Lydia Tár is brilliant. She is also successful. She is also a bully. The third so often follows from the first two that they all seem to go together. Those who are brilliant and successful don’t get called a “bully,” but instead are simply “demanding” or “exacting.” And that’s what the world around world-class composer sees: a fiercely talented world-class conductor who loves the music above all else (or so we’re supposed to think) and requires everyone to serve her efforts to coax world-class music from her orchestra and all others she comes across. But the music has ceased being the primary motivation for Tár’s life; instead, Lydia Tár’s primary motivation for life is the elevation of Lydia Tár. And, as so perfectly realized by writer/director Todd Field and world’s best actress Cate Blanchett, her use–and abuse–of those who cling to her for their affirmation and livelihoods eventually fights back.

The movie starts with a bravura real-time on-stage interview with the New Yorker where Tár gives smart and pretentious answers about conducting and about her upcoming projects: her book (appropriately titled “Tár on Tár”) and an upcoming live recording of Mahler’s Fifth, which provides the setting for the film’s action. From there, she moves onto other meetings, including one with a backer and fellow conductor (who’s lack of talent Lydia disdains) and a master class at Julliard, where she dresses down a student conductor and his classmates for the overly-political filter through which they determine which composers are worthy of being shaped by. Aside from some exceptional rehearsal segments which Blanchett attacks with aplomb, most of the movie is comprised of Tár’s interactions around her: her concertmaster/wife Sharon (Nina Hoss); her nervous assistant Francesca (Portrait of a Lady on Fire’s Noémie Merlant); and a new cellist who catches her eye (Sophie Kauer). Tár is always “on”; every relationship is at arm’s length, every moment calculated to serve her interests. But, as the bully never seems to learn in time, something bigger than you will eventually punch back. It turns out one of the many people Lydia has used in the past brings about a problem that she can’t simply force her way through. The circumstances surrounding that person’s fate leads to a breakneck third act where Tár’s world starts to tumble out of her meticulous control.

In the last 21 years, Todd Field has written and directed exactly three features: 2001’s In the Bedroom, 2006’s Little Children, and TÁR. The 16-year absence did not hurt at all. Field has always seemed most concerned with character, and here, the character of Lydia Tár dominates essentially every frame of the film. Field’s camera and palette provide a brutalistic feel consistent with both the Berlin setting of the film and the force of will with which Tár carries herself. Of course, Tár doesn’t come to life without Blanchett’s utterly mesmerizing performance. I admit that I have had problems with some of Blanchett’s upper-class portrayals before (Blue Jasmine and Carol come to mind). Part of that comes from the fact that Lydia Tár sees herself as a class of her own and thus gets to set the rules for it. But she cannot control it all and, when the time comes for the steely resolve to start to melt away, Blanchett is able to move from self-confidence to self-pity in a way that lets you pity her, too. While she may not prevail in her battle for a third Oscar–Everything Everywhere All at Once‘s Michelle Yeoh seems like a front-runner at this point–it’s not because she’s not deserving.

Together, Field and Blanchett have crafted a character for the moment: the powerful narcissist telling the culture around her that she deserves to be above it all. But, ultimately, none of us get to be above it all. Watching Lydia Tár learn that is so very satisfying.

TÁR is available to buy or rent on demand and on DVD/Blu-Ray

(Photo credit: Focus Features)