The Piano Lesson
The Piano Lesson
| 05 February 1995 (USA)
The Piano Lesson Trailers

1930's Pittsburgh, a brother comes home to claim "my half of the piano", a family heirloom; but his sister is not wanting to part with it. This is a glimpse of the conditions for African-Americans as well as some of the attitudes and influences on their lives. But whether he is able to sell the piano so that he can get enough money to buy some property and "no longer have to work for someone else" involves the story (or lesson) that the piano has to show him.

Reviews
Cortechba Overrated
GetPapa Far from Perfect, Far from Terrible
Peereddi I was totally surprised at how great this film.You could feel your paranoia rise as the film went on and as you gradually learned the details of the real situation.
Haven Kaycee It is encouraging that the film ends so strongly.Otherwise, it wouldn't have been a particularly memorable film
The_Kim_Kat In all truth, I watched this by mistake, thinking i was about to see the 2006 film by the same name. Although I still have to see the new film, this take of Piano Lesson was a nice surprise. Funny, smart, touching - it had it all. The storyline is great, evolving just at the right pace, without being too expected (as in Boring) or too melodramatic (as in Not my cup of tea). The plot has twists and turns, the characters are 3-D and interesting and the actors convincingly bring them to life. As I said - a very nice surprise for me, and I'm about to watch this all over again - this time with my boyfriend. I give it an easy 10 out of 10. Wonderful. >> Kim B. >> http://www.reviewsnest.com
pangurban-1 This play is not as simple as it first appears. There is great complexity in all of the major characters, especially in Bernice. And the use of the 'jazz set' model instead of the traditional Aristotelian'plot graph' makes all the difference! The language of the play is music itself, and eventually erupts into song. This is a wonderful debate on the importance of the past and the future in the lives of these characters, symbolized by the piano which has been passed down through the family. A cast full of excellent actors brings it to life. Loved it! I hope 'The Piano Lesson' and the other plays in Wilson's ten-play cycle will soon be available on film.
sbrnnxn You have to come up in a certain culture to understand the overreactions of Charles S. Dutton. They really weren't overreactions, but what makes the film so comical is that there were (and still are) African-Americans that behave that way. What makes it funny is that we all at some point have relatives that are like those in the movie, esp. the part where he comes to visit early in the morning unannounced and expects everyone to get up to greet him. We also have some Uncle Doakers who minds his own business and some con artists like Uncle Whining Boy. Now the part I do agree on is the supernatural aspect of the film. With all the joking and jesting going on, it does drown out the concept meaning it doesn't fit. Otherwise it's a good movie if you want to have a good laugh.
JKranjski I liked the movie and its music. The best scene is the one when they sing about Alberta. I also think that actors realisticaly played the rolls of old time peoples way of communication. I love that home feeling in the Berinces house.It also true that the story is simple and looks more like the gossip, that someone would tell you about people seeing a ghost.