The Piano Teacher

In this true masterpiece of a film, made even more memorable by the collaboration between director Haneke and Isabelle Huppert, emotional detachment, the oppression of impulse and the painful realization of another's need play off each other, in an unforgettable artistic and revelatory event.

Synopsis

A middle-aged piano teacher works at a Vienna conservatory and lives with her cantankerous, elderly mother; her father resided in psychiatric asylums for years. The teacher is deeply solitary and her sexual oppression is expressed through sadomasochistic and voyeuristic behaviors, as well as self-harm. When a younger student expresses interest in her, the teacher consents, but the relationship soon goes to extremes.