Wladyslaw In The Movie, The Pianist

The Pianist is a movie based on a Jewish piano player named Wladyslaw Szpilman that is set in Warsaw, Poland, during World War II. Roman Polanski directs it, and Adrien Brody is the main character, Wladyslaw. The movie is about Wladyslaw and his family being relocated from their home into the ghetto. He is known through out Warsaw for his ability to play the piano; he was frequently featured on the radio. Eventually him and his family are separated, he is forced to fend for himself, and survive in one of the Nazi Germans biggest cities.
While Wladyslaw and his family were living in the Warsaw ghetto, he would play the piano at a small cafe. His pieces had a bright tone, something that was lacking through out the ghetto. It was a place for
people to escape the realities of being trapped inside a walled city with little to no food. Outside there was death, murder by Nazis, and starvation all over. Wladyslaw was known through the ghetto for his pieces, and the light that he brought to the café.
Wladyslaw escaped from being sent to a concentration camp because a Jewish police officer pushed him out of line to safety.
He then lost his family and all hope to survive. He found work inside the ghetto and stayed for over a year, he reached out to old friends who were not Jews and they helped him escape. He then hid in various vacant apartments getting food and supplies every so often. There were times when there was a piano in the apartment, but he was forced to be silent. So he found solace in pretending to play. This life he led was very lonesome and depressing. Eventually he tried to open a can of pickles, and a German soldier wanted to know who he was. He told him he is a piano player, so the soldier asked Wladyslaw to play him a piece. Although close to death, and very cold, Wladyslaw played for the soldier. He hadn’t touched a piano in over three years; the music flowed out of his frozen fingertips with profound energy. He was relieved, at that moment he did not care if he died, at least it would be doing something he loved. He played his story of what he had been through in the past three years. It started with a slow soft melody, then became more dynamic and presto. He was letting out all of his sadness and empathy with this piece, he then ended it with a grave tone, not knowing what would happen to him when he was done. The officer let him live, and gave him food. Wladyslaw survived and lived until 2000, playing the piano his hole life. This movie depicts powerful emotions; it shows in depth detail of what Jewish people faced during Hitler’s reign. The piano was a symbol of hope in this movie, as was the sound of music. Wladyslaw portrayed a light in the time of darkness, when sadness, and death encompassed nations. Roman Polanski wanted to submerse the audience into the heart of World War II; this movie is the perfect example of this. You feel for the character Wladyslaw, his hope for survival, and the power of
music.