Wonderful Movie

Overrated

Wow! What a bizarre film! Unfortunately the few funny moments there were were quite overshadowed by it's completely weird and random vibe throughout.

The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

Erika Kohut (Isabelle Huppert) has a volatile home life with her combative mother leading to violence at times. Erika has disturbing sexual tendencies such as porn shop visits, self-mutilations, and voyeurism. She's a piano professor at a conservatory. She's hard on her students especially the fragile Anna Schober. Walter Klemmer is a new student at the conservatory despite her objection. He's taken with her and she eventually lets him into her sexually disturbed world.Isabelle Huppert has such great screen presence. She's great at playing damaged, vulnerable, and cold. It's not the most fun watch. There are a couple of really weird scenes. Her relationship with her mother is outrageous. This is an interesting character study of a troubled woman.

This is my second experience with a film by Haneke, We have an incredibly intense, repressed character, played by Isabel Huppert. She lives with her mother and they involve themselves in a love/hate relationship. As a piano teacher she is a cruel taskmaster. It is obvious that she is sought after despite her almost sadistic vent. When she is not at work she visits a sex shop and watches pornography. She also goes to drive-in movies and peeks into cars at couples having sex. She is likewise, self-abusive. She is not unlike a fascist state in her demeanor. She meets a young, incredibly talented piano student who wants to be in her master class. There is sexual tension here. He begins to lust after her. She is cold but attractive, although at times her very being seems somewhat beyond her years. He really loves her and we know that somehow these two will meet in some way. He plays hockey and there is a kind of male testosterone thing going on. She has a stilted view of sexuality. He has the more traditional view, being on the make and wanting things to be consensual. This movie contains some of the sickest scenes I've seen. There is one scene in a public toilet where things get quite deranged. I have couple more Haneke films to see soon. They are certainly thought provoking.

"The Piano Teacher" is a 1983 novel by Elfriede Jelinek, that has been adapted for the screen by Michael Haneke. I've never read the original source material, but through reading a plot summary it seems Mr. Haneke hits a majority of the themes and scenarios represented. Michael Haneke has a certain approach to characters in his movies that I've come to respect a great deal. Aside from shooting his works effortlessly, he has always depicted his characters in a way as to never manipulate the audience, but allow their actions and mannerisms remain open to interpretation for each individual. This allows for less formulaic performances, and a story like "The Piano Teacher" can benefit greatly with this approach.Erika Kohut (Isabelle Huppert), is a piano professor at a prestigious music conservatory. Already in her forties, she still lives in an apartment with her domineering mother (Annie Girardot), leading to much frustration between the pair. Eventually Erika meets Walter Klemmer (Benoit Magimel), a 17 year old engineering student and eventually both develop an obsession with each other. Even though she initially tries to sever contact between them, his persistence eventually leads to his discovery of her personal and quite frank voyeurism.For as challenging as the film may get, it never begins to become tedious. Granted for a 2 hour picture the story feels a little stretched, yet it's Haneke's camera work and Huppert's fantastic performance that makes this all so highly engaging and unique. The music is implemented while forged extraordinarily well, and the levels of S&M can become extremely uncomfortable towards the third act, which finally made me realised why so many reviews I've read said it became "unpleasant" viewing. Regardless, it all leads to a stunning conclusion and I highly recommend this movie. If we can live in a time where fan-fiction like "Fifty Shades of Grey" sells millions, then "The Piano Teacher" is in a league of its own and should be praised and held in a much higher regard. Final Verdict: Isabelle Huppert made the movie for me. She really transcends what could've been expected, and my predicaments towards the stories conclusion were consistently altered. 9/10.

Seeking emotional protection from our disturbed, corrupt, violent world, I tried to take refuge in Michael Haneke films; in his poetic and philosophical view and deep analysis of human complexities. I could compare his world viewpoints to Ingmar Bergman, a filmmaker which I would always enjoy being sunk in his creative world. I immensely admire Haneke 's recent film "Amour"; a film which would invite the spectators to take journey into the core of the matters and to the dark maze of human soul. It's said that through insanity, humans would sometimes find sanity, truth, love and empathy.I recently watched The White Ribbon and The Piano Teacher. My predication was that these films were somehow prophetic reflections of a new rise of totalitarian era. A suffocating new historical period!Yes, they indeed, are!I found both movies the White Ribbon and The Piano Teacher disturbing. Learning about these violent realities, the audience would need to get away from the harshness and be surrounded by the beauty of nature, serene environment, and splendor dreams. To deal with reality we need dreams! The Piano Teacher reflects the outlook of 80s, 90s and early 2000s where the notion of sexuality was dominant.