A film of elegant small moments and complex, bittersweet motivations.
Shine
✭ ✭ ✭ ✭ Read critic reviews
Australia · 1996
Rated PG-13 · 1h 45m
Director Scott Hicks
Starring Geoffrey Rush, Noah Taylor, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Justin Braine
Genre Drama
Add to Watchlist
Please login to add films to your watchlist.
A biographical look at pianist David Helfgott who was driven to a mental breakdown by his teachers and abusive father. Years later he returns to broader society, but can he find success and inspiration through the piano once again?
We hate to say it, but we can't find anywhere to view this film.
What are people saying?
What are critics saying?
Thanks to fine acting and its vividly unconventional protagonist, it pumps fresh blood into a conventional formula.
Washington Post by Desson Thomson
The movie does what any great musician should: It lifts an idea to the heights of ecstasy; it sells its song.
It's a film which aims to persuade us of its truth without props or signposts--and it does so with unforgettable beauty.
TV Guide Magazine by Frank Lovece
Feel-good tone notwithstanding (and creepy to boot), there are nagging riddles about the Helfgott story that the film has neither the nerve nor the sense to tackle.
New York Daily News by Jami Bernard
A sublimely uplifting movie.
Memorable, deeply affecting movie.
Entertainment Weekly by Lisa Schwarzbaum
Shine beams with warmth, sensitivity, and fine taste.
USA Today by Staff [Not Credited]
Shine has a story to reckon with and powerhouse male performances.
Users who liked this film also liked
The Million Dollar Hotel
- ✭
- Germany, United Kingdom, United States • 2000
- Director Wim Wenders
- Cast Mel Gibson, Milla Jovovich, Jeremy Davies, Amanda Plummer, Peter Stormare, Bud Cort
- Genre Drama, Thriller
- Available on Starz, Starz Roku Premium Channel, Starz Amazon Channel, Starz Apple TV Channel, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube, Kanopy, Hoopla
Black Mask
(黑俠)
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- Hong Kong • 1996
- Director Daniel Lee Yan-Kong
- Cast Jet Li, Lau Ching-wan, Karen Mok, Françoise Yip, Patrick Lung Kong, Anthony Wong
- Genre Action
- Available on No streaming locations found.
The Gendarme and the Creatures from Outer Space
(Le Gendarme et les Extra-terrestres)
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- France • 1979
- Director Jean Girault
- Cast Louis de Funès, Michel Galabru, Maurice Risch, Jean-Pierre Rambal, Guy Grosso, Michel Modo
- Genre Comedy, Science Fiction
- Available on No streaming locations found.
Tess
A strong-willed peasant girl’s father sends her to the estate of some local aristocrats.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- United Kingdom, France • 1979
- Director Roman Polanski
- Cast Nastassja Kinski, Peter Firth, Leigh Lawson, John Collin, Sylvia Coleridge, Richard Pearson
- Genre Drama, Romance
- Available on Criterion Channel, Apple TV, Amazon Video
Gods
(Dioses)
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- Peru, Argentina, France • 2008
- Director Josué Méndez
- Cast Maricielo Effio, Sergio Gjurinovic, Edgar Saba, Anahí de Cárdenas, Denisse Dibós
- Genre Drama
- Available on Pluto TV
The Proposition
Captain Stanley gives Charlie Burns 9 days to kill his older psychopathic brother, or else they'll hang his mentally challenged younger brother.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Australia, United Kingdom • 2005
- Director John Hillcoat
- Cast Guy Pearce, Ray Winstone, Emily Watson, Danny Huston, David Wenham, John Hurt
- Genre Action, Adventure, Crime, Drama, Thriller, Western
- Available on Amazon Prime Video, fuboTV, Peacock Premium, Peacock Premium Plus, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Apple TV, Amazon Video, Microsoft Store, Crackle, Tubi TV, The Roku Channel, Pluto TV, VUDU Free, Freevee, Kanopy, Plex, Plex Channel
Priest
In a world of rituals, in a place of secrets, a man must choose between keeping the faith and exposing the truth.
- ✭ ✭
- United Kingdom • 1995
- Director Antonia Bird
- Cast Linus Roache, Tom Wilkinson, Robert Carlyle, Cathy Tyson, Lesley Sharp, Robert Pugh
- Genre Drama, Romance
- Available on Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Amazon Video, Freevee
The Right of the Weakest
(La Raison du plus faible)
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- Belgium, France • 2006
- Director Lucas Belvaux
- Cast Lucas Belvaux, Claude Semal, Patrick Descamps, Natacha Régnier, Gilbert Melki, Éric Caravaca
- Genre Thriller, Drama
- Available on No streaming locations found.
The French Minister
(Quai d'Orsay)
A speechwriter for France’s Minister of Foreign Affairs must navigate the treacherous waters of the Quai d'Orsay, the ministry's home.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- France • 2013
- Director Bertrand Tavernier
- Cast Thierry Lhermitte, Raphaël Personnaz, Niels Arestrup, Bruno Raffaelli, Julie Gayet, Anaïs Demoustier
- Genre Comedy
- Available on Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Amazon Video, YouTube, Kanopy
What a beautiful surprise
(Ma che bella sorpresa)
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- Italy • 2015
- Director Alessandro Genovesi
- Cast Claudio Bisio, Frank Matano, Valentina Lodovini, Chiara Baschetti, Renato Pozzetto, Ornella Vanoni
- Genre Comedy
- Available on No streaming locations found.
Embrace of the Serpent
(El abrazo de la serpiente)
A poetic and haunting journey into a lost world.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Colombia, Venezuela, Argentina • 2015
- Director Ciro Guerra
- Cast Nilbio Torres, Antonio Bolivar, Brionne Davis, Jan Bijvoet, Luigi Sciamanna, Nicolás Cancino
- Genre Adventure, Drama
- Available on Fandor Amazon Channel, OVID, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, Microsoft Store, YouTube, Tubi TV, Kanopy, Plex, Plex Channel