoot the devil? What if you miss?'

[–] Pdx_Gold 10 years ago

Go see Schlinders List. Both are superb and good depictions of the utter cruelty and horrors of the SS against the JEWS.

Still these movies "soften up" the real true horrors.

You should read about all the horrific experiments they did on Jewish twin boys.

[–] stonekeeper_ever 10 years ago

Funny you say that! I started watching Schindler's list yesterday. I watched the first two hours, so one more to go. I'll finish it today most probably. up until now it's a very good movie but I honestly think I preferred the pianist since I felt closer to the characters.

[–] chitown_babe 8 years ago

You are absolutely correct. No movie, no matter how wonderful it is, can never truly depict the horrors of what happened to the Jews (and gypsies, Catholics, communists, and homosexuals) in Europe during WWII at the hands of the nazis. Both Schindler's List and The Pianist are about real people, not made up. I found The Pianist totally absorbing. I couldn't look away from it. I watch it many times still and am still stuck to my seat. The nazi captain, Wilm Hosenfeld, was taken into custody by the Soviet army. He died after years of torture in 1952. In 2009, he was posthumously awarded the Yad Vashem title of "Righteous Among the Nations". His heroics toward the Jews was not contained with Wladyslaw Szpilman. He saved many Jews during his lifestime. He was a devout Catholic and was horrified to witness what was happening to the Jews and others at the hands of Hitler and his gestapo.

[–] BelleEtLaBete 8 years ago

My late uncle (my father's sister's husband) was a Polish Jew. But the rest of my family were from Yugoslavia. Hitler hated Yugoslavia and more Serbs died than any other nation. The Serbs are Orthodox Christians. Like the Russians, Greeks.

My grandma was a national hero. My grandpa was killed in 1945. My uncle survived Auschwitz. The rest of his Jewish family was killed. My other grandmother's father survived smaller camp, I don't remember the name (my grandma is no longer alive, so I don't have anyone to ask), but he was in bad shape and died at the age of 36.

The truth is that not all Germans were bad. They were brainwashed.

[–] chitown_babe 8 years ago

Yes, Hitler hated the Slavs. He considered them subhuman just like the Jews. And, he also hated the Russians. In his warped mind, all races/ethnicities who were not German were subhuman. I am very sorry to hear of your family members who died because of his evil mind.

I'm sure there were many good Germans who hated Hitler just as much as the rest of the world did. Many of his own generals hated him and plotted to kill him. If you get a chance, go see "Valkyrie". Awesome movie and very much on target to actual events. As much as I hate to say it, Tom Cruise was excellent as von Stauffenberg. (Not a Cruise fan...)

The German people were brainwashed, but that's no excuse for turning a blind eye to what was going on in the camps. That is why Eisenhower insisted that the town's people be brought into the camps to see what they had ignored and made them clean it up and bury the dead. Many German Christians risked their own lives to help the Jews escape. We must never allow this to happen ever again.

[–] leybadana 10 years ago

No for the sake of discussion, What was the scene that shocked you do most in this movie?

The scene where the little boy was dying of thirst that got to me.

There is no one looking out for us. We are all alone. Graham Hess

[–] kwaK1983 9 years ago

The scene where Szpilman is trying to help the little boy in the hole underneath the wall was very intense and shocking to me.

[–] Drooch 9 years ago

Yeah, the agonising squeals of the child while you could only imagine what they were doing to his little body on the other side of that wall. Apparently they completely crushed his spine.

The random plucking of workers from the line, told to lie down and then get systematically shot in the back of the head. The final man having to wait for the guard to slowly change his empty clip.

The 'dancing' scene was strangely disturbing - elderly and infirm people humiliated as the soldiers push them around like toys.

The wheelchair scene, obviously, and the subsequent gunning down of the family. The chilling bit is when they drive over the legs of a crippled survivor.

Hell, every other scene is traumatic. It's the way Polanski rubs your face in the indignity - respectful, decent human beings are smashed and shot into pathetic little corpses, often in front of their families, by delighted German soldiers. I almost wish I could unsee the cruelty and suffering on display - but learning about what happens when people are taught to hate is essential for enlightened societies.

[–] Born_Tomorrow 9 years ago

The scene with the people dancing was disturbing, as well the scene with the little boy stuck under the brick wall. Then the scene when they dumped the old man in the wheel chair off of the fire escape. Also, the scene when the old lady had the pot of beans and the man came and tried to snatch the pot but ended up spilling the beans on the ground and laying on his stomach to scoop them into his mouth, with the old lady crying and beating him in the back with her bag. For some reason this last one was the most disturbing to me.

I woke up this way...

[–] stonekeeper_ever 9 years ago

Strangely, That spilled bean scene is the one that made me feel the weirdest too. I actually mentioned it in another thread.

[–] Born_Tomorrow 9 years ago

That scene almost made me cry. I just sat there with my hand over my mouth and caught up in emotions. I don't ever remember being that effected by a scene in a movie before. That was too sad and I don't know who I felt the sorriest for, the man or the old lady.

I woke up this way...

[–] MrsCetrone 8 years ago

After Szpilman was rescued from the trains and then it cuts to him walking down the road sobbing. You just felt the total sadness of him being totally on his own in that moment.

[–] nicoledesapio 8 years ago

For me the most shocking thing was the "randomness" of it all: i.e. the fact that the SS officers just randomly picked people out of a group or a line and shot them.

[–] iz_Moff 8 years ago

I agree. And also meaninglessness of it. They were killing people not because they were a threat, not because there was something to gain from it, not even out of anger or hate but just because they could.

[–] liverpool26 8 years ago

It was a sad movie. If your looking for other shocking stuff I'd say watch "the world at war" it's a British documentary series about ww2 with plenty of real footage and interviews from real people. Its very long though think its 20+ 1 hour episodes but covers the entire war.

[–] stonekeeper_ever 8 years ago

Thanks

[–] chitown_babe 8 years ago

I have that series on DVD. I had it on VHS until DVD came out. I've watched it from beginning to end several times and episodes by themselves many times. It is the best documentary on WWII and the Holocaust. It is narrated by Sir Lawrence Olivier. There is an updated version of it but I don't remember the name. It is equally as good.

Most people don't realize what that war was really about. There is also a special series on AHC (American Heroes Channel, formerly the Military Channel) titled, "Hitler". It is very good and explains a lot about his sick, evil mind. Hitler took after his father, Alois, who was a brutal, violent man. He would beat Hitler brutally and almost killed him once. His mother was the opposite.