The Competition (1980)

The movie is solely worth watching for the scene at the end where Heidi totally destroys Paul and when he gets pissed off she looks at him and says, "Well, you knew I could play, right?" iconic.

I was about to start this review by pointing out that I think 'The Competition' is merely an example of 'typical Hollywood schmaltz, but that would be unfair. For one thing, it's not 'typical'. There, I've got that out of the way.Directed by once only director Joel Oliansky. it stars Richard Dreyfuss and Amy Irving as a pair of duelling pianists who are trying to win the piano competition of the title. Dreyfuss is a mercurial genius in two minds whether to persist with his career, as other pianists are receiving the recognition he feels he deserves. For this reason he is losing his perseverance to carry on and feels that he should abandon his nomadic life of travelling around the country competing in these types of events and just 'get a life' like everyone else. Irving is the conscientious worker with a dedicated teacher: with a little luck and perseverance she can be a winner and doesn't need the brashness of Dreyfuss to succeed. Irving and Dreyfuss are meant to be competing with each other, but what do they do? Yep, you guessed it. Questions arise as to who is the most dedicated, which one of them deserves a career in classical music, and how fate somehow has a role in all our lives - more than we are prepared to admit.The piano performances as captured on film are better than most. The two actors trained to mimic at least the appearance of playing at concert level. Their piano performances were actually recorded by two prodigies of that era, Daniel Pollack and Chester B. Swiatkowski, and then dubbed later on. Aside from this competent presentation of piano music, penned by the great classical composers and performed with an accuracy that Hollywood is not renowned for, 'The Competition' is unfortunately, a little bit dull. Sam Wanamaker has a small but entertaining role as a temperamental conductor who takes no nonsense from his students in the competition. The respective parents of the protagonists for example, are stock characters and are brought into the story for a bit of interest but their impact is minimal. There are a few interesting minor characters who round out the competitors but they have minimal screen time. One sub-plot involves an eastern bloc competitor defecting to the west but it really is of less interest than the main plot involving whether Irving and Dreyfuss can overcome their differences and have a romantic relationship away from their individual dedication to the piano.The principal thespians Amy Irving and Richard Dreyfuss have on-screen rapport and work well with each other. But somehow they spend too much time either in competition, or going out on dates and wondering if this means whether they're having a relationship or not. Amy Irving was at one stage married to Stephen Spielberg. She was an extremely talented young actress, but her career seemed not to go anywhere, appearing to fall out of favour with the public. Richard Dreyfuss subsequently had a hiatus due to personal problems but had the talent to return and carry on his successful career. My perennial favourite Lee Remick has a featured role as Irving's wise and demanding piano teacher and she looks beautiful and is a major asset to the project. Classical music is rarely used as the backdrop for a story in a Hollywood film and I suppose we should at least be grateful to 'The Competition' for that but otherwise in most other respects it is the type of conventional entertainment we have come to expect from Hollywood 'The Competition' just scrapes by with a pass mark from me because of the music, and if it tweaks your interest in the subject, become a member of Naxos and you can get your classical music education from there.

Amy Irving, Richard Dreyfuss, Lee Remick, and Sam Wanamaker star in "The Competition," a 1980 film, written and directed by Joel Oliansky. The story concerns pianists gathering for the semifinals of a competition in San Francisco. Paul Dietrich (Dreyfuss) has one last shot at a career as a pianist, given his age, and the fact that his parents have been supporting him, and his dad is in bad shape. Heidi (Irving) knew Paul from a summer program. She studies with a top teacher, Greta Vandeman (Remick) and is there basically to see how far she can go. Despite Paul's attempts to put off the smitten Heidi, he finally admits his feelings, and the two fall in love. Greta isn't happy - she's afraid Heidi is going to lose her competitive edge and take a back seat so that Paul can win.This very good movie is just about overshadowed by the brilliant music and the magnificent fingerings and look of the actors as they're playing. They obviously had the benefit of great coaching.The film gives a realistic look at the tension of competitions, and the various states of mind that people have going into them. For Paul, it's his last shot; the Joseph Cali character wants to use it as a steppingstone to Vegas and a Liberace-type act; Heidi has nothing to lose. There is a lot of psychoanalysis throughout the film, which some may find off-putting. It does go on.Amy Irving is an excellent actress, and she does a beautiful job here. Dreyfuss is also excellent, coming off as desperate, arrogant, and sad. Lee Remick is the ultimate piano teacher who knows too well the pitfalls of being a woman, particularly a woman in love.If you like classical piano, don't miss "The Competition."

Where is the DVD of this Movie? Why Haven't They Made A DVD Of This Great Movie? I want to Own a DVD of this GREAT Movie! Richard Dreyfuff & Amy Irving give Excellent Performances in this Movie! The Movie Plot is Very Romantic & Yet Very Competitive! It is a Very Interesting Combination that works well together! The Music in this Movie is Fantastic! Not all of Us get a chance to listen to this kind of Classical Music. This is a Good way for Us to get to listen to these Compositions & enjoy some of the Classics! My VHS is Completely Worn Out....I Need the DVD of This Movie... to Watch when ever I would like too! Mystic Wolf