The Pianist is a 2002 film by Roman Polanski based on the true story of Wladyslaw Szpilman's survival during the German occupation of Warsaw in 1942. It was directed by Roman Polanski and written by Ronald Harwood, and it met with widespread acclaim upon its release.
Polanski was inspired to make the film by his own experience escaping the Kraków Ghetto after his mother's death. Polanski lived in a barn until the war ended, at which point he was reunited with his father, who had been sent to a concentration camp. The film is based on Władysław Szpilman's autobiography of the same title, and the script won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. Additionally, Adrien Brody won an Academy Award for his performance, Polanski won Best Director, and the film was awarded the Palme d'Or at Cannes.
The film was met with acclaim from critics. Roger Ebert reflected on the film, writing, "By showing Szpilman as a survivor but not a fighter or a hero—as a man who does all he can to save himself, but would have died without enormous good luck and the kindness of a few non-Jews—Polanski is reflecting, I believe, his own deepest feelings: that he survived, but need not have, and that his mother died and left a wound that had never healed."
