'The Pianist': A Roman Polanski Film Quiz

Answer: Adrien Brody

After starring in this film, Adrien Brody was awarded the Oscar Award in 2003. 'The Pianist' is what made him a famous star and opened up his career to bigger advancements. Mr. Brody starred in other popular movies like 'King Kong', 'Detachment', and 'Midnight in Paris'.

Casting for 'The Pianist' proved no easy task for Roman Polanski, the director. Around 1,400 actors auditioned for the part of Wladyslaw Szpilman but Mr. Polanski was not satisfied with any of them. Joseph Fiennes was originally going to have the part, but due to prior commitments, Mr. Fiennes had to turn down the role. A desperate Roman Polanski met Adrien Brody in Paris, and right away knew that he found his man. Mr. Brody prepared enormously for his role. It was one of the biggest he would ever play. Firstly, Mr. Brody sold his apartment and car. Secondly, he turned off his phone service and gave up watching TV. Thirdly, he went on a strict diet. At the lightest he weighed 130 pounds, concerningly underweight for a man of his build, which was 6 feet, 1 inch. Adrien Brody did all of these things in order to be familiar with the feeling of extreme loss; and he went on the diet in order to look the emancipated part of Wladyslaw Szpilman. After the film was done, Mr. Brody fell into a deep depression. He was never the same after. But we can say he changed for the better. Just look at what he said afterwards: "That was my real awakening and entrance into adulthood, that responsibility, and awareness of my own good fortune that I had taken for granted."

Answer: Chopin

"No one plays Chopin like you do." said Dorota. "I hope that's a compliment." said Wladyslaw. "Of course, I mean it!" said Dorota.

That was part of the conversation Wladyslaw had with Dorota at the beginning of the movie. Wladyslaw Szpilman was well-known in Warsaw for his piano playing. All the pieces he played in the movie were by Frederic Chopin. The songs he played in the restaurant were by Chopin, the pieces he played for Captain Hosenfeld were by Chopin, and the pieces he played for the radio station and the orchestra were by Chopin.

Answer: Warsaw, Poland

The Szpilman family lived in Warsaw like normal until 1940. By normal I mean that they still had their house and didn't have that many restrictions yet. In the month of October, they had to move to the ghetto in Warsaw, where all the Jews were isolated and tormented.

The ghetto was terrible. Decaying bodies and filth lined the streets. There was one scene in the film where Wladyslaw Szpilman had to step over so many bodies on his walk home from work.

Answer: Wilm Hosenfeld

Captain Wilm Hosenfeld found Wladyslaw looking for food in the rubble. His kindly heart and noble morals led him to decide to protect Wladyslaw, as he had protected other Jews and Poles in the past. Captain Hosenfeld was true to his decision and brought Wladyslaw food daily. During their last meeting together, right before the end of the war, Captain Hosenfeld gave Wladyslaw his greatcoat, to shelter him from the bitter winter cold.

The two men never met again, but Wladyslaw Szpilman remained eternally grateful to his German guardian angel.

In his memoirs, Wladyslaw describes Hosenfeld as "the only human being wearing a uniform."

Answer: Inside a violin

Henryk suggested hiding it on the table under a newspaper, Halina suggested under the flowerpot and their Father suggested in the table leg. They couldn't agree on a place, so Regina made a compromise - the money in the violin, (they also had a gold watch to hide) and the watch under the flowerpot.

Answer: Dorota

Dorota is portrayed by Emilia Fox. She and Wladyslaw went on a walk because Dorota loved his playing. She said to him "No-one plays Chopin like you do." On their date, they tried to go to a coffee shop but a sign said "No Jews Allowed". Dorota wasn't Jewish, so she could go in, but as a Jew, Wladyslaw couldn't. Dorota wanted to go in and complain, but Wladyslaw convinced her not to. Dorota then suggested going to the park, and Wladyslaw told her that there were no Jews allowed in the park. Dorota was horrified.

She always sympathized with the Jews, and later in the film, she would save Wladyslaw's life.

Answer: Majorek

After being mistreated by an SS officer, Wladyslaw went to Majorek (Majorek communicated with the non-Jews and smuggled weapons to start the uprising) and asked him to communicate with some non-Jewish friends to help him get out of the ghetto. Majorek said the quote above when Wladyslaw asked him for help.

After making the challenges clear, Majorek agreed to communicate with Wladyslaw's friends, and a few days later, Wladyslaw was free. Well, he had to be in hiding for years but he was free overall.

Answer: True

The Szpilman family was eating dinner together when a Nazi car pulled up. The Nazis went into the neighbor's house when the other family was eating dinner. The Nazis told them to stand up. Everyone but the old man did. The annoyed Nazis just threw him off the balcony and then shot the rest of the family for no reason.

Answer: No

They were gassed at Treblinka. Wladyslaw never heard from any family members ever again, being left to rebuild his life without anybody to help him. He married and had children but he never talked about his wartime experiences to them. His son, Andrzej, read his memoirs (written in 1945) to understand why he had no paternal relations. Even though Wladyslaw knew his son read the memoirs, he still didn't talk about it until a few years before his death.

Answer: A stack of plates

Wladyslaw Szpilman was looking for something to eat in his flat. He tried to reach something on the high shelf and ended up breaking a stack of plates. The mean lady (played by Katarzyna Figura) banged on the door for a while, and then waited for Wladyslaw to come out. Once he was out with his valuables, Wladyslaw tried making up some cover stories for himself, but the lady wouldn't believe any of them.

She demanded to see his identity card. Obviously, Wladyslaw didn't have one, so she yelled at him, causing another neighbor to come out. Wladyslaw pushed the woman aside and made his escape while she yelled at him some more.