The last Note - Sinfonie des Lebens

Coda centers itself on the coda of fictional pianist, Sir Henry Cole. A true Meastro, who has dedicated his life to the art of the classical piano, he is now at the end of his path, and finds himself lost and looking for clarity.

Patrick Stewart brings a stillness and meditative grumpiness to the role and is supported by Katie Holmes as a writer for the New Yorker who finds herself drawn to Cole's enigmatic loss.Giancarlo Espacito (Breaking Bad) is excellent as Cole's agent, as is Christophe Gaugler as the night porter.

This is an actor's film, if you like nuance, thought, pause and Beethoven then this is rewarding. The direction by Claude Lalonde is good, particularly the pacing and framing. But this is Patrick Stewart's film, he takes Louis Gadbout's script, and delivers a beautiful performance.

This is a film about the piano and it's demands, but not in an overdramtic way, it rather questions artistry and what it means to reach the coda. This viewer enjoyed it very much and found the change of tempo a refreshing change.

They don't make movies about classical musicians much nowadays and when they do they have been horror movies. It's refreshing to see something like this. Patrick Stewart looks like a pianist. And Katie Holmes as the journalist interviewing him looks sweet. Nice to see her looking happy in a role instead of the usual morose roles. There is some lovely scenery in Switzerland and an interesting if not overly dramatic story. The score has lots of piano pieces that are played in recitals but not often used in movies including Schumann Schubert Rachmaninov and Scriabin. Some of the time frames are confusing.

Worth a watch.

The actors and acting are good, and in some moments you might feel the sorrow or the sadness or uncomfortableness of the characters, but something is off. It's a calm movie, and music plays on the background most of the time and it's enjoyable, also the scenary is nice, but the timings and the plot seems empty. I had the expectations to get inside the main character, but all I got was only some glimpses, and sentences "I feel like...", without actually presenting what it means for that person to say it, what it really means to lose something, to gain something. It's as if you literally are watching someone without really ever getting into their minds. And I miss the empathy, I couldn't connect, I couldn't even imagine what is means to feel "I feel like...".

I quite frankly am appalled of the low rating of this film. I understand why someone might not enjoy it fully if not in the right mood, but this is a beautiful film, well thought through and excellently acted. Patrick Stewart shows why outside his roles as Picard or the poop emoji he is an excellent actor, but also the masterful melange (I swear not a Gurney Halleck pun) of piano music, intellectual romance, high art, fancy hotel life and beautiful Swiss scenery gives the film the feeling of an art work.

I could tell about the story: that it's about an old famous pianist, that is is about love, that it is about persevering in the face of terrible and senseless loss, but to me all of that was part of the piece, just another element that completes the art of the movie. I think the scene where Stewart's character explains the good part of getting old: your mind and your heart make peace with each other, describes the idea of the film best.

Bottom line: I really wish someone who knows how to play chess would consult in American movie chess scenes, but other than that, the film approached perfection for me. It doesn't lead anywhere, it is a feeling piece, something you need to experience and enjoy. I really hope you do.

This is a beautiful film about music, classical music, in a world on wich pop culture reigns like there will be no tomorrow. Of course, Nieztsche is present since the beginning, without being a philosophical film. German culture is all about, specially German composers, like says Henry Cole (Patrick Stewart) on some point of the film.

What is amazing is the way music is interconnected with the story, how is not only an ambiental music, but a kind of companion and most of the time it gives a clarity to the scenes. Is like a movie inside the movie, but full of sound, full of stories, full of meaning.

This is a film that only could be the way it is: slowly, meditative, almost poetic, against the hurries and rushes from today cultural mainstream. A very beautiful and meaningful film that deserves a better qualification on IMDB, but I guess many of the reviewers doesn't understand the nuances and little twists here and there, and less about classical music, so at least they loss a half of the meaning of the movie when the doesn't get that message. I'm pretty sure that many reviewers doesn't know anything about classical music, so probably they only identifies the first piece of music when are transcurred 24 minutes, and many other pieces were played and telling things they don't understand.

So, this is not a film for people immerse on today's pop culture.