UPDATE: A much lengthier teaser has been released, and it is GLORIOUS to behold. Todd’s even using Kubrick’s go-to steadicam. The black and white is a little jarring at first, but I’ll trust this is for flashbacks.
As I’ve briefly mentioned in a few pieces I’ve published over the last few weeks, I’ve spoken to two people who have already seen Todd Field’s “Tár,” both have been glowing it with praise. However, they did not want me to publish their thoughts.
I spoke to a third person yesterday who allowed me to post this brief capsule:
“Tár” is Kubrickian…very controlled, highly immersive and uncompromising filmmaking. It’ll be celebrated out of Venice and Telluride, but it will also not be as accessible for the mainstream as you think. It never spoon feeds its audience. Masterful control. Best Actress-wise, Cate Blanchett will become the clear front-runner. The buzz will be immediate following its Venice Film Festival debut.
The Kubrick comparisons are not surprising. Field was in “Eyes Wide Shut” and ensuingly developed a strong friendship with the late Leon Vitali, Kubrick’s longtime personal assistant and closest collaborator. Vitali ended up working with Field on the two films he directed.
Field hasn’t made a film since “Little Children” (2006) and, before that, his incendiary debut “In the Bedroom” (2001). That is until this year when he started production on “TÁR,” his first film in over 16 years. Cate Blanchett stars in the drama, which Field wrote and directed.
The Playlist’s usually-reliable Gregory Ellwood was saying a few months back that buzz for the film was “reaching operatic levels.” He seemed to have been correct in that assessment.