The seven movements of Beethoven’s Quartet No. 14 – the Opus 131 in C-Sharp minor – flit from intensity to delicacy, seething with sombreness and soaring with lyricism in turn. In depicting a world-renowned, New-York-based string quartet practising to play the famed composition, Yaron Zilberman’s debut feature Performance mirrors the changing tempers and transitions of its musical inspiration, as personal dramas impede upon professional duties.
Cellist Peter Mitchell (Christopher Walken, Seven Psychopaths) remains the elder statesman of the group; his former violin student Daniel Lerner (Mark Ivanir, 360), family friend and viola player Juliette Gelbart (Catherine Keener, Cyrus), and her husband, second violinist Robert Gelbart (Philip Seymour Hoffman, The Master) complete the quartet. After 25 years together, their preparations for the impending 26th season are thrown into tumult when Peter’s health declines. Suddenly, the continuation of their celebrated, career-defining collaboration seems uncertain, as does their legacy.
The blossoming maturity of Juliette and Robert’s daughter, the talented, attractive, aspiring soloist Alexandra (Imogen Poots, Fright Night) also interferes with the quartet’s dynamic; however, within Zilberman and Seth Grossman’s (The Elephant King) narrative, deeper issues are at play. The intimacy cultivated between the four musicians over two and a half decades suffers from even the idea of change, let alone the inevitability, with rivalries, strained relationships, infidelity, frustrated ambitions and familial tensions all contributing to their increased fragility.
Just as any musical ensemble is defined by its members, so too is Performance; in an evident actor’s showcase, its excellent cast members both endear through the intricacies of their complex characters, and impress in their technical display, each learning to play short phrases from Beethoven’s composition on their respective instruments. An unusually understated Walken stands out among them, shining with dignified vulnerability and humility to eclipse his co-stars – no easy feat when surrounded by Hoffman’s abundant passion, Keener’s simmering hurt, and Ivanir’s sharp but spirited volatility.
Accompanying elements – the melodramatic plot developments and stage-like visual style among them – feel a little too familiar, yet the elegance and eloquence of the performances helps overcome any exaggeration or obviousness. Similarly, the film’s philosophical musings on the nature of group performances not only provides further parallels to its musical influence, but heightens the emotional undercurrent, further furnishing the feature’s symphony of sentiments. Of course, the sweeping score Angelo Badalamenti (The Edge of Love) – with much of the ensemble’s output provided by the revered Brentano String Quartet – proves the perfect complement; measured and moving like the film itself.
Rating: 3 ½ stars out of 5
Performance
Director: Yaron Zilberman
US, 2012, 130 min
In cinemas March 14
Distributor: Hopscotch
Rated M
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