We are so lucky that Denzel Washington has decided to produce film versions of August Wilson's plays. He knocked it out of the park with his own take on Fences and then with George C. Wolfe's exquisite adaptation of Ma Rainey's Black Bottom. Now we have a truly family affair. Denzel produced The Piano Lesson which stars his one son John David and is directed by his other son Malcolm. And it lives up to the legacy of this film cycle paying very respectful tribute to Wilson's work.
The Piano Lesson is itself a very on the nose play (even the title's double meaning is obvious) but it is also very powerful. It's even a bit of a ghost story. That latter part is something the film leans into, embracing the ghosts of the past as fairly literal and not just symbolic. The director Washington films his story beautifully giving the film (which follows the stage-play fairly closely if I am not mistaken) a cinematic feel despite existing mostly in one space. For a debut film, this is a fairly impressive work.
The cast is a big part of what makes this work. This feels like an ensemble in the truest sense with no one sticking out despite the star power of Jackson, the leading man looks of Washington, or the dreamy beef cake of Fisher. The cast is one completely whole who work together to bring this family and their history to life vibrantly.
The Piano Lesson will give you so much to ruminate over, exploring ideas of legacy and how our history informs our past. But it is also just an entertaining two hours of cinema that shows just how talented this family is. And I hope Washington will keep producing more films based on Wilson's Century Cycle, a series which has so much to offer.
The Piano Lesson
Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, John David Washington, Danielle Deadwyler, Ray Fisher, Michael Potts, Erykah Badu, Skylar Aleece Smith, Corey Hawkins
Director: Malcolm Washington
Writers: Virgil Williams, Malcolm Washington
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