Criterion Collection (series)

Shoot the Piano Player

DVD Features:

Audio:

• Mono - French
• Subtitles - English - Optional

Additional Release Material:

• Audio Commentary - 1. Annette Insdorf, Peter Brunette - Film Scholars
• Interviews - 1. Charles Aznavour & Marie Dubois - Stars
                   2. Raoul Coutard - Cinematographer
                   3. Suzanne Schiffman - Truffault collaborator
• Bonus Footage - 1. French TV program, ETOILES ET TOILES
                          2. 1965 episode of French TV program, CINEASTES DE NOTRE                              TEMPS
                          3. Dubois' screen test
• Trailer - 1. Theatrical Trailer

Text/Photo Galleries:

• Essays - 1. THE MUSIC OF GEORGES DELERUE, illustrated essay
              2. New Essay by film critic Kent Jones

Description by OLDIES.com:

Francois Truffaut is drunk on the possibilities of cinema in this, his most playful film. Part thriller, part comedy, part tragedy, Shoot the Piano Player relates the adventures of mild-mannered piano player Charlie (Charles Aznavour) as he stumbles into the criminal underworld and a whirlwind love affair. Loaded with gags, guns, clowns, and thugs, this razor-sharp homage to the American gangster film is pure nouvelle vague.

Product Description:

A former concert pianist, now the piano player in a seedy Parisian bar, is surrouned by gansters and hoodlums. He is befriended by a woman who tries in vain to restore him to his former glory, but his own timidity and inability to act lead to tragic consequences for both.

Plot Synopsis:

Francois Truffaut's second feature is a tender, playful but ultimately tragic story of a man who has never recovered from a past betrayal.
Charlie, once a renowned concert pianist, now plays background music in a run-down bar. A sympathetic waitress there loves him, but Charlie can neither forgive nor forget his former wife's infidelity. His simple life takes a turn for the violent, however, when his brother comes into the bar one day with two gangsters in tow -- gangsters bent on getting even with Charlie for a past offense.

Plot Keywords:

Classic | Drama | Essential Cinema | New Wave (Film) | Organized Crime | Psychodrama | Recommended | Suspense | Theatrical Release

Production Notes:

• The print used for the Home Vision Cinema VHS version is from the Janus Collection. It is fully restored, with new translation and subtitles.

Cast and Crew: