The Piano Player

2003 "A deadly hit to erase the past"
4.3| 1h31m| R| en
Details

A tale about the relationship between a businessman who launders money for a Mafia figure and his gangster bodyguard.

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Reviews

Dirtylogy It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.
Bea Swanson This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.
Tymon Sutton The acting is good, and the firecracker script has some excellent ideas.
Marva It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,
grahamsj3 This is a film that represents a wasted opportunity. It has a good story and features some semi big names (Dennis Hopper, Christopher Lambert and Diane Kruger). The problems were writing, direction and editing. The screenplay has too much "dead time" in it. And it's not edited very tightly either. The last half of the film takes place in a remote village and a lot of time is spent "reflecting" and just sitting around. I feel that the time could have been spent doing exposition work. There's also a problem where when Lambert's character has been knocked out by the bad guy, it's hard to tell what he was dreaming vs what was actually happening. Diane Kruger provides some eye candy, but adds very little else to the film. Hopper's a better actor than Lambert, but not much and acting Ian't this film's strong suit either. Overall, in other hands and with perhaps a more vibrant cast, this could have been a good film. By far it's strongest point is the beautiful scenery (yes, including Kruger).
T-Wicks I don't know what the other reviewers were expecting going into this movie. One look at the DVD case or a minute of screen time reveals that this movie was not made on a Hollywood budget.....And as far as struisenburg's review, he was obviously half asleep for the duration of the movie as each question he poses was indeed answered. Perhaps it'd be better to watch it next time with your hand not on the FF button...I was reminded of the fun b-action movies of the 1970s and 80s. The Target may be nothing ground-breaking, but as an action/crime buff I thoroughly enjoyed it. Dennis Hopper is a pleasure to watch as an aging criminal accountant forced to flee Capetown for the rural simplicity of his childhood village. All the while pursued by a crime boss with a mysterious mystical side. The first section of the film is an effective urban action/crime flick, and the remainder is part a genuinely charming rediscovery of life, and part Western. Production values are not the highest, though they were able to snag some big names. Still, all the acting was effective if not exceptional. The location is the real star of the film. Having never been to South Africa I can't address the complaints of its residents, however I thought the scenery was beautiful and the culture was an interesting twist on a story that could just as well have taken place in New York. I was reminded of the It's easy to rip apart a movie like this. But if you're a fan of action or crime movies, appreciative of exotic settings, and willing to overlook some less than stellar production values, it'll be well worth your time...
andrew-413 This film (available here on DVD) was so terrible, that it was - without hesitation - switched off within 20 minutes. At first flattering to see the Mother City in which I reside covered with quick cuts from moving cars etc etc, but this is not a sight-seeing documentary, nor is it aiming to be! The acting is most amateur and the plot written by imbeciles. As mentioned in a previous review, little really makes any sense. I really didn't care: with so many movies to choose from this was without hesitation dumped back on the rental counter. BTW, I've seen many dodgy movies in the last few years with Dennis Hopper and as for Christopher Lambert: 'one dimensional' comes to mind, I'm afraid.
darkstar-8 Any chance of seen the fine acting of Mr. Hopper is what I called `a valuable experience'. After all, he is legend of it´s own, from timeless classics as: `Easy Rider' to `Blue Velvet' and the TV Series `24'. Mr. Hopper knows the drill. He starts along side another legendary actor called Christopher Lambert, from the hit `Mortal Kombat' and the sometimes gory `Resurrection' and `The Fortress', he could be called the perfect B-Movie detective, action hero. Both of them actually have mastered the Art of Traveling around the world in this somewhat enjoyable ficks about mobsters, monsters and other dramas. This time the plot revolves around a mercenary that is brought to protect a powerful business man from a mobster in Prison. He can see plenty of shots of South Africa and the landscape, a couple of car chases and a poorly written dialogue that remained me of Film 101, still this a enjoyable flick if you happened to like B-Movies and expect the usual Mobster-Bodyguard Plot that is, somehow the man you are supposed to protect not always is what you thought of it in the First Place. Both actors seemed to have enjoyed the travel expenses, and the funny fact of the film is seeing Mr. Hopper wearing a ridiculous toupee that make him look quite funny is good enough. The whole script is clearly not intended to be nominated for an Award, so if you are looking for a powerful movie, wait for Greenaway´s new project called `The Tulse Luper Suitcases', and please don´t be nagging all day because of this little project complete done over South Africa, to be seen along side others classics such as: Do not Disturb (Dick Maas) done in the marvelous city of Amsterdam and also Soul Assasin (Laurence Malkin) also done in that cool city. Have a nice afternoon watching the movie world go by in front of you cozy sofa. If you need to watch more, remember to see; `When Hollywood A Stars go Bad'.