The Pianist
Movie Quote Quiz

Feather Woman: Excuse me, have you seen my husband, Izaak Szerman? A tall, a tall handsome man, with a little grey beard. No? Oh, excuse me. Goodbye, sleep well. But if you see him, write to me, yes? Izaak Szerman.

Wladyslaw Szpilman: They bombed us, we're off the air.
Henryk Szpilman: Warsaw's not the only radio station.

Regina: Quiet please. Quiet. Order, order! Please.
Halina: She's a lawyer, she likes order.
Regina: Listen, just listen. The watch we put under the flower pots and the money we stuff in the violin.
Father: Will I still be able to play?
Wladyslaw Szpilman: Well... you'll find out.

Radio announcer: Poland is no longer alone.

Dorota: I'll get a doctor.
Dorota's Husband: You can't, it's too dangerous.
Dorota: I'll get Doctor Laczek, we can trust him.
Dorota's Husband: Dorota, don't be ridiculous, he's a pediatrician.
Dorota: He's still a doctor.

Henryk Szpilman: Ah, more Jewish police. You mean you want me to beat up Jews and catch the Gestapo spirit? I see.

Man Waiting to Cross: And the Germans claim to be intelligent! You know what I think, I think they are totally stupid. I have a family to feed. I spend half my time here, waiting for them to let us through. Why do they think I come here, to listen to the music?

Wladyslaw Szpilman: It's an official decree, no Jews allowed in the parks.
Dorota: What, are you joking?
Wladyslaw Szpilman: No, I'm not. I would suggest we sit down on a bench, but that's also an official decree, no Jews allowed on benches.
Dorota: This is absurd.
Wladyslaw Szpilman: So, we should just stand here and talk, I don't think we're not allowed to do that.

Father: Well, to tell you the truth, I thought it would be worse.

Dorota: I nagged Jurek for weeks and weeks, and at last he gave in and said, "Allright, come with me tomorrow." So I came and... they bombed the station.
Wladyslaw Szpilman: Meeting you like that was absolutely wonderful.
Dorota: Really?
Wladyslaw Szpilman: Yes. It was... it was unforgettable.

Wailing Woman: Why did I do it? Why did I do it? Why did I do it?
Halina: She's getting on my nerves. What did she do, for God's sake?
Father: She smothered her baby.

Mr. Lipa: 2,000 and my advice is to take it. What will you do when you're hungry? Eat the piano?

Man Waiting to Cross: A bridge, a shmidge.

Henryk Szpilman: I told her not to worry, you had your papers on you. If you'd been hit by a bomb, they'd have known where to take you.

Factual error: An old man appears with children following him. This is supposed to be pedagogue Janusz Korczak. It appeared as if he was just wearing a suit and a Jewish arm band. In the Warsaw Ghetto, Mr. Korczak never wore an arm band and wore his WWI Polish Army Uniform, both as acts of defiance. He was beaten and almost put to death (he had connections) for not wearing an arm band so having one on in the movie is inaccurate.

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Trivia: Adrien Brody could not play the piano. The film producers hired four professional piano teachers to teach him the piece from scratch.

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Question: I want to know how the scene with the Nazis dumping the man in the wheelchair off the balcony was done. How did the man/stuntman manage to survive this fall?

ChitownGal

Chosen answer: In the scene, we see the old man being lifted in his wheelchair. Then, there is a cut-away to the family watching from across the street. Then we see someone being dumped from the chair and falling, but we never see him hit the ground. My guess from watching the scene is that the stunt person fell into a cushion which was removed in post-production. Generally, when confronted with a question such as this, I like to refer it to someone who would be in the know - in this case, the stunt team on the film. I looked up that team on IMDb.com, and searched for the individuals on Facebook. Of the twenty or so stunt people and coordinators, I could only find three with unique profiles that made me think I might have the correct individuals: Janusz Kadlubowski, Stella Kuczynska and Zbigniew Modej. I posed your question to them. However, given that I am not connected on Facebook to any of them, I have no idea if or when they would see my message and respond. I will update this answer if I receive further information.

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