Critic Reviews

Piano, The (1993) Rank 4 Reviews

Expert Review Summary

Movie critics combined give Piano, The (1993) a score of 3.1863 out of 4

based on (62) reviews

Click on the numbers to the right of the graph to see reviews of that rating

Excellent

(19)

Very Good

(42)

Good

(1)

Fair

(0)

Poor

(0)

Reviews by Score:

Chicago Sun-Times (Roger Ebert)

It tells a story of love and fierce pride, and places it on a bleak New Zealand coast where people live rudely in the rain and mud, struggling to maintain the appearance of the European society they've left behind. It is a story of shyness, repression ...read the complete Piano movie review at Chicago Sun-Times (Roger Ebert)

Chicago Sun-Times (Roger Ebert)

It is one of those rare movies that is not just about a story, or some characters, but about a whole universe of feeling. ...read the complete Piano movie review at Chicago Sun-Times (Roger Ebert)

Long Che Chan

A nineteenth century woman named Ada (Holly Hunter) brings her daughter, Flora (Anna Paquin), to New Zealand. Ada is mute, presumably by choice, and is arranged to wed Stewart (Sam Neill), a British man she has never met. When she arrives in New Zealand, ...read the complete Piano movie review at Long Che Chan

Scott Renshaw

A couple of months ago, I finally saw Jane Campion's 1991 film AN ANGEL AT MY TABLE. I mention this only because I experienced a very similar reaction to THE PIANO as I did to that film. While I was not instantly caught up in the story, its impact grew ...read the complete Piano movie review at Scott Renshaw

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) (Rick Groen)

Great art is both immediately accessible and eternally elusive, having at its centre a powerful simplicity that speaks to anyone who cares to listen, that rewards every interpretation while embracing none. The Piano is great art. ...read the complete Piano movie review at The Globe and Mail (Toronto) (Rick Groen)

filmsgraded.com (Brian Koller)

The story is set in the jungles of 19th century New Zealand, and the major characters are all former Brits. Ada (Holly Hunter) is an eccentric mute, a graceful woman whose communication with the world comes through her piano and her daughter Flora (Anna ...read the complete Piano movie review at filmsgraded.com (Brian Koller)

filmcritic.com (Christopher Null)

"We can't leave the piano!" Anna Paquin's precociousness and grating voice may have turned a lot of people away from The Piano, but her Oscar a few months later redeemed her somewhat. Paquin has since grown up, but her debut film is unforgettable: The ...read the complete Piano movie review at filmcritic.com (Christopher Null)

Washington Post (Hal Hinson)

The Piano is dark, sublime music, and after it's over, you won't be able to get it out of your head. ...read the complete Piano movie review at Washington Post (Hal Hinson)

Washington Post (Desson Thomson)

The Piano plays itself with such contrapuntal richness, it resonates in you forever. ...read the complete Piano movie review at Washington Post (Desson Thomson)

Entertainment Weekly (Owen Gleiberman)

By the end, Campion views all her characters with a compassion bordering on grace, a humanity-like her heroine's-as dark, quiet, and enveloping as the ocean. ...read the complete Piano movie review at Entertainment Weekly (Owen Gleiberman)

Ozus' World Movie Reviews (Dennis Schwartz)

The film is brought slowly together by Jane Campion's masterful direction... ...read the complete Piano movie review at Ozus' World Movie Reviews (Dennis Schwartz)

Ozus' World Movie Reviews (Dennis Schwartz)

The tune emanating from The Piano is a passionate one, coming forth on a desolate New Zealand coastline, far removed from European culture, where a piano is seen as something peculiar to possess in such a backward area of the world. It is used ...read the complete Piano movie review at Ozus' World Movie Reviews (Dennis Schwartz)

Variety (David Stratton)

The Piano confirms Campion as a major talent, an uncompromising filmmaker with a very personal and specific vision. ...read the complete Piano movie review at Variety (David Stratton)

Austin Chronicle (Marjorie Baumgarten)

The wonder of The Piano is that such an outwardly simple story could emerge into such a complex swirl of lingering memories. ...read the complete Piano movie review at Austin Chronicle (Marjorie Baumgarten)

Austin Chronicle (Marjorie Baumgarten)

If Madame Bovary were ever to find a Room of her Own, the result might be something like The Piano. But, then again, probably not, since The Piano is a wholly original achievement. Writer-director Jane Campion (Sweetie, An Angel at My Table) has once ...read the complete Piano movie review at Austin Chronicle (Marjorie Baumgarten)

Jon A. Webb

THE PIANO has Holly Hunter as an unmarried Scottish mother who is married by contract to a New Zealand settler, played by Sam Neill. Hunter is mute, and achieves self-expression through her piano, which she takes on the voyage. ...read the complete Piano movie review at Jon A. Webb

Max Hoffmann

Since causing a seven-minute standing ovation at its world premiere in Cannes this year, Jane Campion's film has sent waves of anticipation across the Atlantic for its impending opening in North America. Upon seeing it, you may wonder if seven minutes ...read the complete Piano movie review at Max Hoffmann

Empire Magazine [UK]

...read the complete Piano movie review at Empire Magazine [UK]

rec.arts.movies.reviews (Wayne Citrin)

"The Telluride film festival is not for the fainthearted or for the fair weather friend of film. Nestled 8,745 feet high in the San Juan range of southwestern Colorado, Telluride began in 1875 in the rough and tumble tradition ...read the complete Piano movie review at rec.arts.movies.reviews (Wayne Citrin)

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