Shine

"A true story of the mystery of music and the miracle of love"

1996 1h 45m EN

👍

7.4

SOLID

🔥

91%

CERTIFIED FRESH

💯

METACRITIC

⭐

7.6

IMDB

★7.4TMDB · 731🍅91%Rotten Tomatoes●87Metacritic★7.6IMDB · 57,353

Drama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Pianist David Helfgott, driven by his father and teachers, has a breakdown. Years later he returns to the piano, to popular if not critical acclaim.

“A true story of the mystery of music and the miracle of love”

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Cast

Geoffrey Rush
David Helfgott - Adult
Noah Taylor
David Helfgott - Adolescent
Armin Mueller-Stahl
Peter
Lynn Redgrave
Gillian
Googie Withers
Katharine Susannah Prichard
Sonia Todd
Sylvia
Nicholas Bell
Ben Rosen
John Gielgud
Cecil Parkes

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Scott Hicks
Writers: Scott Hicks, Jan Sardi
Languages: English, Yiddish
Countries: Australia, United Kingdom

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Made its money back 6.5× over at the box office.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

30 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, Yiddish.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 2 countries: Australia, United Kingdom.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Scott Hicks, shot by Geoffrey Simpson. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by David Hirschfelder. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Pip Karmel shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Geoffrey Rush and Noah Taylor and Armin Mueller-Stahl carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Scott Hicks directs. Geoffrey Simpson behind the camera. David Hirschfelder scores. Pip Karmel cuts. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in Australia, United Kingdom. Dialogue in English, Yiddish.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Made its money back 6.5× over at the box office.
230 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, Yiddish.
4International production across 2 countries: Australia, United Kingdom.
5Directed by Scott Hicks, shot by Geoffrey Simpson. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Original score by David Hirschfelder. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
7Editor Pip Karmel shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
8Geoffrey Rush and Noah Taylor and Armin Mueller-Stahl carry the top of the cast.
9Marketing tagline: "A true story of the mystery of music and the miracle of love".
10IMDB entry: tt0117631 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
11Classified under 12 themes, including "australia", "letter", "child prodigy", "biography".

The technical file

Cinematography: Geoffrey Simpson
Original score: David Hirschfelder
Editing: Pip Karmel
Production design: Vicki Niehus
Costume design: Louise Wakefield
Runtime: 105 min · 1h 45m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $5,500,000
Box office: $35,892,330
Return: 653% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG-13
IMDB: Shine (1996)
Rotten Tomatoes: 91% 🍅 Fresh
Metacritic: 87/100
IMDB rating: 7.6/10 · 57,353 votes
MPAA: PG-13

Awards

Won 1 Oscar. 46 wins & 52 nominations total

AACTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role
AACTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role
AACTA Award for Best Film
National Board of Review: Top Ten Films
AACTA Award for Best Sound
AACTA Award for Best Original Screenplay
AACTA Award for Best Original Music Score
AACTA Award for Best Editing
AACTA Award for Best Cinematography
National Board of Review Award for Best Film

Individual records documented via Wikidata; the summary above may count more.

Also by

Scott Hicks

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

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Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

Filipe Manuel Neto2023-05-20
★ 10/10
Perhaps one of the most striking films in the work of Geoffrey Rush, and one of the toughest and most sincere portrayals of brilliance that cinema has seen to date. Even though I'm a pretty serious music lover, and I've always loved classical music, I didn't know David Helfgott until I saw this film. The musical universe is full of prodigies who reveal talent since childhood. Mozart is perhaps the most famous example of this. However, it is one of those subjects that I feel we tend to overestimate, because you can also find prodigious children in other areas of knowledge, including the Human Sciences. It is, however, curious that we have so few examples of musical geniuses with solid and successful careers. Most pianists and musical performers, no matter how talented they are, depend more on their self-discipline and intensive training than on their basic talent. Helfgott, according to this film, had a difficult childhood, at the hands of an overbearing father, who basically pushed him towards a music career, realizing his talent. The problem is that the situation demanded a lot from the young genius, causing him to develop schizophrenia and several other mental problems. With serious speech problems (he stutters and talks compulsively), he is also incapable of maintaining a conventional relationship with the people around him. Of course, in the long run, we'll see how he gets around the difficulties and achieves consecration. Helfgott is played by several actors, but it is Geoffrey Rush who shines in the role. The actor was able, in this film, to cross the doors of international cinema thanks to one of the most complete and immersive portrayals of genius in cinema. Appearing on stage when the film is already halfway through, he dominates the entire work, imposing himself, demanding our attention, deserving applause. Even if the film no longer had any reason to merit – it does! – seeing the performance of this British actor would always be more than enough reason to justify a trip to the cinema. However, he is not alone: the film also gives us an excellent interpretation of Armin Mueller-Stahl in the role of the father, demanding and domineering. Noah Taylor, who gives life to the character of Helfgott in his youth, also leaves us with a job well done and of value. The script and direction also deserve a note of praise. Scott Hicks, who performs both tasks, has managed to create a film that is deeply dramatic, intense, capable of moving and making us think, without making the mistake of making it overly melodramatic or presenting things that are too dark and pessimistic. The film is deeply emotional, it even has several intense, almost painful scenes, but it is never a heavy film. In addition, the film makes a very clever use of cinematography and the soundtrack to lighten or thicken the entire environment in which the action takes place. In addition to the pieces by Rachmaninoff – a piano genius, but who finds equivalents in composers such as Chopin, Scriabin or Liszt, author of the naive but terribly demanding “La Campanella”, for me the most difficult solo piano – the film has a vast repertoire of classical pieces skillfully inserted into the soundtrack. It's worth seeing how they are used in the film.

Production companies