Hello Beautiful People,
Stage fright.
Perhaps the two most threatening words to any artist.
That paralyzing, infectious, horrible feeling that occurs when one graces the stage…and….panics.
And that’s exactly what occurs in Grand Piano.
Tom Selznick (Elijah Wood), the most talented pianist of his generation has an extreme, paralyzing, horrifying experience with stage fright that sends him into artistic hibernation for five years. His call back to the stage is when he is asked to play his former piano teachers greatest and most difficult work in a comeback concert.
Tom takes the stage, and we, the audience, can feel his anxiety rising. Some people may even start sweating – the sheer terror, dread, and exhilaration that Wood exemplifies is absolutely palpable.
And so he sits on the bench.
And raises his fingers to the keys…
And turns the pages of the sheet music, to find a NOTE that says…
…play one wrong note and you die.
Yes, you read that right. This beautiful concert, the comeback that he has been waiting for, has been hijacked by a deranged individual, Clem (John Cusak), with a different agenda.
Truthfully, I thought it was a dream at first. Perhaps I didn’t read my press invitation carefully enough, because I didn’t think that this was where this story was going – a pseudo horror/thriller film.
But, it is.
Truthfully, I don’t think I’ve seen many movies that are real-time, and a single location. It was a single evening. It was just…one night only. We get to see a bit before the concert, and we get to see what happens after, briefly, but, in actuality, we never leave the theater.
And honestly? It works.
As Selznick plays, he is given direct instructions to leave the stage at one point, where he will find a “present”, (a bluetooth earpiece), in his dressing room. He is told to put in on, and follows suit.
Now that Clem has a voice the directions get even more specific and menacing…play one wrong note, and I’ll kill Emma, (his wife), played by the Kerry Bishe.
Yikes.
Does Tom live? Does he die? Does Emma live? Does she die? Is Clem ever caught?
Well, there would be no fun in me telling you that, now would there? You’ll just have to see for yourself. But, for those of you who love quirky thrillers, I promise you this is a film for you.
Live, Love, Learn,