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data-nimg="fill" style="position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;background-image:url("data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' %3E%3Cfilter id='b' color-interpolation-filters='sRGB'%3E%3CfeGaussianBlur stdDeviation='20'/%3E%3CfeColorMatrix values='1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 100 -1' result='s'/%3E%3CfeFlood x='0' y='0' width='100%25' height='100%25'/%3E%3CfeComposite operator='out' in='s'/%3E%3CfeComposite in2='SourceGraphic'/%3E%3CfeGaussianBlur stdDeviation='20'/%3E%3C/filter%3E%3Cimage width='100%25' height='100%25' x='0' y='0' preserveAspectRatio='none' style='filter: url(%23b);' href='data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAEAAAABCAQAAAC1HAwCAAAAC0lEQVR42mO8/B8AAqsB1DKTUZgAAAAASUVORK5CYII='/%3E%3C/svg%3E")" sizes="(max-width: 767px) 100vw,48vw" srcSet="https://images.bauerhosting.com/empire/2024/11/The-Piano-Lesson-HERO.jpg?ar=16%3A9&fit=crop&crop=top&auto=format&w=480&q=80 480w, https://images.bauerhosting.com/empire/2024/11/The-Piano-Lesson-HERO.jpg?ar=16%3A9&fit=crop&crop=top&auto=format&w=768&q=80 768w, https://images.bauerhosting.com/empire/2024/11/The-Piano-Lesson-HERO.jpg?ar=16%3A9&fit=crop&crop=top&auto=format&w=992&q=80 992w, https://images.bauerhosting.com/empire/2024/11/The-Piano-Lesson-HERO.jpg?ar=16%3A9&fit=crop&crop=top&auto=format&w=1200&q=80 1200w, https://images.bauerhosting.com/empire/2024/11/The-Piano-Lesson-HERO.jpg?ar=16%3A9&fit=crop&crop=top&auto=format&w=1440&q=80 1440w" src="https://images.bauerhosting.com/empire/2024/11/The-Piano-Lesson-HERO.jpg?ar=16%3A9&fit=crop&crop=top&auto=format&w=1440&q=80"/></div><div class="entityLinks_entity-links-placeholder__TKcDw "><div class="entityLinks_entity-links__K4gII"><div class="entityLinks_entity-links-items__P1pk5" style="height:auto"><div class="entityLinks_entity-links-group__Rb0Ym">People:</div><div class="entityLinks_entity-link__2pb33"><a href="/people/danielle-deadwyler/">Danielle Deadwyler</a></div><div class="entityLinks_entity-link__2pb33"><a href="/people/john-david-washington/">John David Washington</a></div><div class="entityLinks_entity-link__2pb33"><a href="/people/samuel-l-jackson/">Samuel L Jackson</a></div><div class="entityLinks_entity-link__2pb33"><a href="/people/denzel-washington/">Denzel Washington</a></div></div></div></div><div class="nutshell_nutshell__UxfHW nutshell">An elaborately carved piano becomes a symbol of grief, legacy and honour for one warring family in 1930s Pittsburgh.</div><div class="ratings_review-rating__GiuQm undefined"><div class="ratings_rating__not-full__KCaXq"><span class="ratings_rating__on__fcPxo"><svg viewBox="0 0 24 24"><defs><linearGradient id="aiykvb6wkzb"><stop offset="50%" class="ratings_rating-on-stop__QctxR"></stop><stop offset="50%" 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id="g0u80vvv31k"><stop offset="50%" class="ratings_rating-on-stop__QctxR"></stop><stop offset="50%" class="ratings_rating-off-stop__ZMrvK" stop-opacity="1"></stop></linearGradient></defs><path class="ratings_star__tS6_8" d="M12 17.27l6.18 3.728-1.636-7.03L22 9.244l-7.19-.618-2.81-6.627L9.19 8.625 2 9.243l5.454 4.726-1.635 7.029L12 17.27z" fill="url(#g0u80vvv31k)"></path><rect x="0" y="0" width="24" height="24" fill="rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)"></rect></svg></span><span class="ratings_rating__off__iQTW3"><svg viewBox="0 0 24 24"><defs><linearGradient id="m3jn8y7m8r"><stop offset="50%" class="ratings_rating-on-stop__QctxR"></stop><stop offset="50%" class="ratings_rating-off-stop__ZMrvK" stop-opacity="1"></stop></linearGradient></defs><path class="ratings_star__tS6_8" d="M12 17.27l6.18 3.728-1.636-7.03L22 9.244l-7.19-.618-2.81-6.627L9.19 8.625 2 9.243l5.454 4.726-1.635 7.029L12 17.27z" fill="url(#m3jn8y7m8r)"></path><rect x="0" y="0" width="24" height="24" fill="rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)"></rect></svg></span><span class="ratings_rating__off__iQTW3"><svg viewBox="0 0 24 24"><defs><linearGradient id="ymsu3sdg1ld"><stop offset="50%" class="ratings_rating-on-stop__QctxR"></stop><stop offset="50%" class="ratings_rating-off-stop__ZMrvK" stop-opacity="1"></stop></linearGradient></defs><path class="ratings_star__tS6_8" d="M12 17.27l6.18 3.728-1.636-7.03L22 9.244l-7.19-.618-2.81-6.627L9.19 8.625 2 9.243l5.454 4.726-1.635 7.029L12 17.27z" fill="url(#ymsu3sdg1ld)"></path><rect x="0" y="0" width="24" height="24" fill="rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)"></rect></svg></span></div></div><hr class="article_hero-underline__zk7to"/><div class="authorDate_author__a0WHZ" data-test="author"><span class="authorDate_author__prefix__qkQQE">by </span><a class="authorDate_author__name__1Xkpl" href="/author/steph-green/" aria-label="Author page link" data-test="author-name">Steph Green</a><span> | </span><div class="authorDate_author__date__VfIhT" data-test="author-date"><span class="authorDate_author__modifiedAt__5g4fD">Published on</span><time dateTime="2024-11-19T15:39:49.000+00:00">19th November 2024 at 3.39pm</time></div></div><div class="article_article-content__3auQJ false"><span class="content_content__i0P3p" data-test="content"> <p>Play-to-film adaptations can often flourish thanks to the little tricks and turns that only the silver screen can provide: whether it’s Jack Nicholson’s claustrophobic close-up as he exclaims guilt in <em><a href="https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/good-men-review/" target="_blank">A Few Good Men</a></em>, or the frantic editing of <em><a href="https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/amadeus-review/" target="_blank">Amadeus</a></em>. On the other hand, some adaptations do too little and end up feeling literally ‘stagey’ as a result. With <em>The Piano Lesson</em> in particular, it feels like not much has been gained by re-rendering this Pulitzer- winner on celluloid.</p> </span><div class="inlineImage_image-container__aklxu block-item" data-test="inline-image-container"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" data-nimg="fill" style="position:absolute;height:100%;width:100%;left:0;top:0;right:0;bottom:0;color:transparent;background-size:cover;background-position:50% 50%;background-repeat:no-repeat;background-image:url("data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' %3E%3Cfilter id='b' color-interpolation-filters='sRGB'%3E%3CfeGaussianBlur stdDeviation='20'/%3E%3CfeColorMatrix values='1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 100 -1' result='s'/%3E%3CfeFlood x='0' y='0' width='100%25' height='100%25'/%3E%3CfeComposite operator='out' in='s'/%3E%3CfeComposite in2='SourceGraphic'/%3E%3CfeGaussianBlur stdDeviation='20'/%3E%3C/filter%3E%3Cimage width='100%25' height='100%25' x='0' y='0' preserveAspectRatio='none' style='filter: url(%23b);' href='data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAEAAAABCAQAAAC1HAwCAAAAC0lEQVR42mO8/B8AAqsB1DKTUZgAAAAASUVORK5CYII='/%3E%3C/svg%3E")" sizes="(max-width: 767px) 100vw,(max-width: 992px) 66vw,50vw" srcSet="https://images.bauerhosting.com/empire/2024/11/The-Piano-Lesson-BODY-1.jpg?auto=format&w=384&q=80 384w, https://images.bauerhosting.com/empire/2024/11/The-Piano-Lesson-BODY-1.jpg?auto=format&w=480&q=80 480w, https://images.bauerhosting.com/empire/2024/11/The-Piano-Lesson-BODY-1.jpg?auto=format&w=768&q=80 768w, https://images.bauerhosting.com/empire/2024/11/The-Piano-Lesson-BODY-1.jpg?auto=format&w=992&q=80 992w, https://images.bauerhosting.com/empire/2024/11/The-Piano-Lesson-BODY-1.jpg?auto=format&w=1200&q=80 1200w, https://images.bauerhosting.com/empire/2024/11/The-Piano-Lesson-BODY-1.jpg?auto=format&w=1440&q=80 1440w" src="https://images.bauerhosting.com/empire/2024/11/The-Piano-Lesson-BODY-1.jpg?auto=format&w=1440&q=80"/><div class="inlineImage_image-caption__lpyPW">The Piano Lesson. (L-R) John David Washington as Boy Willie and Skylar Smith as Maretha in The Piano Lesson. Cr. Courtesy of Netflix</div></div><span class="content_content__i0P3p" data-test="content"> <p>Adapted from August Wilson’s play — part of the ‘Pittsburgh Cycle’ that includes <em><a href="https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/fences-review/" target="_blank">Fences</a></em> and <em><a href="https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/ma-rainey-black-bottom/" target="_blank">Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom</a></em> (all three now Denzel Washington-produced films) — <em>The Piano Lesson</em> is set in 1936 in Pittsburgh, where the Charles family live, with a large piano sitting unused in their house. Doaker (Samuel L. Jackson) explains the musical instrument’s tragic backstory: enslaved ancestors were traded so that the white head of the house could get his hands on the piano. Later the family stole the piano back to reclaim their ancestors’ dignity, but come the 1930s, Boy Willie (John David Washington) is back in town and wants to sell it for cash.</p> </span><div class="pullQuote_pullquote__ynq1g" data-test="pullquote"><div class="pullQuote_pullquote__icon__JGpkh"><span></span></div><div class="pullQuote_pullquote__content__gRuai"> <blockquote> <p>Washington wrestles with ideas of legacy and how one should honour one’s forebears.</p> </blockquote> </div></div><span class="content_content__i0P3p" data-test="content"> <p>This is very much a Washington family joint, with dad Denzel and daughter Katia producing, son Malcolm directing (in his feature debut), son John David starring, and daughter and wife Olivia and Pauletta making cameos. Even so, the movie’s most valuable player is Danielle Deadwyler. As the grieving Berniece, she distills decades of inherited anguish into each wide-eyed glare; despite the character’s calficied bravado, there’s a softness, too, that sands off the edges. Wilson was known for celebrating the vernacular of Black America, creating fascinating and three-dimensional characters, and Berniece brilliantly epitomises this: earthy, authentic and multi-layered.</p> </span><div class="block-item"><div class="lazyLoad"></div></div><span class="content_content__i0P3p" data-test="content"> <p>If only the film was as consistently vibrant as her performance. There are certainly lively scenes — such as the opening piano-heist flashback, set during Fourth Of July festivities; some pleasingly kinetic musical-hall sequences featuring music legend Erykah Badu; and most significantly, the moments where Berniece and Boy Willie lock horns on how best to pay tribute to their ancestors. Washington wrestles with ideas of legacy and how one should honour one’s forebears. But the film rarely elevates the play’s action in a significant way, the transitions between comedy, drama and horror sometimes feeling clumsy. It’s a shame, because when Washington does flex his budding directorial muscles, <em>The Piano Lesson</em> finds its melody.</p> </span></div><div class="verdict_verdict__740B2">This drama works best when it’s not taking its cues directly from its source material. It may not be always totally compelling, but Deadwyler elevates every scene she’s in.</div><div class="entityLinks_entity-links-placeholder__TKcDw entityLinks_entity-links--desktop-hidden__hKuCX"><div class="entityLinks_entity-links__K4gII"><div class="entityLinks_entity-links-items__P1pk5" style="height:auto"><div class="entityLinks_entity-links-group__Rb0Ym">People:</div><div class="entityLinks_entity-link__2pb33"><a href="/people/danielle-deadwyler/">Danielle Deadwyler</a></div><div class="entityLinks_entity-link__2pb33"><a href="/people/john-david-washington/">John David Washington</a></div><div class="entityLinks_entity-link__2pb33"><a href="/people/samuel-l-jackson/">Samuel L Jackson</a></div><div class="entityLinks_entity-link__2pb33"><a href="/people/denzel-washington/">Denzel Washington</a></div></div></div></div><div class="disclaimer_disclaimer__Os2Y_" data-test="disclaimer">Just so you know, we may receive a commission or other compensation from the links on this website - <a href="/about-us/" aria-label="Action link">read why you should trust us</a></div><div id="bibblio-related-content"></div></article></main><footer class="footer_footer__jF3T9"><ul class="footer__links"><li data-test="Legal Info"><a rel="noopener nofollow" target="" href="https://www.empireonline.com/movies/news/legal-info/">Legal Info</a></li><li data-test="Privacy Policy"><a rel="noopener nofollow" target="" href="https://www.bauerdatapromise.co.uk/">Privacy Policy</a></li><li data-test="Your Ad Choices"><a rel="noopener nofollow" target="" href="https://static.bauercdn.com/cookiePolicy/policy.html">Your Ad Choices</a></li><li data-test="Subscription Complaints"><a rel="noopener nofollow" target="" href="https://www.greatmagazines.co.uk/complaints-procedure">Subscription Complaints</a></li><li data-test="Complaints"><a rel="noopener nofollow" target="" href="https://www.bauerlegal.co.uk/editorial-complaints-policy">Complaints</a></li><li data-test="Subscribe to Empire"><a rel="noopener nofollow" target="" href="https://www.greatmagazines.co.uk/empire-magazine?utm_medium=referral&utm_source=empireonline.com&utm_content=footersub&utm_campaign=bau_empire">Subscribe to Empire</a></li><li data-test="API"><a rel="noopener nofollow" target="" href="https://www.empireonline.com/movies/news/tmdb-api/">API</a></li><li data-test="About Us"><a rel="noopener nofollow" target="" href="https://www.empireonline.com/about-us/">About Us</a></li><li data-test="Speak Up"><a rel="noopener nofollow" target="" href="https://www.bauerlegal.co.uk/speak-up">Speak Up</a></li><li data-test="privacy-settings" id="eu-consent-ui"><a class="empty-link" href="/">Privacy Settings</a></li><li data-test="do-not-sell-my-information" id="us-consent-ui"><a class="empty-link" href="/">Do not sell my information</a></li></ul><div class="social_social-icons__DI2IJ"><ul><li data-test="social-icon-facebook"><a href="//www.facebook.com/empiremagazine" target="_blank" rel="noopener" aria-label="Facebook"><img alt="Facebook" loading="lazy" width="20" height="20" decoding="async" data-nimg="1" style="color:transparent" srcSet="/assets/facebook.svg 1x, /assets/facebook.svg 2x" src="/assets/facebook.svg"/></a></li><li data-test="social-icon-twitter"><a href="//twitter.com/empiremagazine" target="_blank" rel="noopener" aria-label="Twitter"><img alt="Twitter" loading="lazy" width="20" height="20" decoding="async" data-nimg="1" style="color:transparent" srcSet="/assets/twitter.svg 1x, /assets/twitter.svg 2x" src="/assets/twitter.svg"/></a></li><li data-test="social-icon-pinterest"><a href="//www.pinterest.com/empiremagazine/" target="_blank" rel="noopener" aria-label="Pinterest"><img alt="Pinterest" loading="lazy" width="20" height="20" decoding="async" data-nimg="1" style="color:transparent" srcSet="/assets/pinterest.svg 1x, /assets/pinterest.svg 2x" src="/assets/pinterest.svg"/></a></li></ul></div><div class="footer__banner"><p>© 1962-2024 Bauer Media Group</p><p>Bauer Consumer Media Ltd, Company number 01176085; Bauer Radio Limited, Company number: 1394141; Registered office: Media House, Peterborough Business Park, Lynch Wood, Peterborough PE2 6EA and H Bauer Publishing, Company number: LP003328; Registered office: The Lantern, 75 Hampstead Road, London NW1 2PL</p><p>All registered in England and Wales. 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Even so, the movie’s most valuable player is Danielle Deadwyler. As the grieving Berniece, she distills decades of inherited anguish into each wide-eyed glare; despite the character’s calficied bravado, there’s a softness, too, that sands off the edges. 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There are certainly lively scenes — such as the opening piano-heist flashback, set during Fourth Of July festivities; some pleasingly kinetic musical-hall sequences featuring music legend Erykah Badu; and most significantly, the moments where Berniece and Boy Willie lock horns on how best to pay tribute to their ancestors. Washington wrestles with ideas of legacy and how one should honour one’s forebears. But the film rarely elevates the play’s action in a significant way, the transitions between comedy, drama and horror sometimes feeling clumsy. It’s a shame, because when Washington does flex his budding directorial muscles, _The Piano Lesson_ finds its melody.","items":null,"url":null,"provider":null,"image":null,"title":null,"caption":null,"altText":null,"credits":null,"price":null,"amazonId":null,"amazonAward":null,"description":null,"actionLink":null,"actionText":null,"coverImage":null,"template":null,"images":null},"handles":null,"type":"content"}],"excerpt":"Play-to-film adaptations can often flourish thanks to the little tricks and...","heroImage":[{"__typename":"ImageMeta","id":"229294","altText":"The Piano Lesson","credits":"","caption":"","image":{"__typename":"Image","fileName":"The-Piano-Lesson-HERO.jpg","name":"The-Piano-Lesson-HERO.jpg","width":1600,"height":900,"path":"empire/2024/11"}}],"metaTitle":"The Piano Lesson Review — 'Danielle Deadwyler is the movie's most valuable player'","metaDescription":"Malcolm Washington directs an all-star adaptation of August Wilson's Pittsburgh Cycle play, streaming on Netflix. 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