Cate Blanchett has been nominated for seven Oscars. Only six actresses have more: Meryl Streep (21), Katharine Hepburn (12), Bette Davis (10), Judi Dench, Geraldine Page, and Glenn Close (8). By this time next year, it’s likely that she’ll have her eighth nomination — and based on the early reception for Tár, possibly her third win.
Tár stars Blanchett as composer Lydia Tár and “examines the changing nature of power, its impact and durability in our modern world,” according to the plot synopsis. The film, which was written and directed by Todd Field (In the Bedroom), premiered at the 79th Venice International Film Festival, where it was met with glowing reviews.
“Tár is breathtaking entertainment,” Vanity Fair‘s Richard Lawson wrote, “anchored by Blanchett’s alternately measured and ferocious performance, a tremendous (but never outsized) piece of acting that is her most piercing work in years.” The New York Times‘ Kyle Buchnan was equally effusive, tweeting, “Tár is incredible and kept reminding me of Kenneth Lonergan’s masterpiece MARGARET, with its focus on a flawed, frustrating, often hilariously self-involved protagonist and the people she leaves in her wake. Blanchett slays hard. It’s her career-achievement reel all in one movie!”
You can catch Tár fever yourself in the trailer above. The film opens on October 7.