I’ve always liked Australian actor Geoffrey Rush, there’s never been a movie where he’s disappointed me, and yesterday I saw another movie with him that even surpassed himself, Australian director Scott Hicks’ Shine (1996). This is a biopic about one Australian pianist with a very unusual fate - David Helfgott (adult musician just
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I’ve always liked Australian actor Geoffrey Rush, there’s never been a movie where he’s disappointed me, and yesterday I saw another movie with him that even surpassed himself, Australian director Scott Hicks’ Shine (1996). This is a biopic about one Australian pianist with a very unusual fate - David Helfgott (adult musician just played by Jeffrey Rush). The boy grew up in a Jewish family, his father certainly wanted to raise him an outstanding musician, thus, as if at the same time realizing his unfulfilled dream, the implementation of which was prevented by his father. On the contrary, from the age of five, he teaches the boy to play and takes care of him in every possible way, literally driving his thoughts into his head, even forcing them to repeat. The boy is really very capable, so his training is taken by a well-known teacher there, although initially the father was against it. The father is literally obsessed with Rachmaninov’s extremely difficult to perform third concerto for the orchestra and certainly wants his son to perform it, but the teacher objects to this, believing that the boy is not yet able to do it. David makes progress and is invited to study in America, even a foundation is organized to raise money for this trip, at first his father does not even oppose it, but when it comes time to go, categorically stops this attempt. Time passes, the young man is already 19 years old and this time he is invited to England, to the Royal College of Music, and they offer a scholarship, his father also initially resists, but then David shows persistence and decides to go, although his father threatens him with excommunication from home and family. And that's where he'll finally play this concert, and with great success, but this time it's going to end very badly for him. He has shown some oddities before, and then he has an acute attack, he loses consciousness and falls for several years in a psychiatric hospital, where he is treated with electric shock and is not allowed to the piano, fearing to cause a relapse. After recovering, he returns to Australia, but soon returns to a psychiatric hospital. After some time he comes out of there, by chance gets to one restaurant, where after a while amazes everyone with his piano playing, there he meets Gillian, who has the courage to marry him, and again begins to perform, and very successfully, although his oddities do not go away.
After reading a little about the story that formed the basis of the film, I found out that not everyone was happy with how the director presented it, sometimes thickening the colors, but the film played into the hands of David himself, after the release of the film, his performances became even more successful. Sadly, his wife passed away last year and he lives in Melbourne, now 76. The film does not mention his first short marriage, and he lived with Gillian for 37 years. Jeffrey Rush played this role magnificently, the film and, most of all, Rush himself received numerous nominations and awards.