The film’s dramatization of campus cancel culture gives the subject the treatment it deserves.
Few will be shocked if “Tár,” a psychological drama about a famous symphony orchestra conductor, wins Best Picture at the Oscars on Sunday, and even fewer will be surprised if Cate Blanchett picks up the Best Actress award for playing the title character. She deserves it.
“Tár” is much too long (2 hours and 38 minutes) and probably too self-consciously highbrow for mass appeal. This is a film that was made to win critical praise and prestigious prizes, not to draw the large crowds that turned out for other Best Picture nominees this year, such as “Top Gun: Maverick” and “Avatar: The Way of the Water.” What recommends the film to people who might otherwise care little about the rarefied world of orchestral music is its timely and sober treatment of the #MeToo era, cancel culture and identity politics.
Continue reading the entire piece here at The Wall Street Journal (paywall)
______________________
Jason L. Riley is a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, a columnist at The Wall Street Journal, and a Fox News commentator. Follow him on Twitter here.
Photo by karenfoleyphotography/iStock