A true story of the mystery of music and the miracle of love
Pianist David Helfgott, driven by his father and teachers, has a breakdown. Years later he returns to the piano, to popular if not critical acclaim.
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Character
Earnest, grave, classical in form and character-led.
- earnestironic
- gravecomic
- classical in formformally daring
- character-ledplot-driven
- unpretentiousprestige
Who loves it, who doesn't
24 profiled raters. Loved most by The Prestige Hunters; disliked most by The Thrill Chasers.
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“Does it take too many liberties with the true story?”
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“Would a little humor have helped?”
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“Is Shine too earnest?”
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Reviews on TMDB
Written by TMDB members; each links to the original. Not part of Tastebuds's numbers.
- Filipe Manuel Netoon TMDB · May 202310/10
**Perhaps one of the most striking films in the work of Geoffrey Rush, and one of the toughest and most sincere portrayals of brilliance that cinema has seen to date.** Even though I'm a pretty serious music lover, and I've always loved classical music, I didn't know David Helfgott until I saw this film. The musical universe is full of prodigies who reveal talent since childhood. Mozart is perhaps the most famous example of this. However, it is one of those subjects that I feel we tend to overestimate, because you can also find prodigious children in other areas of knowledge, including the Human Sciences. It is, however, curious that we have so few examples of musical geniuses with solid and successful careers. Most pianists and musical performers, no matter how talented they are, depend more on their self-discipline and intensive training than on their basic talent. Helfgott, according to this film, had a difficult childhood, at the hands of an overbearing father, who basically pushed him towards a music career, realizing his talent. The problem is that the situation demanded a lot from the young genius, causing him to develop schizophrenia and several other mental problems. With
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Cast
- Geoffrey RushDavid Helfgott - Adult
- Noah TaylorDavid Helfgott - Adolescent
- Armin Mueller-StahlPeter
- Lynn RedgraveGillian
- Googie WithersKatharine Susannah Prichard
- Sonia ToddSylvia
- Nicholas BellBen Rosen
- John GielgudCecil Parkes
- Justin BraineTony
- Chris HaywoodSam
Crew
- Scott HicksDirector
- Jan SardiScreenplay
- Geoffrey SimpsonDirector of Photography
- David HirschfelderOriginal Music Composer
- Pip KarmelEditor
- Jane ScottProducer
Where to watch
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Often watched with
Recommendations from TMDB. Opening one adds it to Tastebuds
