Renowned musician Lydia Tár is days away from recording the symphony that will elevate her career. However, Lydia's elaborate facade begins to unravel, revealing dirty secrets and the corrosive nature of power.
- Released:
- Runtime: 158 minutes
- Genre: Drama, Music
- Stars: Cate Blanchett, Nina Hoss, Noémie Merlant, Sophie Kauer, Julian Glover, Allan Corduner, Sylvia Flote, Vincent Riotta, Sam Douglas, Lucie Pohl, Vivian Full, Lee Sellars, Christoph Tomanek, Frank Röth, Diana Birenytė, André Röhner, Jessica Hansen, Murali Perumal, Sydney Lemmon, Ryan Reynolds
- Director: Todd Field
Comments
- staciestilling - 28 April 2024
Fantastic quiet film
"Tár" is an intelligent film featuring an outstanding portrayal of the main character by Cate Blanchett. The film unfolds slowly, alternating between a documentary-like pace and thriller sequences reminiscent of Kubrick and Tarkovsky. In an era where identity is prioritized, "Tár" examines the deviation of movements aimed at addressing racism, patriarchy, and power abuses.
The film centers on a female conductor, not to deflect criticism from men but to focus on power dynamics within the art world. While Tár could be seen as a "predator," she is also a rare, passionate, and dedicated artist. The film doesn't explicitly show her alleged sexual encounters but leaves it to the viewers' imagination, emphasizing the impact on Tár and her environment.
Neither the film nor I aim to condemn Tár. I believe that all parties in a transactional relationship share responsibility for the outcome, regardless of their age or power status. Each party seeks something from the other-love, sex, money, or success-and their interactions can vary.
The film doesn't provide the perspective of the victim, which would be crucial to consider. However, it does depict Tár grappling with her power's potential to coerce others into unwanted actions. This reflection is subtle because Tár does not see herself as a predator.
The ending, without revealing spoilers, left me speechless due to its potential for multiple interpretations. I'm uncertain if any interpretation is definitively correct, and I've noticed that other viewers share my confusion. - czimnt - 14 January 2024
Nah.
I'd been looking forward to watching this film for some time. I didn't know a great deal about it pressing play other than the plaudits heaped on both it and star, Cate Blanchett and that she played a composer; I knew just enough to know I wanted to watch it. It looked good, if a little cold in its atmosphere with mumbled dialogue, but I persevered despite my eyes starting to close after less than 10 minutes. I made myself a drink and sat upright to continue, though my eyes were constantly heavy. I've since read with interest some of the reviews on here; especially those which said how the pace really picked up in the last hour. I also enjoyed those that talked about the information the viewer wasn't given! And the clues to look out for. What was this, a sequel to Mulholland Drive?? Anyway, for the first time in a long time I actually gave up watching. I generally persevere with films; even the bad and average ones. That's some accolade for such a well-received, critically acclaimed movie! I lasted 50 minutes. In that time, not a great deal happened. Certainly not enough to make me want to keep watching. Best bit: when Tar takes down a student over some gender politics. But, all in all, a disappointment. - ryanpersaud-59415 - 6 November 2023
Blanchett is Phenomenal, But a Film I Appreciate More Than Enjoy
I watched Tár over the course of a few hours, frequently pausing the film and watching something else, then coming back to it. Or taking a nap. I don't think calling this movie boring is that controversial; the first 40 minutes of the film are deliberately difficult, an excruciatingly long interview opens the film and it's follow quickly by a dinner conversation that goes on for way too long.
To say Tár did not need to be 2 hrs and 37 minutes long would be beating a dead horse. Of course it didn't need to be. It is beause it reflects the sort of pretentious, grandiose person Lydia Tár is. Tár, at its core, is a character study and a parable about modern times; a film about cancel culture and the accountability of cultural icons.
Cate Blanchett truly disappears into this role and delivers a powerhouse performance here. It's hard not to sound like a broken record, but she really becomes Lydia. There's an amazing physicality to her performance along with her incredible affectations and ability to portray Tár consistently, even whilst speaking different languages.
I also found the film's sometimes meandering pace to be compelling as it gave us a chance to get to know people without necessarily figuring out where they all fit in Tár's life. It really made the film feel like a slice of life, where the story has a lot of context before the movie begins, and will go on after (naturally, given the ending).
It's also a very well made film; the cinematography and sound design, thankfully, are impeccable. You really get sucked into whatever room you're in and there's an overbearing sense of atmosphere, a coldness associated with the refined world of classical music.
Yet, this is also a movie I'd probably never watch again. It does a lot quite well, but is too simple a plot to waste so much time. Most of the other um...non, Tár characters, are pretty paper thin and we don't really have any particular subplots or complex relationship dynamics. As the movie lurches towards its end, I felt like it implies a strong emotional connection to what's happening, but it never really made it.
This is a story that could've been told in a very conventional, straightforward way, but it's smarter than that. It takes a pretty nuanced and difficult-to-discuss subject and tackles it head on, but in a way that feels as if it's an aspect of the character's life and not the whole thing. Tár, like many Oscar bait films, has a lot to appreciate. But, I genuinely don't believe it's the sort of film many people will honestly remember and appreciate years down the road. - willsharp-1 - 6 January 2023
Lydia Tar's monotone viciousness?
Maybe my viewing of the movie was spoiled by my having read Richard Brody's scathing New Yorker review of the film. (Why I try not to read reviews before watching films.) But even in recognizing that that's maybe what happened, I cannot shake this feeling: the character of Tár is *monotonously vicious*. She's vainglorious, pretentious, underhanded, exploitative, deceitful, cowardly, among other vices. And at every opportunity not to do bad, she fails. She's consistently, monotonously vicious. (But don't get me wrong: she's certainly not malevolent. She's just bad.) If she's an antihero, rather than a villain, at all-and, so, a character capable of evoking a shred of sympathy from us-this has just to do with her professional (conducting) prowess. But that's not something that can be conveyed by director Field or star Blanchett! It's something we have to take on the testimony of the script (basically). So the character's status as antihero is just a product of features totally adventitious to the main event: the powerful duo of Field and Blanchett. But this is a character piece; and the character, as conveyed by the apparatus/machinery/machinations of the main event, is completely dull. There are no aberrations from her vice. She simply sucks.
Beautiful acting, though. I'd love to see Blanchett get another Oscar. - goshamorrell - 1 January 2023
Best Film of 2022
Throughout the new film written and directed by Todd Field, its title character, a person of exceptionally sensitive hearing and possibly perfect pitch, is almost constantly distracted from her vital activities by extraneous noise. The noises include a doorbell, or something like a doorbell, dinging-our title character, Lydia Tár, almost absently reproduces its two notes on her piano after being ruffled by them-a metronome ticking, people pounding on doors, and more. And the noises are rendered via an audio design that is often disturbingly precise in its directional placement-we are as startled by them as Lydia is. Played with fierce and seamless commitment by Cate Blanchett, Lydia Tár is one of the wonders of the classical realm. She is a virtuoso pianist, an earnest ethnomusicologist, and a purposeful popularizer-she is apparently a member of the EGOT club, which isn't a common achievement for a classical person. And as a protean conductor about to conclude recording a cycle of Mahler symphonies, Lydia needs to get away from noise to do the work to which she almost stridently commits herself. The conductor also has a pursuer, or maybe more than one pursuer. We see the back of one's head during the Gopnik interview. We see an iPhone screen recording Lydia and texting snarky comments to someone on the FaceTime call. She is not universally beloved. "TÁR" is that rarest of items: a prestige awards contender that's also a genuine art film. The narrative unspools in an insinuating, sometimes enigmatic way; Field is quite a distance from the bluntness of his last feature, 2006's "Little Children." Certain shots and sequences show compositional affinities with Stanley Kubrick (for whom Field worked, as an actor, in 1999's "Eyes Wide Shut," Kubrick's final film) and Tarkovsky. But the formal virtuosity on display here is in a quieter register than in many other such films. That's true for the note-perfect acting as well. Much has already been written about how the film's narrative draws from emerging stories of abusive and exploitative behavior by powerful people in the arts. Are the sublime aspirations and achievements of a Lydia Tár vitiated by her problem-person behavior, or is she finally In The Right Anyway? As it happens, Field's film is almost equally skeptical of the culture from which a figure like Tár arose as it is of the contemporary strain in culture that seeks to debunk her. In the end, "TÁR" is not a diatribe or parable, but an interrogation, one that seeks to draw the viewers in, and compel them to consider their own place in the question. - Mikecizi123 - 28 December 2022
At some point you have to realise the pretence
Normally love Cate's acting, but here, it's like watching acting students going through all the methods they can think of. So trying to be real they all come across as pretentious twits thinking they're in a great film . She plays an easy piece of Bach averagely and her student with his incessant overacting leg thinks she's an amazing player. After 15 minutes of laughable conversations that just bore, I could stand it no longer. It doesn't even come across as knowing what it's talking about musically. It's faux intelligence brings bile to the top of the throat and anger at knowing everyone involved thinks they're masters at their arts, when they aren't. Please don't humour them by falling for it. - pauljonathancampbell - 20 December 2022
Subtle and slow meditative character study
A number of complex themes are explored - power, desire, repression, and relationships, the nature of art and music, ageing and obsolescence and the evolving nature of cultural and societal discourse. Beautiful set design and cinematography and of course a mesmerising central performance from Cate Blanchett.
Focused almost entirely on the protagonist, the film very slowly comes together yet could easily have done with a heavy edit (particularly the first hour) and still have powerfully communicated its messages, a director trying too hard at times. Requires additional viewings to fully appreciate (if you have the patience). - Boristhemoggy - 10 December 2022
The first time a Blanchett film has left me disappointed
Firstly, I love Cate Blanchett in almost everything she's ever done. And I'm always mindful of my bias toward people when watching a new film. I can say that in this case there was no need to as the film was so terrible so early on and did not improve.
Let me take you through the initial timeline.
An unbelievable 5 full minutes for the credits. They belong at the end. Then a boring speech for 4 minutes about some presentation and I never really got the point of showing this into speech. Then a full 10 minutes of her supposedly being interviewed. And I've never heard such pretentious, faux erudite, nonsense dialogue in a long time. It was irritating waiting for it to end and the film to actually start.
Then a very long scene while she is at dinner with someone. Again, discussion between two people that adds nothing, and I mean nothing to the story. There is a moment that Cate looks directly into the camera accidentally too, I've never know her do that before.
I managed to scrape a 5 out of my cold heart for this film but that was mainly for Cate and her oozing sophistication and style. If it wasn't for her I'd have given it a 2. - philipthorniley - 29 November 2022
confused
Blanchett is extraordinary in conveying that predatory powerful woman. I'm 80 and have never seen such a female character. Her gay character in 'Carol' was positively benign by comparison. Her technical grasp of the music, use of the baton and apparent command of German confirm her status as one of the World's very best actors. The tension in those rehearsal sessions was palpable. Having said all that the emotional relationships didn't work for me but then, they didn't work for her either, I guess
I've a question. The last scene confused me. I thought location was Bangkok, but captions (I'm quite deaf) said local language was tagalog which is a Philippines language.
What was happening in that scene. The screen descending and the pan to those masked audience members. Left me confused. - madanmarwah - 23 November 2022
Cate's acting is saving grace, it is dark and depressing
Firstly this movie is highly overated. It's an ordinary biopic of a lady music composer cum conductor in Germany. Secondly it is not for popcorn chomping audiences and those knowledgeable or interested in western classical music may like it since there is considerable discussion on Bach, Bethoven, Mozart etc. The average audiences are likely to get bored. There is some kind of self conscious and snooty arthouse cinema going on here. Thirdly after a slow start the narrative takes around 40 minutes to pick up pace and then also things liven up only marginally. I am not counting the dull and long credit titles at the beginning which include names of assistant technician too. (No problem here but such stuff is normally shown at the end of the movie.) This is followed by an interview of Tar by a journalist which has an overdose of conversation on the nuances of western classical music. The good part is the splendid acting of Cate Blanchett in the title role for which she might pick up a few awards. Come to think of it, the way things go in the award season this movies could pick up awards for other categories mainly best picture and music. It is clear that director Todd Field is totally involved in presenting the protagonist as a complex character who is moody, jealous, extremely fussy, ambitious, manipulating, paranoid and a type of a monster as viewed by her colleagues. There are a number of scenes which show her in distress, her loneliness, her paranoid behavior at night, her insomnia, her fears, her jogging at all hours etc etc. Can't really blame her as the apartment is dark and claustrophobic as shown. Not exactly interesting cinema for the average audiences.
