Amazon.co.uk: The Piano Teacher [2001]: Annie Girardot, Benoît Magimel, Susanne Lothar, Udo Samel, Anna Sigalevitch, Cornelia Köndgen, Thomas Weinhappel, Georg Friedrich, Philipp Heiss, William Mang, Rudolf Melichar, Michael Schottenberg, Gabriele Schuchter, Dieter Berner, Isabelle Huppert, Michael Haneke: DVD

L'Ennui [2000] DVD ~ Charles Berling

(6) �5.98

The Michael Haneke Collection DVD ~ Isabelle Huppert

(1) �20.98

Code Unknown [2001] DVD ~ Juliette Binoche

(12) �6.98

Hidden (cache) [2005] DVD ~ Daniel Auteuil

(63) �7.98

Ma Mere [2005] DVD ~ Isabelle Huppert

(22)

› Explore similar items : DVD (43)

Actors: Annie Girardot, Beno�t Magimel, Susanne Lothar, Udo Samel, Anna Sigalevitch
Directors: Michael Haneke
Format: PAL, Widescreen
Language French
Subtitles: English
Region: Region 2 ( DVD formats.)
Aspect Ratio: Wide Screen:1
Number of discs: 1
Classification:
Studio: Artificial Eye
DVD Release Date: 27 May 2002
Run Time: 129 minutes
Average Customer Review: (13 customer reviews)
DVD Features:
- Main Language: French
- Available Audio Tracks: Dolby Digital 5.0
- Sub Titles: English
- Interview With Michael Haneke
- Interview With Isabelle Huppert
- Interview With Benoit Magimel
- Theatrical Trailer
ASIN: B00006422Z
Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 10,413 in DVD (See Bestsellers in DVD)

(Studios: Improve Your Sales)

Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images? (We'll ask you to sign in so we can get back to you)

Amazon.co.uk Review
An unexpected critical (Grand Prix at Cannes) and commercial (three months in London's West End) success on its release in 2001, The Piano Teacher is a provocative, but ultimately frustrating, film. The intensifying relationship between Erika Kohut, a Viennese piano teacher whose musical focus is gradually undone by sexual repression, and Walter Klemmer, her uninhibited but unsuspecting student and admirer, lacks an underlying motivation, either physical or emotional, to sustain the tortuous encounters of the film's later stages.

Director Michael Haneke powerfully evokes the claustrophobic décor of the flat that Kohut shares with her dictatorial yet ineffectual mother, with whom her relationship progresses from the pitiful to the farcical. And farce of the blackest kind is what the film descends to, as Kohut and Klemmer play out a vicious game of sado-masochistic control with an intriguing but indecisive conclusion.

Isabelle Huppert is magnificently assured as Kohut, but Benoît Magimel often seems confused as Klemmer, while Annie Girardot resorts to a caricature of the mother. Fans of classical piano will enjoy the masterclass and rehearsal sequences during the first hour, though music is then relegated to a minor role--its deeper relevance to the film being ultimately difficult to define. English subtitles are provided, and the monochrome shades in which the scenes abound come through with suitably wan intensity. Yet it's hard not to feel that a more profound inquiry into the darker side of sexual desire has been lost along the way. --Richard Whitehouse

Product Description
The Piano Teacher is a powerful and controversial drama from award-winning Austrian film-maker Michael Haneke (Funny Games, Code Unknown). Isabelle Huppert gives a performance of astounding emotional intensity as Erika Kohut, a repressed woman in her late thirties who teaches piano at the Vienna Conservatory and lives with her tyrannical mother (Annie Girardot), with whom she has a volatile love-hate relationship. But when one of Erika's students, the handsome and assured Walter Klemmer (Benoit Magimel), attempts to seduce her, the barriers that she has carefully erected around her claustrophobic world are shattered, unleashing a previously inhibited extreme and uncontrollable desire.

See all Reviews

Ma Mere [2005] DVD ~ Isabelle Huppert

(22)

A Ma Soeur! [2001] DVD ~ Anais Reboux

(19) �6.98

Code Unknown [2001] DVD ~ Juliette Binoche

(12) �6.98

L'Ennui [2000] DVD ~ Charles Berling

(6) �5.98

Funny Games [1997] DVD ~ Susanne Lothar

(5) �7.98

› Explore similar items : DVD (40) Books (1)

13 Reviews

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

Average Customer Review

(13 customer reviews)

Share your thoughts with other customers:

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

Shocking, disturbing, yet brilliant, 26 Mar 2003

By	"setnakht4" - See all my reviews

Make no mistake, this is not a film for the faint-hearted. It deserves it's '18' certificate. But it is nonetheless a superb film, an amazing depiction of loneliness, alienation and self-delusion. Even though I knew what was coming, it still shocked me and left me mentally gasping for breath. The most shocking thing of all, perhaps, is that the film is apparently much lighter in mood than the book it was based on!

Isabelle Huppert is superb as Erika Klohut, a woman alienated from life by her own fears and her elderly, utterly selfish mother. She is a brilliant pianist, but is so cold she could freeze a blast furnace. Huppert is amazing as she wanders through the film seeming as hard as nails, but underneath it all craving affection and something more. However, as she realises at the end, what she really craves is not what she thought. She is confused by her own sexuality and is way out of her depth in her relationship with Walter Klemmer (wonderfully realised by Benoit Magimel of 'Nids de Guepes' fame). She thinks she is in control, but it becomes very apparent to her that she isn't, and the end of the film is so sad it isn't true. Make sure you listen to Huppert's commentary on this.

This is a great film and one that will move you to the core. Klohut isn't likeable, and nor is Klemmer, but they are real people, and I think most of us certainly know someone like Klohut, although they may not be this extreme. This is great cinema, provocative yet terribly sad.

My only question is, what was she doing in the bath with that razor?!!!

Comment (1) | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you?

(Report this)

24 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

Dark Romance, 14 Nov 2002

By	Eric Anderson (London, United Kingdom) - See all my reviews

Michael Haneke has adapted Elfriede Jelinek's novel to create this disturbing psychological portrait of piano teacher Erika Kohut (Isabelle Huppert). Erika's claustrophobic life is filled with strict teachings and moral hypocrisy. She is a voyeur and masochist beneath her rigid exterior. Her life becomes desperate upon meeting a new student Walter Klemmer (Benoit Magimel). Their relationship becomes tumultuous when it becomes increasingly clear that she is incapable of nothing like a "normal" romance.
This tragedy is at many times shocking and is likely to make you squirm in discomfort over the deranged levels of Erika's mentality. While frequently repulsed, I felt an odd sympathy for her at times over the fragility of her being and her difficulty with expressing love. The cinematography of this film is bleak. The atmosphere seems glazed with an impersonality and stark indifference equal to that of Erika's spirit. The air is bizarrely punctuated with the beauty of the many musical recitals throughout the film. Director Haneke has been much criticised for this work (it has been dismissed as pretentious). Though not for the faint of heart or morally concerned, I found it strangely moving and engaging in the way it unsettles.

Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you?

(Report this)

17 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

Harrowing, disturbing, but ultimately worthwhile., 2 May 2002

By	garethevans1980@hotmail.com (UK, Wales) - See all my reviews

Michael Haneke is a director of incredible power. Those who have seen his previous well known efforts (Benny's Video, and Funny Games) will have some idea what to expect from one of the few directors who tackles the subjects of violence in cinema seriously. Whilst the latter two examples focused on violence and its damaging effect on a society desensitised, here, with the Piano Teacher, Haneke explores themes and subjects that neither could possibly prepare you for.

The film is essentially an examination upon the notions of sexual perversity, oppression, and the constant battle for power between the sexes. To say more would only diminish the power of Haneke's storytelling which, as seen in his previous films, unfolds in a pseudo-documentary style of unflinching camera angles. There is no showboating from Haneke, he is not interested in flash cuts, or special effects. The camera is merely an observer, keeping the action (although incredibly brutal in parts) hidden from the audience. Everything shocking happens just out of view, or obstructed. The framing is exceptional. But for all its worth, praise must be given to its cast. Particularly Huppert who bares all in her performance which cries out for comfort and sympathy while also distancing herself from us with the extreme side of her perversions. It is performances like hers that deserve to be awarded and commended, brave unflinching performances in films which tackle uncomfortable topics. This is not a film for the light hearted. However, watched in the right atmosphere the intense emotional journey of "The Piano Teacher" will stick with you forever.

Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you?

Perfect Partner

Customers Who Viewed This Item Also Viewed

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought