Listings and reviews (1)
The Piano Lesson
The Piano Lesson serves up fresh, a tale of family legacy, with a side of spirit-laden blues that’s equal parts haunting and heartwarming. It’s adapted by Malcolm Washington (son of Denzel, a producer here) and Mudbound’s Virgil Williams from one of August Wilson’s iconic 1980s ‘Pittsburgh cycle’ plays – and is all set in one family home in 1936 Pittsburgh.
From this Pulitzer-winning material, the debut director crafts a film that’s steeped in history but somehow alive with modern vibes. Centred on one Black American family and their impossibly heavy, both spiritually and literally, heirloom piano, he brings history to life with elegance and rawness, making you feel the very weight of inherited struggles.
It’s a family affair on both sides of the camera. Malcolm’s brother, Tenet’s John David Washington, plays the family’s forceful son, Boy Willie, whose driving ambition is to own the land where his ancestors were once enslaved. To raise the necessary funds, he plans to sell the family’s heirloom piano – a decision that sparks a powerful conflict with his sister, Bernice, portrayed by an Oscar-worthy Danielle Deadwyler (Till). Samuel L Jackson is a calming influence as their wise, steady uncle.
You leave the cinema feeling the weight of this story, yet oddly uplifted with it.
Strong as the performances are, the star of the show is the piano itself. It isn’t just a piece of furniture but a character carrying the scars, etchings and songs of the family’s ancestors. Washington