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The Piano Teacher
2001
Drama, Music
2h 11m
Erika (Huppert) is a piano teacher at a prestigious music school in Vienna. In her early forties and single, she lives with her overprotective and controlling mother (Girardot). Lonely and alienated, Erika finds solace by visiting sex shops and experimenting with masochism. (Kino International)
The Piano Teacher
2001
Drama, Music
2h 11m
Your probable score
Avg Percentile 67.26% from 2459 total ratings
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Rated 24 Apr 2007
80
61st
Isabelle Huppert delivers one of the best performances I've ever seen as one the most intriguing characters I've ever seen. Her character's arc over the course of the movie is positively Kafkaesque in the way her life gradually unravels. It's hard to tell exactly what the "moral of the story" is here, but the film's sheer impact is undeniable.
Rated 24 Apr 2007
Rated 08 May 2011
66
40th
Interesting, as Haneke's films usually are, but this one is a bit too dry, and the third act - while making logical sense - doesn't feel organic but rather contrived. The great acting makes it watchable, but it has very little impact.
Rated 08 May 2011
Rated 04 Mar 2008
100
98th
Yeeesh. What makes this film a masterpiece is the strange yet classic romantic build-up throughout most of the running time. Yeah, what she wants is fucked up, but you start to cheer for her to get it. And of course, when she does finally get her wish, it's pure Haneke. He used the same device in Funny Games, except without directly stating it to the viewer; we want this moment as much as she does, and when it happens it's horrible and we feel dirty for wanting it to happen.
Rated 04 Mar 2008
Rated 07 Jan 2010
4
70th
A fascinating exploration of psychology and sexual politics. Erika is one of the most complex and interesting characters I've come across, and Huppert's performance is absolutely stellar, hitting all the right notes to portray her emotional distance, self loathing and sexual desperation. It's hypnotic and repulsive at the same time.
Rated 07 Jan 2010
Rated 06 Mar 2021
90
94th
*Zizek voice 'We don't really want what we think we want.
Rated 06 Mar 2021
Rated 20 Apr 2018
85
74th
Is there such thing as a beautiful display of perversion? Yes, a masochist that somehow develops into something much worse towards the end. Haneke holds nothing back with his display of sexuality and yet avoids exploiting the actors. Disturbing and really crawls into the back of your mind.
Rated 20 Apr 2018
Rated 03 Aug 2012
10
96th
What happens when a woman confronts her illicit desires with society and tries, in desperation, to free herself from various systems of control? Well, according to a few people here on criticker: "Crazy bitch gets what she wants" - No, she doesn't get what she wants. She gets raped mercilessly. PSA: Rape is bad. I can understand a distaste for Haneke, but the source material here is so strong it elevates itself above the rest of his work. It's a great adaptation. Huppert is amazing.
Rated 03 Aug 2012
Rated 30 Nov 2008
75
71st
I don't find La Pianiste to be a masterpiece, but it succeeded in making me feel a myriad of emotions and desires. Often I felt disturbed, disgusted, awkward. While in an ordinary film this would mean I would alienate myself from the character, here Haneke managed to keep me wanting more and feeling some of the desires Erika also had.
Rated 30 Nov 2008
Rated 29 Oct 2024
90
96th
This works so well because Haneke and Jelinek have similar aesthetics of coldly presenting the abyss. It doesn’t reach the height of the novel because unpleasantly timed cuts are no match for Jelinek’s furious wordplay drilling into the idées reçues our life is made of. And the finale really isn’t as well realised; I think it would have needed the scene of Klemmer walking to her apartment. Much more informed and serious about classical music than most films. Both leads are perfectly cast.
Rated 29 Oct 2024
Rated 22 Jan 2016
79
57th
I don't know what to make of this. It's a really compelling film and the performance from Huppert is excellent. It's a great film in every measurable way, but I'm not sure I how much I liked it. I didn't dislike it, but for as much time as it spends with the lead and her actions I never really got into her head save for a few brief glimpses. The film just felt too cold, I understood what it was saying, but didn't feel it which for a film this visceral is letdown.
Rated 22 Jan 2016
Rated 15 May 2012
93
96th
There's something deeply homosexual about this movie.
Rated 15 May 2012
Rated 07 Jan 2012
65
35th
uninteresting and partly disgusting plot, uninteresting dialogue, uninteresting cinematography, strong acting. big let-down.
Rated 07 Jan 2012
Rated 27 Dec 2011
96
86th
Haneke's intentions are to challenge the audience. He's feeding the machine that is voyeurism; it's been instilled in us that violence and sex is something we want to see in movies. He takes our request to a new level and shocks us with graphic subject matter. Clearly he is not a fan of the mindless violence that is popular in Hollywood films so he challenges the audience with violence that will make us question why we like watching this after all. It's his way of empowering the viewer.
Rated 27 Dec 2011
Rated 01 Feb 2010
40
19th
Neither that disturbing nor particularly deep, this bores and turns on the silliness in equal measures. I guess characters like Huppert's exist but I don't agree that her celebrated performance is very nuanced at all - mostly, she just stares.
Rated 01 Feb 2010
Rated 04 Jan 2010
4
56th
Isabelle Huppert and the classical music pieces take it a long way in my regard. The script peaks at the build and collapses into a very forced and contrived situation that cheapens the result - a pattern, that to some degree, I keep finding in Haneke's work.
Rated 04 Jan 2010
Rated 03 Sep 2009
90
93rd
Amazing cast, disturbing script, fantastic movie.
Rated 03 Sep 2009
Rated 13 May 2009
65
52nd
tentative score pending a re-watch of this strange film by haneke
Rated 13 May 2009
Rated 16 Apr 2009
73
45th
It's not quite fair to call this a movie about sex. It's more about psychology, like most of Haneke's films. The interesting part is not that Erika is sexually repressed and has a domineering mother, thus she desires kinky S&M. The interesting part is what happens when she gets what she wants. So I wasn't that into the first 3/4 of the film, but the ending redeemed it somewhat. And Huppert's performance is quite good.
Rated 16 Apr 2009
Rated 10 Feb 2009
85
80th
The Piano Teacher is pretty amazing. The performances are great, with Isabelle Huppert obviously standing out, as is nearly everything else. I do think that sometimes the script gets a bit out of hand though.
Rated 10 Feb 2009
Rated 10 Nov 2007
70
47th
Uncomfortable viewing
Rated 10 Nov 2007
Rated 24 Oct 2007
0
8th
There I was, with my stomach all set for a cool art film, and instead I get another sick Haneke film. Eugh! Bleah! Puke!
Rated 24 Oct 2007
Rated 14 Aug 2007
65
71st
Excellent beginning, but runs off the rails in the third act.
Rated 14 Aug 2007
Rated 26 Jul 2007
80
78th
It's definitely disturbing and unsettling, but Haneke's film manages to be a compelling and sincere psychological exploration without feeling exploitative or immature. Huppert's performance is exceptionally nuanced and riveting.
Rated 26 Jul 2007
Rated 28 Sep 2024
87
79th
Really, really messed up.
Rated 28 Sep 2024
Rated 02 May 2023
87
84th
The words “intense” and “emotional” does not justify the way one feels while watching Haneke’s film. I have no words.
Rated 02 May 2023
Rated 13 Jan 2023
4
51st
The only Haneke I’ve seen so far that didn’t annoy me
Rated 13 Jan 2023
Rated 25 Dec 2022
78
66th
What a movie to watch on Christmas Eve. Disturbing, unsettling, but never boring. This kind of feels like something someone like von Trier could have made, or maybe someone like Bergman on an especially dark day. The performances are outstanding, and it explores the themes of power dynamics and control in a very interesting fashion. The ending is a bit abrupt for my taste, but I more or less get why Haneke went that way. Not sure what I would have done. Definitely not for everyone.
Rated 25 Dec 2022
Rated 01 Dec 2022
93
94th
I'm pretty sure this movie's based on my grandpa. He was also a piano teacher and, well...
Rated 01 Dec 2022
Rated 16 Mar 2022
75
47th
Actually it’s brilliant but not cup of my tea.
Rated 16 Mar 2022
Rated 27 Feb 2022
87
99th
abi ben bu ne aptal konu diye on yıldır bu filmi erteliyorum. kafamı sikiyim. filme bayıldım, eridim, bittim adeta. inanılmaz inanılmazzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Rated 27 Feb 2022
Rated 12 Apr 2021
100
80th
the actress made it . this is the second movie i saw of her and her act made me wondered
Rated 12 Apr 2021
Rated 02 Feb 2021
3
72nd
What an actress Isabel Huppert is....
Rated 02 Feb 2021
Rated 05 Jan 2021
88
60th
Beside giving a typical critic of bourgeois (like almost all of the Haneke's works) this also bringed a psychosexual criticsm to mother and daughter relationship. Freud once said: "Girls hold their mother responsible for their lack of a penis and do not forgive her for their being thus put at a disadvantage" and he also added that the duties of modern woman causes them to get in an ununsatisfied manner. You can see this theory in the proffesor, a very talented woman but also a frustrated psycho.
Rated 05 Jan 2021
Rated 28 Sep 2020
90
87th
A fascinating film that contrasts culture and constraint with wild abandon and degradation, and doesn't go anywhere you expect it to. Haneke's cold precision renders some extremely difficult sequences almost impossible to watch with preconceived intent. Huppert, a superb actress in anything she does, is astonishing in a brave and controlled performance.
Rated 28 Sep 2020
Rated 21 Jul 2020
30
10th
I dunno, it's a well-constructed slice of formalism so I get the acclaim, but I'm not sold on it myself. The last third in particular is a bit much. Good stuff from Huppert though.
Rated 21 Jul 2020
Rated 31 May 2020
89
85th
This was weird, but powerful.
Rated 31 May 2020
Rated 03 May 2020
65
51st
This is what happens when there's no communication and no safe-word.
Rated 03 May 2020
Rated 07 Apr 2020
5
18th
main character was an unrelatable and unlikable space alien. didn't like it.
Rated 07 Apr 2020
Rated 07 Apr 2020
78
80th
I had no idea this was Louis CK's favorite movie but it makes sense in a strange way.
Rated 07 Apr 2020
Rated 23 Dec 2019
78
69th
Not so much disturbing and deep but very good exploration. Not satisfied by the ending.
Rated 23 Dec 2019
Rated 28 Mar 2019
5
93rd
Of course we're accustomed to seeing that the underside of repression is deviance, but this film dives deeper than most would dare to imagine. Another heart is fathomless. Erika seems conditioned toward abuse, and for her scraping attempts from seclusion, she receives no mercy. The last act is a revelation, and incredibly difficult to watch.
Rated 28 Mar 2019
Rated 03 Feb 2019
70
40th
Michael Haneke, The Piano Teacher'da yalnızlığı cinselliğin doruklarında anlatıyor olsa da yarattığı karakterler sanki ölüp yeniden dirilmiş insanlardan ibaret. Çok soluk, ruhsuz ve iç bayıyor. Isabelle Huppert ile Benoit Magimel olmasa çekilecek dert değil resmen.
Rated 03 Feb 2019
Rated 09 Dec 2018
75
65th
Top badass moment? After being surgically altered to look human (although they probably overdid the freckles a bit), Erika travels back in time from Q'onoS to Earth, to take up a post as a piano teacher. (The reason is never explained.) Although she looks human, her attitude to her students is pure Klingon. She even punishes herself for her failures, a total giveaway. I recommend she tries something easier, like pretending to be a tourist in Salisbury. No cats, chainsaws or decapitations.
Rated 09 Dec 2018
Rated 19 Oct 2018
95
98th
I was nearly dead by the time this was over. It just crushed me. Entirely.
Rated 19 Oct 2018
Rated 29 Jun 2018
55
24th
This is not a bad movie, and it's unmistakably Michael Haneke, but I'm not sure what I was supposed to ... get from it. Sure, I felt slightly sad, annoyed and confused after watching it, but I didn't feel like I had anything to chew on.
Rated 29 Jun 2018
Rated 10 May 2018
75
43rd
Haneke just never really manages to be as edgy as he wants to be
Rated 10 May 2018
Rated 06 Mar 2018
68
51st
All the shocking masochism aside, it is the mother and daughter dynamic which gives the movie it's disturbing intensity. The performance to me seemed to break down and feel fake at important moments, not because of lack of acting talent but the sheer gymnastics of the characters. The movie overcomes it, for the most part, to still deliver a punch.
Rated 06 Mar 2018
Rated 13 Oct 2017
95
95th
A very wonderfully disturbing psychosexual movie with Huppert incredible performance as a masochist who needs a BDSM relationship but chooses the wrong partner and every aspect of the movie falls in the correct place. I absolutely loved it.
Rated 13 Oct 2017
Rated 03 Mar 2017
90
80th
Viewed March 1, 2017.
Rated 03 Mar 2017
Rated 29 Nov 2016
83
87th
The fact that setting is Vienna and the language is french fits perfectly to the feel this film manages to produce. The cold and outwardly professional Erika, wonderfully played by Huppert, is a great portrayal of a strict and seemingly prudish french woman who, in reality hides her masochistic fantasies. Haneke manages, as he often does, not to get the viewer into a stage of satisfaction at any moment during the film. There's always something that angers the viewer but in his case, it works.
Rated 29 Nov 2016
Rated 28 Jan 2016
85
82nd
Technically speaking, this movie is basically flawless - but it is a chore getting through it. There's zero opportunities to come up for air once things get going, and the amount of tension is unapologetically harsh. The acting, direction, and writing are all up to the standard of perfection one can expect from Michael Haneke, and it's a pleasure seeing his visions come to life even if they weigh heavily on the heart.
Rated 28 Jan 2016
Rated 06 Jan 2015
5
70th
i'll take the first 96 minutes. 75 points. before she, uh, sexually assaulted her, well, you know. spoiler alert. haneke's aesthetic still doesn't work entirely for me, but the biggest problems with the film are undoubtedly due to the novel.
Rated 06 Jan 2015
Rated 01 Aug 2014
90
84th
Haneke er sjuk i hodet og hater alt og alle, men klarer allikevel å lage svært interessante og egne filmer. I denne møter vi en seksuelt undertrykt (både av seg selv og moren) pianolærerinne (Isabelle Huppert i den beste rollen jeg har sett henne i) som innleder et sadomasochistisk forhold til en av sine elever. En slags 50 Shades of Gray om alt var jævlig og ingen har noe godhet i seg. Ubehagelig, men velspilt. Haneke bruker sin sedvanlige nøkterne stil, noe som passer filmens ekstremisme godt.
Rated 01 Aug 2014
Rated 20 Oct 2013
60
29th
First Haneke film I see. Gotta say I'm a bit let down after all the hype. Yeah there were some brilliant bits, but on the whole it just sort of did that thing I abhor where "making sex unsexy and having lots of it" is somehow interchangeable with actual depth. Maybe I'm also a bit too unforgiving against "movie's climax must coindcide with sexual climax that is only slightly weirder than anything thats gone one before, but is somehow supposed to mean something". Make of that what you will.
Rated 20 Oct 2013
Rated 18 Aug 2013
80
90th
There's no mistaking this as anything but a Michael Haneke film. Like his other films, it's incredibly unsettling and hyper-realistic. It's a strange and frightening look at sexuality and effects of repressing and of giving into it. The lead actress gave a really great performance. It was a really good film overall, and another example of Haneke challenging the audience and pushing the medium to its extremes.
Rated 18 Aug 2013
Rated 10 Jul 2013
83
95th
This movie literally caused me physical pain in some scenes. It also proves that you don't have to like the protagonist to be engulfed with the story. At least it worked for me...
Rated 10 Jul 2013
Rated 19 May 2013
85
77th
3 Mart 2013, istanbul modern &
Rated 19 May 2013
Rated 01 May 2013
5
18th
Intriguing and disturbing with a strong central performance but not enjoyable.
Rated 01 May 2013
Rated 22 Apr 2013
50
49th
Raw and intense, but the story is unbalanced and confusing. It is basically a portrait of an respected and accomplished woman with deeply disturbing personal demons that threaten to destroy her. The thrill ride was accentuated by graphic nudity, highly charged sexual scenes, self mutilation and sexual violence, but the first half was long and slow, and the ending was senseless and incomplete. Ultimately unsatisfying and unfinished.
Rated 22 Apr 2013
Rated 12 Apr 2013
85
51st
Well-made, if a little sterile (that's Haneke.) I'm troubled by some of the exploitative and victim-blaming elements though. What is this film's argument? Does every aspect of the narrative support that argument unambiguously?
Rated 12 Apr 2013
Rated 02 Apr 2013
87
85th
Picked up this movie on a whim, assuming that it was a normal romance featuring a normal piano teacher. I was proven to be completely wrong fifteen minutes into the movie.
Not a film I will want to watch again, but it was an amazing and very memorable ride about sexual repression and alienation. Not your average movie.
Rated 02 Apr 2013
Rated 27 Mar 2013
70
44th
I don't think this is a particularly strong film by Haneke, especially in comparison to say The White Ribbon or Amour. It felt like a contrived move to pair the already shocking scenes with beautiful and lilting classical music for added shock value. I just found the move lacking subtlety and degrading, which hampers any true character development. I felt like Alex from A Clockwork Orange and this being the film to destroy my love of Schubert, much like his love for Beethoven.
Rated 27 Mar 2013
Rated 14 Feb 2013
75
58th
ouch
Rated 14 Feb 2013
Rated 10 Jan 2013
90
90th
Erika is a remarkably compelling character to watch, one of the most complex and intriguing characters I have ever seen and you never know what to feel towards her. Is The Piano Teacher criticising upper-middle class snobbishness towards what they see as sexual perversions or is it criticising a person wanting for such sexual extremes without considering the consequences? For my money, both. It is an intensely powerful film, both gutwrenching and heartbreaking in equal measure. Sublime.
Rated 10 Jan 2013
Rated 02 Sep 2012
75
80th
After Code Unknown, Haneke and his still camera step away to let Huppert deliver the best performance of the decade, in a both moving and crude picture about the most primal acts of desire and love.
Rated 02 Sep 2012
Rated 28 Jul 2012
87
93rd
A grave, that was digged in the ground, you begin to understand, feels grief and remorse when one is being buried inside.
Rated 28 Jul 2012
Rated 07 Mar 2012
70
57th
A deliberately paced yet captivating depiction of sexual frustration that won me over thanks to Haneke's patient direction and Huppert's committed performance. Still, although I was engrossed by the proceedings, the ending (classic Haneke) made me doubt the film's reason for existing. Despite a compelling story arc, the purpose of "La Pianiste" is ultimately too ambiguous -if it really does have a purpose- for me to care too much for it by the end.
Rated 07 Mar 2012
Rated 17 Jan 2012
94
91st
I remember being opposed to this movie as a whole upon first viewing. Then I let it sink in for a day or two and kind of fell in love with it.
Rated 17 Jan 2012
Rated 08 Dec 2011
75
53rd
Wow, this is one sick film - I feel like a freak just for having watched it in its entirety. This is the most provoking film I've seen in a while - and I've been watching avant-garde films on childbirth starring...placenta. I thought I would have the stomach for something like this by now but...no. no no no.
Rated 08 Dec 2011
Rated 24 Jul 2011
90
94th
23 Juliol 2011 - Molt impactant. M'ha trasbalsat la capacitat dels personatges de transmetre estats mentals. Com es pot fer una creació tan complexa gairebé com la realitat? Amb quin virtuosisme capta la imcomprensibilitat de la vida.
Rated 24 Jul 2011
Rated 10 Jul 2011
80
83rd
Bardzo dobry, ale nie zrobil na mnie tak piorunujacego wrazenia jak inne filmy M. Haneke.
Rated 10 Jul 2011
Rated 21 Mar 2011
89
95th
A brilliant exploration of a disturbed sexual emotions. What can come out of a woman in early forties if you've never got change to let your feelings come out. Over protective motherly love can be devastating for human mind. The tense did not last till the very end, though I liked the choice of ending. The ending titles supported nicely entire story as well.
Rated 21 Mar 2011
Rated 19 Oct 2010
30
78th
"Michael Haneke's latest torture mechanism is less funny game than daunting debasement ritual." - Ed Gonzalez
Rated 19 Oct 2010
Rated 19 Sep 2010
6
55th
This movie was honestly bordering on being a comedy for me. It just wasn't as disturbing as people say it is. I mean the scene where she goes into that booth to watch porn and starts sniffing guys used jizz stained kleenex was laughable. As were many other moments. I feel like Judd Apatow should remake this. Seth Rogen IS Erika. I'd watch that. It also features a typical bullshit Haneke ending.
Rated 19 Sep 2010
Rated 14 Sep 2010
98
99th
An extreme inspection on the highly disturbing and worrying behaviours of a woman approaching her elderly stages and her relationship with a much younger and thoroughly handsome male. Haneke avoids motifs and usual character arcs, making this an uneasy viewing experience, but the incredibly fine performances (both winners at Cannes 2001) make this unwatchable-can't-turn-away film of shock upon shock into a romantic-comedy like no other.
Rated 14 Sep 2010
Rated 22 Jul 2010
90
60th
Haneke is an amazing director. This film deals with socially taboo themes and stark social realism. Sexual repression and sadomasochism are key themes as a sexual relationship between a teacher and student is explored. Confronting, but taut in its acting and direction.
Rated 22 Jul 2010
Rated 06 Feb 2010
81
84th
A fascinating look at the (sex)life of a deeply disturbed woman with a cold and icy demeanor. Huppert gives a truly amazing performance. The wonderful classical music throughout slightly alleviates the cringeworthyness.
Rated 06 Feb 2010
Rated 18 Dec 2009
76
78th
I don't find La Pianiste to be a masterpiece, but it succeeded in making me feel a myriad of emotions and desires. Often I felt disturbed, disgusted, awkward. While in an ordinary film this would mean I would alienate myself from the character, here Haneke managed to keep me wanting more and feeling some of the desires Erika also had.
Rated 18 Dec 2009
Rated 26 Sep 2009
65
27th
I think this went completely off the rails in the last quarter of the movie. Regardless, it's just so unpleasant that's it's almost impossible to watch. I guess that's an achievement.
Rated 26 Sep 2009
Rated 01 Aug 2009
81
86th
Dark exploration of the less attractive side of human nature. Excellent performances all round, and a compelling, but simple plot about a woman and her alienation from society. Disturbing, but brilliant.
Rated 01 Aug 2009
Rated 29 Apr 2009
3
74th
Painful to watch, but I'm glad I did. Haneke is an expert in making us confront the deepest corners of our mind.
Rated 29 Apr 2009
Rated 22 Apr 2009
5
94th
Extreme masochism and sadism, plus a cross-generation partnership, plus BDSM fetishes, plus a critique of upper-class elitism equals my kind of movie.
Rated 22 Apr 2009
Rated 03 Aug 2008
82
59th
This film is like having one's private nightmare splattered all over the big screen for everyone to see.
Rated 03 Aug 2008
Rated 08 Feb 2008
93
73rd
Powerful, disturbing, yet fascinating look into sexuality, normality, fantasy and reality, and the effect of all this coming to a head. Watch after reading the book and compare for full effect.
Rated 08 Feb 2008
Rated 14 Aug 2007
75
21st
I did not get this movie. Weird sex and people with emotional problems.
Rated 14 Aug 2007
Rated 02 Mar 2007
70
82nd
Excellent film.
Rated 02 Mar 2007
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