1993·Drama·1h 33m
7.1
★
A collection of vignettes highlighting different aspects of the life, work, and character of the acclaimed Canadian classical pianist.
Directed by François Girard
IMDB
N/A
Where to Watch
Cast
Colm Feore
Glenn Gould
Devon Anderson
Young Glenn Age 3
Don McKellar
Concert Promoter
Carlo Rota
C.B.S. Producer
Peter Millard
C.B.S. Engineer
Allegra Fulton
Waitress
Guy Thauvette
Trucker #2
R.D. Reid
Trucker #3
Conrad Bergschneider
Trucker #4
Gerry Quigley
Music Critic
Gale Garnett
Journalist
James Kidnie
Photographer
Crew
François Girard
Director
François Girard
Screenplay
Don McKellar
Screenplay
Alain Dostie
Director of Photography
Niv Fichman
Producer
Larry Weinstein
Producer
Barbara Willis Sweete
Producer
Linda Muir
Costume Design
Popular Reviews
19 reviews
Dresden22PRO
10.0★ · 06/09/26
Incredible.
Like nothing I've ever seen. I was mesmerized.
This perfectly captures the man, without going into all the boring life stuff. I truly feel like I have a concrete idea about who he is, what he stands for and what he was like.
Music is the main character, and through that Glenn. Music is heard in almost every short and is always done and experienced in a unique way.
- From inside the Piano
- The Vibrations
- The Listen back
- The practice
- The animation
- The cleaning lady listening
- Even the way it's used as background during scenes like The Tip, The drug sequence.
The sound design on this is crazy. The people talking in the diner, the North radio program, the way the sound changed direction based on where he was walking with the phone. Put my soundbar to work!
The performance of Gould is phenomenal and feels nuanced. The L.A. concert showed you a lot about what he’s all about.
I am going to stay thinking about the ratio of being around people and then being alone a lot.
His philosophy on the artist and the consumer. Live performances vs. recorded music. His work on the radio.
They sent a version of him playing Bach to space for aliens. I mean come on.
A MOVIE. Something you couldn't experience in any other way.
THATS A GOOD MOVIE!
Like nothing I've ever seen. I was mesmerized.
This perfectly captures the man, without going into all the boring life stuff. I truly feel like I have a concrete idea about who he is, what he stands for and what he was like.
Music is the main character, and through that Glenn. Music is heard in almost every short and is always done and experienced in a unique way.
- From inside the Piano
- The Vibrations
- The Listen back
- The practice
- The animation
- The cleaning lady listening
- Even the way it's used as background during scenes like The Tip, The drug sequence.
The sound design on this is crazy. The people talking in the diner, the North radio program, the way the sound changed direction based on where he was walking with the phone. Put my soundbar to work!
The performance of Gould is phenomenal and feels nuanced. The L.A. concert showed you a lot about what he’s all about.
I am going to stay thinking about the ratio of being around people and then being alone a lot.
His philosophy on the artist and the consumer. Live performances vs. recorded music. His work on the radio.
They sent a version of him playing Bach to space for aliens. I mean come on.
A MOVIE. Something you couldn't experience in any other way.
THATS A GOOD MOVIE!
Incredible.
Like nothing I've ever seen. I was mesmerized.
This perfectly captures the man, without going into all the boring life stuff. I truly feel like I have a concrete idea about who he is, what he stands for and what he was like.
Music is the main character, and through that Glenn. Music is heard in almost every short and is always done and experienced in a unique way.
- From inside the Piano
- The Vibrations
- The Listen back
- The practice
- The animation
- The cleaning lady listening
- Even the way it's used as background during scenes like The Tip, The drug sequence.
The sound design on this is crazy. The people talking in the diner, the North radio program, the way the sound changed direction based on where he was walking with the phone. Put my soundbar to work!
The performance of Gould is phenomenal and feels nuanced. The L.A. concert showed you a lot about what he’s all about.
I am going to stay thinking about the ratio of being around people and then being alone a lot.
His philosophy on the artist and the consumer. Live performances vs. recorded music. His work on the radio.
They sent a version of him playing Bach to space for aliens. I mean come on.
A MOVIE. Something you couldn't experience in any other way.
THATS A GOOD MOVIE!
Like nothing I've ever seen. I was mesmerized.
This perfectly captures the man, without going into all the boring life stuff. I truly feel like I have a concrete idea about who he is, what he stands for and what he was like.
Music is the main character, and through that Glenn. Music is heard in almost every short and is always done and experienced in a unique way.
- From inside the Piano
- The Vibrations
- The Listen back
- The practice
- The animation
- The cleaning lady listening
- Even the way it's used as background during scenes like The Tip, The drug sequence.
The sound design on this is crazy. The people talking in the diner, the North radio program, the way the sound changed direction based on where he was walking with the phone. Put my soundbar to work!
The performance of Gould is phenomenal and feels nuanced. The L.A. concert showed you a lot about what he’s all about.
I am going to stay thinking about the ratio of being around people and then being alone a lot.
His philosophy on the artist and the consumer. Live performances vs. recorded music. His work on the radio.
They sent a version of him playing Bach to space for aliens. I mean come on.
A MOVIE. Something you couldn't experience in any other way.
THATS A GOOD MOVIE!
Brian Ekberg
7.0★ · 11/17/25
Enjoyable series of vignettes on the life of the famed Canadian pianist (and writer, and composer, and radio performer, and market trader, and… and and and). A compelling performance as Gould from lead Colm Feore, interspersed with more abstract pieces and interviews with figures from Gould’s life. Worth a watch for the music alone but also lovely in all aspects of its execution.
Enjoyable series of vignettes on the life of the famed Canadian pianist (and writer, and composer, and radio performer, and market trader, and… and and and). A compelling performance as Gould from lead Colm Feore, interspersed with more abstract pieces and interviews with figures from Gould’s life. Worth a watch for the music alone but also lovely in all aspects of its execution.
bella
10.0★ · 11/07/25
There aren't enough words in the English language to explain how much I loved this film. I didn't dislike a single thing.
With 31 separate segments, most of them in a completely different style than the last, it's usually easy for me to become distracted or stuck on the previous one but I was completely engaged and invested in every one of them.
My favorite segments were the personal interviews with people who knew Glenn Gould; they were laced with a tender nostalgia and care for the memory of the man they knew. A close second were the dramatic recreations of his life.
The sound design alone had my attention (mostly diegetic with cuts of piano instrumentals) and combined with breathtaking visuals, passionate storytelling, and a masterful performance by Colm Feore, I haven't experienced a film that invoked this much inspiration in me in a long time.
With 31 separate segments, most of them in a completely different style than the last, it's usually easy for me to become distracted or stuck on the previous one but I was completely engaged and invested in every one of them.
My favorite segments were the personal interviews with people who knew Glenn Gould; they were laced with a tender nostalgia and care for the memory of the man they knew. A close second were the dramatic recreations of his life.
The sound design alone had my attention (mostly diegetic with cuts of piano instrumentals) and combined with breathtaking visuals, passionate storytelling, and a masterful performance by Colm Feore, I haven't experienced a film that invoked this much inspiration in me in a long time.
There aren't enough words in the English language to explain how much I loved this film. I didn't dislike a single thing.
With 31 separate segments, most of them in a completely different style than the last, it's usually easy for me to become distracted or stuck on the previous one but I was completely engaged and invested in every one of them.
My favorite segments were the personal interviews with people who knew Glenn Gould; they were laced with a tender nostalgia and care for the memory of the man they knew. A close second were the dramatic recreations of his life.
The sound design alone had my attention (mostly diegetic with cuts of piano instrumentals) and combined with breathtaking visuals, passionate storytelling, and a masterful performance by Colm Feore, I haven't experienced a film that invoked this much inspiration in me in a long time.
With 31 separate segments, most of them in a completely different style than the last, it's usually easy for me to become distracted or stuck on the previous one but I was completely engaged and invested in every one of them.
My favorite segments were the personal interviews with people who knew Glenn Gould; they were laced with a tender nostalgia and care for the memory of the man they knew. A close second were the dramatic recreations of his life.
The sound design alone had my attention (mostly diegetic with cuts of piano instrumentals) and combined with breathtaking visuals, passionate storytelling, and a masterful performance by Colm Feore, I haven't experienced a film that invoked this much inspiration in me in a long time.
PoochieVince
7.0★ · 09/21/25
I’m glad I watched this, though I have to admit I admired how it was put together more than I actively enjoyed it. The fragmented structure, moving through 32 vignettes, feels like the perfect way to explore a mind as unusual and restless as Gould’s. It’s less a straightforward biopic and more an impressionistic portrait—something that rewards your attention if you lean into its rhythm.
Full disclosure: I did nod off the first time I put it on (in fairness, I was exhausted and my bed is dangerously comfortable). No shade to the movie—it’s just not the kind of film that pulls you along with big dramatic beats. Instead, it’s a fascinating, often beautiful piece of work that lingers more in the head than the heart.
Full disclosure: I did nod off the first time I put it on (in fairness, I was exhausted and my bed is dangerously comfortable). No shade to the movie—it’s just not the kind of film that pulls you along with big dramatic beats. Instead, it’s a fascinating, often beautiful piece of work that lingers more in the head than the heart.
I’m glad I watched this, though I have to admit I admired how it was put together more than I actively enjoyed it. The fragmented structure, moving through 32 vignettes, feels like the perfect way to explore a mind as unusual and restless as Gould’s. It’s less a straightforward biopic and more an impressionistic portrait—something that rewards your attention if you lean into its rhythm.
Full disclosure: I did nod off the first time I put it on (in fairness, I was exhausted and my bed is dangerously comfortable). No shade to the movie—it’s just not the kind of film that pulls you along with big dramatic beats. Instead, it’s a fascinating, often beautiful piece of work that lingers more in the head than the heart.
Full disclosure: I did nod off the first time I put it on (in fairness, I was exhausted and my bed is dangerously comfortable). No shade to the movie—it’s just not the kind of film that pulls you along with big dramatic beats. Instead, it’s a fascinating, often beautiful piece of work that lingers more in the head than the heart.
Tristan Blyth
6.0★ · 09/16/25
Pretty awesome that he was Canadian
Pretty awesome that he was Canadian