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A family heirloom can mean different things to different people. To some, it has sentimental value—while, to others, it’s worth nothing more than the price someone’s willing to pay for it. And in The Piano Lesson, a brother and sister fight over the value of their own family’s heirloom.
The Piano Lesson explores the lives of generations of the Charles family as siblings Berniece (Danielle Deadwyler) and Boy Willie (John David Washington) argue over what they should do about their family’s heirloom: a piano that’s been carved with images of their ancestors. Boy Willie arrives at the home of his uncle Doaker (Samuel L. Jackson) determined to sell the piano to help buy the land that their enslaved ancestors once worked. But Berniece is determined to hold on to their memories and honor their sacrifices by keeping the piano.
The latest adaptation of a play written by August Wilson (Fences, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom) blends family drama with touches of humor and a surprisingly heavy dose of the supernatural to explore a family’s journey from slavery to freedom—while holding on to the memory of those who came before them.
As the siblings continue to bicker about the future of the family’s piano, viewers learn more about the instrument’s history—about the great price that it once cost the Charles family and the story behind its carvings. And it’s all tied in to a storyline involving the recently-deceased landowner, Mr. Sutter, whose ghost Berniece and her daughter claim to have seen haunting their home. It’s definitely an unexpected film—taking turns in directions that you won’t see coming—and, admittedly, its theatrical roots make the adaptation feel somewhat rambling and drawn-out. But it still tells a captivating story.
What stands out the most about this film, however, is its cast. Much of the cast (including Washington and Jackson) also starred together in the play’s Broadway production, and that easygoing chemistry comes through in the adaptation as well. And though Danielle Deadwyler wasn’t part of the Broadway cast, she gives a commanding performance as Berniece—adding weight and emotion to an already strong ensemble.
Though its theatrical origins don’t convert flawlessly for the screen—and viewers may struggle with the parts that sometimes feel slow or uneven—the talented cast of The Piano Lesson still makes it a moving story about one family’s fight to live their own lives after generations of slavery.
You can join the debate when The Piano Lesson arrives on Netflix on November 22, 2024.
Listen to the review on Reel Discovery:
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