Tár Plot Synopsis
Tár is a psychological drama based on Lydia Tar, a female conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic. It documents his rise and fall after his ex commits suicide. Cate Blanchett stars as Lydia, a first-of-her-kind who prepares to conduct Mahler’s Symphony No. 5, release a book, and teach a master class at Julliard. At the same time, she is also the definition of “gas light, gatekeeper, girl boss”.
But Lydia begins to spiral after being accused of sleeping with young women in return for favors. This affects his relationships with the orchestra, his assistant Francesca (Noémie Merlant) and his partner Sharon (Nina Hoss). The final straw is when her ex-girlfriend Krista commits suicide after Lydia blacklists her, and the nature of their relationship is revealed.
Who is watching Lydia?
At the beginning of Tar, a red-haired woman watches Lydia’s conference, then stops outside her hotel in New Haven. Then someone anonymously drops Vita Sackville-West’s The Challenge on the front desk, which is implied to be by a woman. When Lydia opens it, she sees on the first page that there is an illustration of a pattern, which she later tears up and throws away as she thinks of the red-haired Christa.
Krista also continues to send him emails that she ignores. When Lydia goes home and visits her studio for the first time, we see Christa in the piano room, but she disappears as the conductor walks in, and she reveals that she wasn’t really after Lydia, but a figment of her imagination, as she is overcome with guilt. With Christa, which arose after Lydia received the book.
This theory is further strengthened when an obviously dead Christa reappears sitting in Lydia’s bedroom when Petra calls her after the nightmare, suggesting that Lydia is the ex-conductor’s worst nightmare. At the same time, Krista presumably edits Lydia’s Wikipedia page and adds that Krista is her inspiration.
Who makes Instagram Lives?
In the film, we see three instances of someone working on Instagram Live and teasing Lydia by violating her personal space. In the first Live, which is on a private jet while he sleeps, it is hinted that it was done by Francesca as one of the comments asks if he is still in love with Lydia.
The second Live shows Lydia’s out-of-town home and points out that it is an imitation of another Spanish conductor, suggesting that this Live may have been by her partner, Sharon. The Third Live is presumably performed by a stranger at Lydia’s book launch, mocking her for bringing up divinity after accusations have been made against her.
Until then, Lydia is alone because Francesca and Sharon left her, symbolizing that a celebrity has no personal life and can be hated by friends and haters alike. (This is of course the writer’s interpretation, as the film does not elaborate on the Lives.)
Why is Lydia interested in Olga?
Although he has a loving relationship with his partner Sharon and has a daughter with her, it is suggested that Lydia has an affair with the lesser chairs in his orchestra. When he first sees cellist Olga in the bathroom, he continues to seek her out. When Sebastian offers him a high-class chair, he uses it as an excuse to dump her and make room for Olga, an offer she doesn’t accept.
It is first hinted that Lydia is love interested in Olga when she lies to Sharon about how she found out about Olga. During rehearsal, he is distracted by Olga and Sharon, a violinist in her orchestra. Later, Lydia tries to replace Francesca with Olga as her personal assistant. He gaslights Sebastian, Andris, Sharon and Francesca to hide his intentions.
He goes to dinner with Olga, and though they don’t get along, Lydia continues to pursue him as she convinces the orchestra to play Olga’s favorite piece at the grand opening of Mahler’s quintet.
The two have private rehearsals in their apartment, and Lydia constantly displays her affection during orchestra practice. But when Olga accompanies her to the book launch, she ignores Lydia and chats with a young man.
What are the sounds Lydia sometimes hears?
Lydia first hears music when she goes to her old apartment that has been turned into a studio, and is suspicious when she recreates it on the piano. Then, when he goes to run, he hears the screams and runs in that direction, but he never finds the source. He once again hears music and certain voices in his studio, which he doubts are real or in his mind.
Krista’s book plants the seeds of doubt as she wonders if her ex is targeting her. After Krista’s death, Lydia continues to hear noises in the middle of the night, like a metronome or the hum of a refrigerator. The film’s crew explains that he has misphonia, which makes him sensitive to sounds, and plays with his psychological aspects, making him wonder if half of the sounds are in his head or real.
What happens to Krista?
Lydia, Krista, and Francesca were close, but after Krista made some demands, Lydia became angry with her. After Lydia ends her relationship with her, she blacklists Krista, calling her a nuisance. Despite her father’s uproar every placement season, the other orchestras listen to Lydia and reject Christa.
Desperate, Krista keeps sending emails to the conductor, only to be ignored. A few days after sending her the book, Christa commits suicide at the age of 25, which affects Francesca deeply. His suicide is predicted because he sent the book to Lydia as a last cry for help.
It is later shown that Krista also tried to send an email to Francesca to stop Lydia from excluding her, which was ignored as per Lydia’s instructions. After her death, Krista’s accusations that Lydia was sleeping with students in return for favors came to light.