This weekend I gave in to all the tugs meme marketing I went to the theater to see a surprise horror-comedy hit M3 gunI generally enjoyed it. The jokes are funny, the jump scares are effective, The robot-centric plot is pretty smart In addition to our fresh new wave Anxiety about artificial intelligence. this isn’t it the worst Also the scariest movie— the bloodstream should remain PG-13 — but the steadily pace-changing tension and references to horror classics work well. It’s not what you’d expect from an off-screen murder, M3gan’s crazed humanoid face, or the pressures of capitalism. It comes fromyou may remember glimpsing it trailer:
To be clear, I don’t think this scene is that instinctively scary for the piano song itself (in the movie, it’s a solid instrumental cover of Martika’s 1989 No. 1 hit). .toy soldiers”), or for the current threat as a whole, a tipping point in the development of M3gan. Instead, I want to back up and focus on something seemingly harmless: hands.
The reason I look at these (mostly normal) robot killer doll hands is because I’m in awe of the fact that they have a pretty sturdy hand position on the piano. As a student of , this is something that always stands out during live concerts, visual recordings, or keystroke performances. hand position structureA fellow pianist of mine recommends cupping your hands into a C to even out the length of your fingers, keeping your knuckles flexed and tight without tensing your arms, and keeping your elbows at the proper level. Thing, you may remember all the lessons about keeping your joints straight when you play. Make new notes, being careful not to flatten your hands against the piano and be careful not to curl them too high or curl up. It’s all about being rigid and dexterous at the same time, keeping your technique sharp and allowing you to play freely. It’s certainly not easy.my own teacher made me do endless drills Czerny and Hannon exercises The goal was to teach correct posture. So this is a lesson I’ve never forgotten, and if the ’88s were any good, chances are I haven’t forgotten that either. Clearly, this is also one of the many lessons internalized by M3gan’s AI.
You may be thinking: so what? But there he says what the M3gan is doing is not typical in the world of cinematic piano canons. In fact, in too many movies, M3 gunwhich actually centers on actors playing the piano — human piano players are terrible, just terrible hand position.As a viewer who hasn’t practiced piano the last few years, who instinctively bends his hand up before punching another set of keys (on a laptop), it confuses me. Yes, I am aware that many actors are not talented musicians without training. scene from BigYes, I read trade publication profiles detailing how the cast members were given A crash course in piano playing in pursuit of award recognitionNo, I don’t think Bill Murray did a good job marmot day-that Rachmaninoff’s sound So Awkward.
Proper hand position is essential, even for basic piano playing. Forget Van Cliburn’s level. Firm, curved, even yet flexible fingers are what bring out the best possible notes from piano notes and melodies. Still, if my movie-watching is any indication, the killer robot puppet shows off techniques far superior in seconds than many human characters do in an entire movie’s running time.
can’t believe it? I am compiling an evidence folder. First, let’s take a look at another beloved movie these days. call me by your namestarring the otherwise talented Timothée Chalamet.
That’s really bad form, my man. Those flat fingers! The constant shaking of hands and arms is an unnecessary and useless waste of physical energy. Supple muscles that show off tense muscles! It’s hard to believe that a fictional character who ostensibly spends so much time playing the piano could have such sloppy fingering, but I’m not an Oscar-nominated actor.
Let’s move on to another performance from Ryan Gosling, another Best Picture nominee with an Oscar nomination. la la landHis technique here is terrible, exactly. I tend to give jazz pianists more leeway.th-Blind and mostly self-taught, but legend of the century Swing the fastest, clearest, most incredible trills and tremolos There is no “proper” technique. However, Ryan Gosling is not his Art Tatum. You can see how stiff his hands are, how forceful his d-pad jumps are, how clumsy his in-the-moment preparations for landing on chords are. In other words, I don’t mean to denigrate the talented Mr. Gosling, who has done some impressive work in the film ( he learned on the job), but his amateurism is a brutal display. He’s not the only jazz guy in recent movies to be offended. soul animated is not great either.But it’s only the latest A Long History of Sloppy Piano Depictions in Animated Films.
Another From The Academy Files: The Controversial Freddie Mercury Biopic bohemian rhapsodyRami Malek’s transformation into the late Queen frontman was undeniably impressive, but it wasn’t reflected in hand position. Now I tend to give rock pianists a lot of leeway too. .hard to believe Fats Domino, jerry lee lewisAlso Mercury himself Had they been bound to the classical craft, it would have had the impact they did. this What is the best actor award?all props to get training You don’t have to force your hands behind the keys like this to play all the immortal Mercury riffs yourself. Neither efficient nor fast. A little change in the style of hitting the code would have made the whole thing a lot easier.
Lest you think this is a trend these days, let me introduce you to the next movie. Casablancai hate to great singer dooley wilson This way: He’s not a pianist himself, and the keys he hears in the movies are dubbed. He could have put in a little more effort in the scenes where his hands are visible instead. swing both hands up and downI’m not sure if I disagree with a YouTube commenter who considers this “the worst fingering in movie history”.
I could go many times.A contempt paid for by no one else 1977 Scott Joplin biopic; of Contradiction of position In a movie that dares to call itself pianoAnd of course screaming cinematic piano moments with great technique from aptly themed movies like: Amadeus, shining, pianistWhen La Leggenda del Pianista Sull’oceanoIt’s not impossible!But this has been the pox of English movies for far too long and was released in January. M3 gunwe are starting in 2023 with many acclaimed actors being beaten by androids. Keep AI out of the music industry if you can’t play to surpass it? I’m very worried about what will happen to the already exhausted creative layer. Convenience with AII have little sympathy for actors who can’t even absorb rudimentary piano lessons.Train that hand, mankind, so that it won’t be attacked by M3 guns all over the world. you.