Tár (2022, R)

*Premise spoilers.*

This is the sort of film that can sometimes feel designed in a lab to garner Oscar nominations, an intense character piece revolving around a big-name star, at once artistic and grounded. When the gambit doesn’t pay off, the effect falls flat, but when all the elements come together, it definitely makes for compelling cinema.

Lydia Tár is at the top of her game professionally. The conductor for the Berlin Philharmonic, she’s preparing for the final symphony in her Mahler series, which is set to be televised to great acclaim. But just as she seems to be on the brink of greater heights than ever, she finds her actions with a former protégé threatening to catch up with her.

At first glance, Lydia might appear to be a triumphant win for inclusion. She’s the first female conductor of a major German orchestra, and she’s a lesbian besides. But we quickly see that she’s every bit as problematic as the parade of straight white men who came before her. Whether she’s mockingly baiting a student over their difficulty in separating the art from the artist, swiping her partner’s meds, or pursuing dangerously unequal “relationships” with subordinates, she is almost unrelentingly awful. Even when she does something seemingly good, trying to help her daughter out with a bully, she does that by threatening a child and then taunting her that no one will believe her if she tells.

In other words, she is A Problem. The film, thankfully, takes a stab at trying to understand her actions without ever justifying them, and as we watch her try to stay ahead of the consequences of her own actions, it’s interesting to see how she navigates things without rooting for her to actually win.

At the start of my review, I described the film as compelling, which is accurate. Compelling. Engrossing. Fascinating. Due to the subject matter and the nature of the lead character, it doesn’t exactly make for a pleasant or enjoyable watch, but it’s hard to pull your eyes away from the slow-motion trainwreck that is Lydia Tár, even as you hope various people in her life will manage to escape her orbit.

This Best Picture nominee is up for six Oscars in all. Todd Field was recognized for both his direction and his original screenplay, which work together to create an almost oppressive sense of tension and slow unraveling. On the technical level, the film also received nominations for Cinematography and Film Editing.

But of course, it’s Cate Blanchett’s Lead Actress nomination that’s the real driving force here. Though I continue to back the exquisite Michelle Yeoh for Everything Everywhere All at Once, Blanchett’s is, again, utterly compelling in this performance. By turns an incandescent genius, an unnerving narcissist, and a sly predator, she’s certainly giving her all. Other than brief appearances from Mark Strong and Julian Glover and a vocal cameo from Alec Baldwin, I’m not familiar with the rest of the cast, but everyone turns in strong work that jibes with the creeping dread of the piece.

Warnings

Strong thematic elements (including sexual harassment and coercion,) language, drinking/drug use, brief nudity, and disturbing imagery.