Kyle Smith of the Wall Street Journal concludes his review of Tar with these words: ““Tár” is like listening to a slow, ominous roll on the timpani for two and a half hours.” Cate Blanchett brilliantly portrays a world class celebrity, named Lydia Tar, who currently is the Conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic. Her frenetic life bounces her from continent to continent, from major city to major city. She has a book coming out titled Tar On Tar, projected to be a Best Seller.
Todd Field wrote, produced, and directed Tar. Yes, he captures the sense of the classical music world with its politics and ambitions. Field suggests various complications to Tar’s life: maybe an illicit affair with a student. Maybe an insulting “lesson” with a Juilliard student that goes viral on YouTube (although heavily edited). Various legal entanglements. Various personal entanglements with Tar’s wife, child, and staff.
Tar baths in darkness from the music, the nightscapes in various cities, to Tar’s machinations with various characters. Field only lightens the mood in the final scene that had the sold-out audience at Coolidge Corners Theater in Boston laughing out loud.
For me, Tar gave me a sense of deja vu as Cate Blanchett spirals downward just as she did in Blue Jasmine, a film she made 10 years ago. Blanchett played a woman who had everything, and then lost it all. But that movie, although it covers the same ground as Fields’s film, was funny despite the tragic circumstances. GRADE: C
I’m curious about the film but it seems like it belongs in the Stokowski and Toscanini forties or the Bernstein/Van Cleave/Gould early sixties more than the current era. Classical music “celebrities” are pretty much a thing of the past. I’m also pretty much done with stories about horrible people. I’ve had enough of that in the past decade. Thanks for taking the bullet on this one.
Byron, maybe conductors like Tar have more status in Europe than in the U.S. As Tar’s problems mount, her mentor–the conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic she replaced–tells her that other conductors have had similar problems: James Levine, Herbert von Karajan, etc.
Indeed, Karajan and Anne Sophie Mutter came immediately to mind, among other women he’d, shall we put it, pursue. And, really, Woody Allen making excuses for himself would be the film I’d miss.
This was a much deeper look at a woman than the Allen film gave us. It asks so many questions: do we allow “geniuses” to have their way with the people who come under their mentorship? Do they get a pass on being a sexual predator? Are they permitted to destroy careers on a whim? Should they be permitted to threaten children rather than report them as bullies. For me, it was an A movie. She possibly loved her child but no one else. I think a lot of people will agree with you. We expect character portraits in a novel but not so often in a movie.
Patti, I agree with you that TAR raises many questions. But, I think Todd Field muddied the water with all of the “red herrings” he litters the movie with: Tar running and hearing screams (real…or not?), the middle of the night sounds, the whole creepy scene in the basement of that abandoned building. Is Tar losing her mind? If she is, how much of this movie is part of her hallucinations?
I haven’t seen this yet, but I will. Being a huge Cate Blanchett fan and having loved Todd Field’s earlier movies, IN THE BEDROOM and LITTLE CHILDREN, make this one a must. Not to mention the mostly ecstatic reviews.
Michael, I’m a huge Cate Blanchett fan and I hope her wonderful work in TAR earns her an Oscar nomination. Here’s the WSJ review: https://www.wsj.com/articles/tar-review-cate-blanchett-todd-field-stanley-kubrick-sophie-kauer-11665092059
I might get to it at some time, but no real interest now. The world is a downer enough these days. When I do see a movie, this is not the one I want to see. Blanchett is always terrific, but…not for me.
Jeff, I really enjoyed the scenes with Cate Blanchett conducting the Berlin Philharmonic. Cate had to learn how to conduct…and brush up on her German! An astonishing performance!