Bestowed with glowing reviews and several accolades, The Piano is a 1993 historical period romance written and directed by New Zealand filmmaker Jane Campion.
With some similarities in the plot to that of Jane Mander’s 1920 novel, The Story of a New Zealand River, The Piano also has glaring differences in its screenplay. The African Queen and Wuthering Heights have been cited by Campion as inspirations behind her Oscar-winning film.
The Piano is set in the mid-1800s and centres around Ada McGrath, a Scottish woman with elective mutism, who has not spoken since the age of six.
Ada travels to colonial New Zealand for an arranged marriage with a settler named Alisdair Stewart and takes her daughter Flora with her.
The reasons behind Ada’s muteness, as well as the identity of Flora’s father, are unknown, and Ada only communicates with the world via playing the piano and through sign language, with her young daughter acting as her interpreter.
The Piano sees Holly Hunter take the reins as the lead, supported by Harvey Keitel, Sam Neill, and Anna Paquin (in her first major acting role). Hunter has been lauded by critics and audiences for her haunting portrayal of Ada, with one writing: “Hunter’s performance is outstanding. So is the film.”
The Piano was an international co-production between France and Australia and first premiered at the 1993 Cannes Film Festival where it bagged the top honour: the Palme d’Or — making Campion the very first female director to achieve the feat. Not only was the 1993 film critically acclaimed, it also proved to be a commercial success, grossing approximately $40 million worldwide against its $7 million production budget.
Campion’s masterpiece earned numerous accolades, including three Academy Awards, a Golden Globe, three BAFTAs, a Writers Guild of America (WGA) award, and eleven Australian Film Institute Awards and has regularly been called “one of the all-time greats” by critics.
With a smashing 90 per cent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, The Piano was a hit with reviewers, with one critic writing: “The wonder of The Piano is that such an outwardly simple story could emerge into such a complex swirl of lingering memories.”
A second reviewer commented: “The Piano is as peculiar and haunting as any film I’ve seen,” while another critic said, “The Piano deserves its place as a classic.”
Praising the director, one critic wrote: “Happily, the world is now discovering what a small but ardent cult has known all along-that Jane Campion is one of the most splendid filmmakers around.”
While another added: “Flawless filmmaking abounds throughout, building to a gripping climax that is impossible to forget.”
Audience reviews followed in a similar vein, with one fan writing: “Jane Campion’s masterpiece not only shines for its feminist legacy and awards (First Palm d’Or ever given to a female director), but also for the elegance of the screenplay, the one-of-a-kind performance by Holly Hunter and the intelligence of this story.”
While another impassioned viewer said: “This is my favorite movie. Sure I have others, but none tops this.
“Where art-making meets meaning-making and calls us all to grab life while we have it for all it’s worth. If you have not seen The Piano, oh, I envy you the thrill of watching it for the first time.”
The Piano is available to stream for free on BBC iPlayer.