The streaming wars have been in full effect for years, with new streaming content arriving every week as various services compete for supremacy. Those with a Netflix subscription will soon be treated to the film adaptation of August Wilson’s The Piano Lesson. And while it’s not a perfect movie, I found it to be a moving meditation on generation trauma.
Denzel Washington is a producer on The Piano Lesson, and famously originated the role of Boy Willie Charles. In the film that role is being played by his son John David Washington, and I had the chance to see an early screening at the Hamptons International Film Festival. I thought that the film’s pacing and runtime were a detriment, but was still taken by the way Malcolm Washington’s film portrayed the complexity of generational trauma.
In recent years there’s been much more of a conversation about the way that trauma can be passed down from parent to child, or even generations down the line of one’s family tree. And folks have particularly been getting educated on the way racism and atrocities like slavery have emotionally affected the Black community now.
The Piano Lesson is set in 1936, characters like Boy Willie and Berniece are even closer to their ancestors that were slaves. The stunning carvings on their heirloom piano literally bare the faces of his family’s faces and stories. And their debate about whether or not to sell the piano for a profit offers two very different perspectives on that type of generational grief. Is it better to honor the past even if its painful, or to move forward and upward?
The way the supernatural element of the story is woven into the film’s more grounded central question also helps to really tell this story. This leads up to a finale that allows the entire narrative to pay off in a big way.
All that being said, I don’t think that The Piano Lesson is a perfect film. The movie’s pacing and runtime bogged it down at points, which is no doubt because it’s an adaptation of a full stage play. Both plays and movie musicals often have this issue with trying to fit a 3-hour play into the runtime of a film. And that’s no doubt why Wicked is getting a pair of movies.
It remains to be seen if subscribers rank The Piano Lesson as one of the best Netflix movies in November. But I have to assume that it’ll be a similarly moving experience for plenty of audiences. August Wilson is one of the greatest American playwrights of all time for a reason, and only time will tell how many people around the world watch the film.
The Piano Lesson hits Netflix on November 22nd. For now, check the 2025 movie release dates to plan your movie experiences for the New Year.