Tuner Movie Review

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The director for “Tuner,” Daniel Roher, directed the well-known documentaries “Navalny” and “Blink” and also for the 2026 documentary “The AI Doc: Or How I Became an Apocaloptimist.” Now here comes a narrative film, a crime/romance about a man who tunes pianos for a living. It doesn’t matter what genre film Daniel Roher chooses to direct; I’m interested in seeing how it plays out.

In this, Leo Woodall (The White Lotus) plays Niki, a very likable character. Niki was a child prodigy, incredibly gifted at the piano. He loved it and wanted to play forever. He had to abandon his dreams when he contracted an unusually rare disorder called hyperacusis. This caused him to be intolerant of “uncontrolled acoustic environments,” most any sound, especially that which comes from a piano being pounded on.

Loud sounds cause Niki sharp pain, so he wears earbuds when inside. And outside, for the louder noises, he wears noise-cancelling headphones over them. After having exposure therapy, and having perfect pitch, he can still enjoy touching and listening to a piano as a tuner.  

His mentor, Harry, a small role played by Dustin Hoffman, is ill and Niki wants to help him financially. After being turned down by every bank for a loan, he learns that being able to hear the tumblers in a safe fall perfectly into place opens it. His rare condition can get him into a safe without knowing the combination. Having this ability can earn him a lot of moolah, which he needs at the moment. He starts doing jobs for a safecracker wannabe, Uri (Lior Raz), to cover Harry’s medical bills. The story isn’t exactly noteworthy. You can see around every corner. He falls for and gets involved with a pianist named Ruthie played by Havana Rose Liu, also in the upcoming film “Power Ballad.” Ruthie’s not a terribly likeable character. She wants everything to be about her, but when she gets that, she pushes it away. What he usually gets paid $5,000 to do, he gives her on the house, which is a repair job for her old, swollen piano. Swollen and sticking due to humidity from a roof leak.

Unfortunately, Daniel Roher gives us a montage to push the relationship of two people who couldn’t be less fit for one another. He also gives us Jean Reno in a role that fits him, as does Hoffman’s. I say that to bring about the point that the men aren’t in the film nearly long enough. You remember them almost as much as you do the two leads. Niki is tortured after getting in with this crowd of robbers. You’ll wince when you see what they do to him. But it puts a little intrigue into a somewhat slow-paced film. If you like this cast and what he’s willing to go through for love, see this, this weekend. The acting and cinematography are worth the visit to the theater.