“The regal Patrick Stewart is perfectly cast and delivers strong, carved-from-Shakespeare work as Sir Henry Cole, a legendary pianist battling stage fright late in his career in the somber and intellectual and quite lovely ‘Coda,’ ” writes Richard Roeper in Thursday’s (1/30) Chicago Sun-Times. “Katie Holmes … is equally effective as Helen, a music journalist and lifelong fan of Henry’s who is determined to write the definitive piece about the great artist who has returned to the concert stage for the first time in years and is almost immediately regretting the decision…. ‘Coda’ is … filled with dagger-sharp dialogue, wonderful performances and, as you’d expect, a wondrous and heavenly score, courtesy of Bach and Beethoven, Chopin and Schubert. Stewart’s Henry Cole has embarked on a tour of the United States, with his loyal … agent Paul (Giancarlo Esposito) pushing Henry every step of the way…. Henry becomes increasingly ill at ease about performing. He takes up smoking. He has to remind himself to take a breath when he’s performing.… Helen came to study him and write about Henry … but she also turns into a kind of muse/safety net.”
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