An updated trailer for TR, the forthcoming psychological drama starring Cate Blanchett (who has won an Oscar twice) from Focus Features has been unveiled. Blanchett plays a famous conductor who gradually loses her hearing due to the pressure of the public’s expectations. The video introduces the life and work of the fictitious Lydia Tár (Blanchett), who led some of the most prestigious orchestras in the world to instant renown in a short period of time. Tár is the first woman to hold the role of head conductor of a large German orchestra, which is an honour but also comes with enormous pressure.
Tár has the dual role of leading the orchestra and composing new music, and she’s having trouble with both of them. As the preview demonstrates, Tár has trouble concentrating on her music-writing since she is easily distracted by even the slightest of sounds, as if the entire universe were conspiring against her. Tár’s hypersensitivity to sound, as shown in the teaser, does more than threaten her profession, as it makes every moment of the musician’s life excruciating. Tár is driven to the edge of insanity by the constant barrage of sounds that assault her regardless of whether she is in the middle of the woods or enjoying a stroll through the city.
With each passing second, the trailer does a fantastic job of demonstrating how well-executed the film’s sound design is. Because of this, we can empathise with Tár’s pain even if we don’t pay close attention to the noises in the trailer at first. TR is Todd Field’s first film in nearly a decade, despite his three nominations for Best Director at the Academy Awards. In 2006, Field released Little Children, which was nominated for three Academy Awards and won one of them, for Best Adapted Screenplay (co-written by Field and Tom Perrotta). Field wrote the whole script for TR by himself. That, along with TR’s massive 158-minute length, is what has us most intrigued.
Although two and a half hours may sound excessive for a drama, the new teaser assures us that Blanchett’s performance will be innovative and hypnotic enough to keep us riveted to our seats. Blanchett is joined by an impressive supporting ensemble that includes Nina Hoss (A Most Wanted Man), Noémie Merlant (Portrait of a Lady on Fire), Mark Strong (Shazam! ), Julian Glover (Game of Thrones), Allan Corduner (Defiance), Sydney Lemmon (Fear the Walking Dead), and Vincent Riotta (House of Gucci).
On October 7, cinemas will show the first public screening of TR.