I remember when this movie made a lot of buzz at the Academy Awards back in 2003. I wasn’t exactly into lesser-known but critically-acclaimed films back then, so for the longest time I thought the movie was mostly about music. Instead it’s a chilling tale of the lives of Polish citizens during World War II.

The movie is based on the auto-biography of Władysław Szpilman, a gifted pianist. His career on Polish radio is interrupted by invading German forces after they take the station off the air. Szpilman and his Jewish family remain optimistic that Poland (and later allies France and England) would fight back and win. After Germany occupies Poland, you truly see first hand how terrible the lives were of families like the Szpilmans.

I think I might say it’s the best movie that’s hard to watch. The movie is so rich in history, but it’s also about one of it’s most evil parts. So it definitely puts you into a melancholic mood, and your heart truly mourns for Szpilman and the other Jewish citizens of Europe.

But I can say that it should be one of the most memorable films you could ever see. It’s hard to forget a film that accurately displays history at it’s worst. Adrien Brody plays a marvelous role as Szpilman, a man who’s been through more turmoil than we could possibly dream. It’s the first film to shake me up emotionally in years, and it’s not a movie to overlook.