Margolis H. (ed.) Jane Campion's The Piano

Cambridge University Press, 2000. — 204 p.Jane Campion's The Piano is one of the most unusual love stories in the history of cinema. The tale of a nineteenth-century arranged marriage between an unwed mother and a settler in colonial New Zealand, the film swept the world upon its release, winning awards for its performances, script, and direction, including prestigious Cannes and Academy Award prizes. Rejecting stereotypes of the romance genre, it poses a new set of questions about relationships between men and women, and marriage in particular, as well as issues related to colonialism and property ownership.
This volume examines The Piano from a variety of critical perspectives. In six essays, an international team of scholars examine topics such as the controversial representation of Maori, the use of music in the film, the portrayal of the mother-daughter relationship, and the significance of the film in terms of international cinema, the culture of New Zealand, and the work of Jane Campion.Introduction. "A Strange Heritage": From Colonization to Transformation? (by Harriet Margolis).
Music in The Piano (by Claudia Gorbman).
The Last Patriarch (by Ann Hardy).
The Piano, the Animus, and Colonial Experience (by John Izod).
Ebony and Ivory: Constructions of Maori in The Piano (by Leonie Pihama).
Foreign Tunes? Gender and Nationality in Four Countries' Reception of The Piano (by Stephen Crofts).
Filmography.
Reviews of The Piano.
Select Bibliography.