TÁR – Review by T.J. Callahan
TÁR: “Our only home is the podium.”
World Class pianist, composer and conductor, Lydia Tár is about to reach new octaves in her career when her life hits a sour note and begins to unravel. She is currently conducting a major German orchestra, has a book coming out and is days away from a live symphony performance, but gets so caught up in her own ego that she finds herself part of the cancel culture.
Cate Blanchett IS Lydia Tár. The Oscar winning actress gives a masterclass interpretation of a masterclass musician. A devious bully that beats to her own metronome. Blanchett, who switches from English to German flawlessly, not only learned to play several instruments for the role, but she did her own conducting, twirling the orchestra baton like a musical majorette.
Blanchett is better than the movie, though.
TÁR is a well made, sophisticated character study, but at 2 hours and 37 minutes, its tempo drags because it’s overloaded with side stories making this film hard to follow at times, despite never wanting to take your eyes off Cate. There’s more music-speak than music. I’d have preferred the latter.
TÁR is a symphonic soap opera that’s not for the tone deaf. It’s for the discerning Blanchett fan. She’s a whirling dervish with a magic wand that will cast a spell on you and Academy voters come awards season. Rated R for some foul language and brief nudity, TÁR proves once again that even though you think your life is in tune, fame and power don’t necessarily work harmoniously together. 7 out of 10 for the movie. 10 out of 10 for its star.
