Shine (film)
Template:Short description Template:For Template:Use Australian English Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox film
Shine is a 1996 Australian biographical psychological drama film directed by Scott Hicks from a screenplay by Jan Sardi, based on the life of David Helfgott, a pianist who suffered a mental breakdown and spent years in institutions. The film stars Armin Mueller-Stahl, Noah Taylor, Geoffrey Rush, Lynn Redgrave, Googie Withers, Sonia Todd and John Gielgud.
Shine had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on January 21, 1996, followed by a theatrical release in Australia on August 15. At the 69th Academy Awards, the film was nominated for seven awards including Best Picture, with Rush winning Best Actor.
Plot
[edit]A man wanders through a heavy rainstorm, finding his way into a nearby restaurant. The restaurant's employees try to determine if he needs help. Despite his manic mode of speech being difficult to understand, a waitress, Sylvia, learns that his name is David Helfgott and that he is staying at a local hotel. Sylvia returns him to the hotel, and despite his attempts to impress her with his musical knowledge and ownership of various musical scores, she leaves.
As a child, David is growing up in suburban Adelaide, South Australia, and competing in the musical competition of a local Eisteddfod. Helfgott has been taught to play by his father, Peter, who is obsessed with winning and has no tolerance for imperfection, dishonour and disobedience. While playing at the Eisteddfod, David is noticed by Mr. Rosen, a local piano teacher who, after initial resistance from Peter, takes over David's musical instruction.
As a teenager, David wins the state musical championship and is invited by concert violinist Isaac Stern to study in the United States. Plans are made to raise money to send David off to America. Initially, his family is supportive, but then Peter forbids David to leave, thinking his absence would destroy the family. Peter begins physically and mentally abusing David, which upsets the rest of the family.
Crushed, David continues to study and befriends local novelist and co-founder of the Communist Party of Australia, Katharine Susannah Prichard. David is eventually offered a scholarship to the Royal College of Music in London. This time, David is able to break away from his father with the encouragement of Katharine. However, his father issues an ultimatum, effectively banishing David and saying that David will never return home and never be anybody's son.
In London, David studies under Dr. Cecil Parkes and enters a music competition, choosing to play Sergei Rachmaninoff's demanding 3rd Piano Concerto, a piece he had attempted to learn as a young child to make his father proud.
As David practices, he shows signs of mental stress. David wins the competition, but suffers a mental breakdown and is admitted to a psychiatric hospital where he receives electroshock therapy. David recovers to the point where he is able to return to Adelaide. However, his attempts to reconcile with his father are rebuffed due to the latter's belief that David had abandoned his family. This causes David to relapse and he is readmitted to a mental institution.
Years later, a volunteer at the institution recognises David and knows of his musical talent. The woman takes him home but discovers that he is difficult to control, unintentionally destructive, and needs more care than she can offer. As time passes, David has difficulty adjusting to life in broader society again, and often leaves the hotel to stimulate his interests.
The next day, David returns to the restaurant where the patrons are astounded by his skill at the piano. One of the owners befriends David and looks after him. In return, David plays at the restaurant. Through the owner, David is introduced to an employee named Gillian. David and Gillian soon fall in love and marry. With Gillian's help and support, David is able to come to terms with his father's death and to stage a well-received comeback concert, presaging his return to professional music.
Cast
[edit]
Production
[edit]Scott Hicks decided to make a film about David Helfgott after seeing him perform in Adelaide in 1985. It took a year for Hicks to persuade Helfgott and his wife Gillian, persevering "because he was so inspired by the pianist’s story."<ref name=":0">Template:Cite web</ref>
Hicks brought on friend and colleague John MacGregor to help with research and interviewing Helfgott’s friends, family, and teachers. Jan Sardi, who had been a script editor on Hicks’ previous feature, Sebastian and the Sparrow, was also brought on to work on the final draft of the script, which had materialized by the early 1990s.<ref name=":0" /> During the scripting stage, Ronin Films signed on as the Australasian distributor for the film.<ref name=":0" />
Hicks met with Geoffrey Rush in 1992, having been familiar with his work in Adelaide theatre. "He was mesmerising on stage and he had the physiognomy, and physiology and the hands to play David," said Hicks.<ref name=":0" /> However, Hicks faced resistance from investors in his decision to cast Rush, who was then a theatre actor with no major projects to his name.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> A crucial deal in the film getting made was Pandora Cinema’s acquisition of the international and U.S. distribution rights. "The difference there was the person we were dealing with had seen Geoffrey Rush on stage in Sydney and so knew what I was talking about when I said this actor is extraordinary," Hicks said.<ref name=":0" />
Geoffrey Rush resumed piano lessons—suspended when he was 14—in order not to require a hand double.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Release
[edit]Shine grossed $35,892,330 in the United States and Canada. The film also grossed $10,187,418 at the box office in Australia.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Home media
[edit]Roadshow Entertainment released the film on VHS on 4 July 1997, and on DVD on 18 November 1997. Umbrella Entertainment released the film on the 20th anniversary DVD on 5 May 2015.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Reception
[edit]Shine was met with acclaim from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, it holds a 91% approval rating based on 44 reviews, with an average rating of 8/10. The critical consensus states, "featuring a strong performance from Geoffrey Rush, Shine succeeds in telling a compelling, inspirational story without resorting to cheap sentimentality".<ref>Template:Rotten-tomatoes</ref> On Metacritic, the film holds an 87 rating out of a possible 100 from 27 critic reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".<ref>Template:Metacritic film</ref> Critic Roger Ebert rated the film four out of four stars, stating "There has been much talk in 1996 about films whose filmmakers claim they were based on true stories but were kidding (Fargo), and films whose filmmakers claimed they were based on true stories but might have been lying (Sleepers). Here is a movie that is based on the truth beneath a true story."<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Accolades
[edit]Soundtrack
[edit]- "With a Girl Like You" (Reg Presley) – The Troggs
- "Why Do They Doubt Our Love" written & perf by Johnny O'Keefe
- Polonaise in A flat major, Op. 53 (Frédéric Chopin) – Ricky Edwards
- "Fast zu Ernst" – Scenes from Childhood, Op. 15 (Robert Schumann) – Wilhelm Kempff
- La Campanella (Franz Liszt) – David Helfgott
- Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 in C sharp minor (Liszt) – David Helfgott
- "The Flight of the Bumble Bee" (Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov) – David Helfgott
- Gloria, RV 589 (Antonio Vivaldi)
- "Un sospiro" (Liszt) – David Helfgott
- "Nulla in mundo pax sincera" Vivaldi – Jane Edwards (vocals), Geoffrey Lancaster (harpsichord), Gerald Keuneman (cello)
- "Daisy Bell" (Harry Dacre) – Ricky Edwards
- "Funiculi, Funicula" (Luigi Denza)
- Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor, Op. 30 (Sergei Rachmaninoff) – David Helfgott
- Prelude in C sharp minor, Op. 3, No. 2 (Rachmaninoff) – David Helfgott
- Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125 (Ludwig van Beethoven)
- Sonata No. 23 in F minor, "Appassionata", Op. 57 (Beethoven) – Ricky Edwards
- Prelude in D flat major, "Raindrop", Op. 28, No. 15 (Chopin)
Charts
[edit]| Chart (1996) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (ARIA Charts)<ref name="ARIA">Template:Cite Ryan</ref> | 14 |
Certifications
[edit]Template:Certification Table Top Template:Certification Table Entry Template:Certification Table Bottom
Historical accuracy
[edit]Some family members have stated that certain events and relationships in David Helfgott's life are portrayed inaccurately in the film. Helfgott's sister Margaret Helfgott, in her book Out of Tune,<ref>Margaret Helfgott and Tom Gross, Out of Tune: David Helfgott and the Myth of Shine, Template:ISBN, pub. Warner Books (1998)</ref> states that Helfgott's father Peter Helfgott was a loving husband, over-lenient parent and not the abusive tyrant portrayed in Shine. She states that Peter Helfgott's decision to prevent David from going overseas at the age of 14 was a reasonable judgment that he was not ready for such independence.<ref name="dutton">Template:Cite web</ref>
Margaret and Les Helfgott (David's brother) have stated that "there was no estrangement from members of David's family following his return to Australia. On the contrary, he moved straight back into the family home, and was cared for by our family. Dad was not 'overbearing', and his main objection to David's going abroad was his concern for his son's welfare."<ref>Illario Colli, Limelight, August 2013. Rise and shine with David Helfgott. Retrieved 2 April 2018</ref>
Les Helgott has described the portrayal of their father both in Shine and in Gillian Helfgott's biography as "all outright lies". David Helfgott's first wife Clare Papp has also said that Peter Helfgott was "quite badly maligned" in the film.<ref>Richard Jinman, "Sound and Fury", Sydney Morning Herald, 10 May 1997, News Review, p. 37</ref> Helfgott's mother said the film haunted her and that she felt "an evil had been done".<ref name="dutton" />
Scott Hicks has defended the authenticity of the movie's portrayal of Helfgott's childhood and suggested that David's other siblings, Susie and Les, were at odds with Margaret's claims and were happy with the movie.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> John Macgregor—who was involved in the research and wrote an early treatment for Shine—claimed that the portrayal of the Helfgotts' father was supported not only by David but (with the exception of Margaret) by every family member and family friend he and Scott Hicks interviewed, as well as by every interviewee who had a professional or musical connection with David throughout his early life.<ref>Macgregor, John. "Working on the Helfgott film script". The Australian, 22 November 1996.</ref>
Pianistic ability
[edit]The New Zealand philosopher Denis Dutton claims that the film grossly exaggerates Helfgott's pianistic ability, drawing public attention away from pianists who are more talented and disciplined.<ref name=dutton/>
See also
[edit]Notes
[edit]References
[edit]External links
[edit]- Pages with broken file links
- 1996 films
- 1996 drama films
- 1996 independent films
- 1996 musical films
- 1990s Australian films
- 1990s biographical drama films
- 1990s English-language films
- 1990s musical drama films
- 1990s psychological drama films
- Australian biographical drama films
- Australian independent films
- Australian musical drama films
- Australian psychological drama films
- BAFTA winners (films)
- Biographical films about Jewish people
- Biographical films about pianists
- English-language biographical drama films
- English-language independent films
- English-language musical drama films
- Films about bipolar disorder
- Films about classical music and musicians
- Films about father–son relationships
- Films directed by Scott Hicks
- Films featuring a Best Actor Academy Award–winning performance
- Films featuring a Best Drama Actor Golden Globe winning performance
- Films produced by Jane Scott
- Films scored by David Hirschfelder
- Films set in the 20th century
- Films set in the 1950s
- Films set in the 1960s
- Films set in the 1970s
- Films set in the 1980s
- Films set in London
- Films set in Western Australia
- Roadshow Entertainment films
- Satellite Award–winning films
- Toronto International Film Festival People's Choice Award winners