Shine (1996)

I remember seeing this film when I was much younger and being incredibly impressed by it - blown away by the intensity of the story and the performances - and introduced to a type of film I'd never seen before. Watching it again now, having seen many other films since, 'Shine' has lost some of its power but is still undoubtably a fine portrait of a unique and complicated talent. Thankfully, the pianist David Helfgott has never been too famous, so this never strays down the path of polished biopic that we see in 'Walk the Line' and 'Ray'. Instead, this feels much more like an art film, and all the more unusual for being Australian.

The story follows the incredibly gifted young David from childhood to adolescence, consistently pressurised by his loving but strict father into winning every competition and always striving to be the best. It is this relationship that drives the film and makes it so fascinating. His father is incredibly ambitious and yet intensely protective, wishing for his son to be the greatest pianist in the world but refusing to allow anyone else to teach him. His past as an Eastern European Jew during World War Two is never directly referred to but we can see quite plainly that his suffering has caused both this ambition and protection for his son.

The film covers many years, from the boy David to adolescent David (Noah Taylor), who rebels against his father to study at the Royal College of London (where John Gielgud plays his tutor). Here he lives in poverty, unable to care for himself and putting his music before everything else. He may have been disowned by his father but his shadow still looms large and it is the 'unplayable' Rachmaninov symphony his father had always aimed for, that remains David's ultimate goal in piano playing - and his downfall.

The later part of the film sees Geoffrey Rush make his film debut with an Oscar-winning performance as the adult David, driven insane by his obsession and failure to live up to his father's aspirations. For years he hasn't touched a piano and lives in a care home, but thanks to the friendship of several kind women he is gradually reintegrated into society, finds love and marriage, and begins to play again.

The film is easily moving without resorting to sentimentality and the director allows his actors to fully explore their relatively simple characters and unearth the complexities within. The film may have put Geoffrey Rush on the map but he has relatively little screentime and Noah Taylor is equally mesmerising. The real genius here, however, is Armin Mueller-Stalh who gives an absolutely stunning performance as David's father - perfectly encapsulting the brutality and tenderness of his love. It's easy to see how David had been driven to insanity with an overbearing figure he could never please. For me, Mueller-Stahl's performance is one of the greatest in cinema - a simple man unable to see the impossibility of his dreams, and the weight with which they bear down on his son.

This is easily one of the best Australian films ever made, and probably one of the finest 'art' films in the English language. Yet again, I give it a strong recommendation.