Todd Field after a longer hiatus than was ever wanted by his fans comes back to the big screen with what can only be described for me as perhaps “the film of 2022”. Now, I say that not actually in the sense that it’s my favourite, although my admiration and enjoyment does grow with every day that passes and will only solidify with my next watch, but instead I mean it in the sense that Field has made the first real film for my money to present many of the issues of our time (and I do mean absolute current time) without a prying nature, or a critical lens, or a bias even. Tár is one of my favourite films of the year thus far and is a confronting and marvellous piece of cinema that marks a long awaited return for one of the more underrated directors of the past 20 years.
Tár is fuelled by the current, but is also an immensely successful narrative character study in its own right. Field’s hand is deft and his capability to infuse elements of the pandemic and other politics, as well as overall being maybe the first major film about cancel culture, is all incredibly well judged and elegantly offered. But the implicit success of the film is its removal of bias. It is simply a presentation of facts fuelled by an incredible aptitude for verisimilitude and a deeply felt verité feel. Real people are mentioned and even apear in the film, with real life journalist Adam Gopnik having a great turn in the beginning of the film in an interview with our titular lead of Lydia Tár (an incredibly accomplished figure in the world of music) as much of her life and musical opinions are presented in a wholly realistic and desperately well delivered format, that never at once feels like prying exposition and instead rather an intriguing discussion that serves almost as prologue. Real life websites and podcasts are seen and heard, with just the right amount of real names mentioned to blend with the creations. It has become almost infamous to what level the verité nature of the piece has led to a faction of fans ironically or not believing Tár to be a real person and watching the film you can’t help but forget for a while yourself. It’s been a terribly long time since I’ve had a political reference in a film with a real name-drop where I didn’t roll my eyes or cringe, but in Tár with Field and his writing and direction, every name is important and incredibly well conceived. Field’s screenplay as a matter of fact throughout the entire film is in actuality as masterful a piece of character study as it is social critique (more presentation, than critique of course), as it is at times even a piece of musical criticism. Some of these extended scenes of musical discussion may be seen as tedious or overlong to some, however they only for me fuelled the reality and were incredibly interesting in their own right, as well as subtlety in some ways and in some ways rather clearly influencing and directing the path of our titular Tár. It really is a sublime piece of writing and at current is probably my favourite screenplay of the year.
Of course
Field’s talent goes beyond his writing and far into his direction, striking the
perfect balance in this film of the strengths exhibited in his two previous
directorial efforts and taking them frankly to new higher levels. The
unsettling at times flare of Little Children is more than present here,
as well as the static frankness and elegance of In the Bedroom, both
taken to new heights to better fulfil the inherent horror and tension that
gives this film its very particular and very effecting overall aura of unease
and horror, as well as a fundamental tragedy, whether we feel for the lead
character or not. The editing of Monikia Willi and the cinematography of
Florian Hoffmeister both similarly cement this natural terror and make this one
of the more unnerving films of the year, as well as one of the most finely
crafted. All of this perfection is most
certainly however encapsulated in front of the camera, with… Well, what can one
even say. Cate Blanchett has always been one of our finest actresses and it’s
not that here her performance is surprising or different in ways from previous
ways we have seen her, but this is yet another stellar beyond reason
performance from the already very well beloved actress, that will only I have
no doubt cement her prestige even further. Nina Hoss and Noemie Merlant, aswell
as Julian Glover and Mark Strong, all similarly deliver incredibly well judged
performances in this film, that make it as much on the periphery a fine
ensemble of horror as it is a terrifying character study – but one simply
cannot deny Blanchett. It’s extremely sublime and transformative work that
transcends a simply forever descending arc as we have seen in such films
before, this is something more vulnerable, more powerful and much, much, much
more compelling. Field and Blanchett don’t really paint here in greys, or
rather they do overall, but instead paint in bold blacks and white and over the
course of the film let those colours blend into an incredibly taut,
entertaining and immensely compelling character study oozing with craft and
power in every inch. Once again I must state, for me, Field is presenting,
never instructing how to feel or how to think and that’s the chief element that
makes this film the thought-provoking perfect piece it is.
This is case where one must grant a 10/10. This is incredibly elegant work from all involved, chief amongst them Field and Blanchett, who both offer some of the best work of the year in the film. It’s been a very solid year for film and especially in the world of horror and there are times when this feels more akin in that conversation even than anywhere else. But Tár is above all else a sublimely told character study that is an encapsulation of a time without pretentions to bias or even it seems an interest in orating on the subjects. It’s simply provocative verité film-making that builds a world of realism, before thrusting you into unknowns. Tár is indeed for me one of the great films of the year thus far.
P.S. There is a part of me who wonders about the person who struggles most with Field’s intentionality and whether or not listening to people dissect classical music, pop culture and politics is the inditement or the celebration that Field offers. I side completely that Field is working here as a provocateur who is presenting all whilst chiefly removing whatever his personal feelings may be. However I can’t help but think of the critique I have often about “annoying characters” or “characters that are annoying”, that fine and often bizarre line between intentionality or not. In a way what I’m trying to say is that I have no idea what the general public reaction is going to be once the film becomes what it undoubtedly will become, an Oscar front-runner watched by many people in the general public as almost a form of homework. This is not Coda. That is something that I am very happy about, we will see what others come to the opinion of, but I have no doubt that for many such as my mother it will be her normal review of “I can appreciate the acting… But I can’t say I actually enjoyed it".
- - Thomas Carruthers
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