Centenary Film Society- Vitus 2/26/07

I enjoyed this movie very much. It was an interesting look into the life of Vitus the 6 year old piano prodigy. Vitus had a lot of pressure thrust upon him at an early age. I believe he was able to take him self away from the world in order to stay grounded. His parents especially his mother was very controlling of his talent. His mother wanted him to practice every hour of the day and spend all his time playing the piano. Vitus just wanted to be a normal kid. I thought it was interesting how Vitus in order to change the way his mother treated him had to jump off his balcony. After his accident he pretended to be just a normal kid. The way it affected his mother shows how dependent she was on his talent. She broke down and started watching videos of the past. I think that said a lot about the mother and how her life depended on Vitus being an expert piano player. Vitus' grandfather plays a big role in the movie. He enables Vitus to think for himself. The grandfather is the only one that allows Vitus to decide what he wants to do on his own. I think he provides what Vitus needs, an escape from the pressure of his mother. I am glad that Vitus made the decision he did in the end. I think it was the right thing for him to do he just needed to make the choice on his own. My favorite line in the movie was at the end in the grandfather's letter to the family. The grandfather wrote "Vitus continue to follow your star". This shows how the grandfather would support any decision Vitus made. The message I got from the movie was that your family is your main support. They will always love you no matter your decisions.