For a film about instruments being fine-tuned, it’s a shame this doesn’t manage to strike a chord. Sorry if that’s not the cleverest lede for this type of film. Alas, I played brass in high school.
Anyway, “Tuner” is a film that, unsurprisingly, centers on a piano tuner. More specifically, a tuner’s apprentice named Niki (Leo Woodall), who works for his boss Harry (Dustin Hoffman). Niki was once a promising pianist himself, but had to shift to being a tuner when he began to suffer from hyperacusis, an increased sensitivity to sound.
That sensitivity also means he can pick up subtle noises, such as the gears in a safe mechanism. Once he demonstrates that he can crack a safe thanks to this, he’s recruited by a trio of thieves. At first, his life starts to turn positive with the new gig, as he’s able to support his sick mentor and he gains more confidence to start a relationship. However, things later take a turn for the worse.
If you ever wanted to know what it would be like to watch a movie like “Drive” without the suspense or “Baby Driver” without any of the fun, you might actually want to give “Tuner” a try. If that sounds like an unenjoyable experience, though, you’d be right, and that’s why this film is an easy skip.
One wouldn’t suspect that early in the flick. Director Daniel Roher, cinematographer Lowell Meyer and editor Greg O’Bryant put effort into giving this movie some cinematic flair and personality. The flick is full of quick cuts and a variety of shots for every scene. It’s snappy and there’s certainly a commendable attention to detail noticeable right from the start.
The problem is that everything captured through by the camera and presented in compelling fashion is let down by the fact that the feature is so entirely dull. It’s rather astonishing, really, to have a movie be so bland, even when it has so much going on. What’s going on, though, just isn’t that captivating.
Despite everything unfolding, there is a major lack of urgency and tension. Sure, there’s a point where we learn Niki needs the money because Harry has suffered a medical emergency and has big bills, and that puts pressure on the protagonist. However, one, it’s a rather generic motive, and two, even then, the picture still just kind of plods along without much momentum.
Also, the people Riki are working with are not career criminals, but are sort of shown as criminal adjacent? So, it lacks some sense of danger, too. Not helping things is the third act being full of convenient (or maybe inconvenient) setups that feel overly manufactured and inorganic. It all just lessens the authenticity of the scenario.
There’s also the fact that there’s a few developments in the third act that don’t really make sense when you really think about it. On top of that, even with there being the possibility of suspense from cracking safes, there’s very little entertainment value, as the film is nearly void of good set pieces.
This could maybe still work had the characters been captivating. Not the case. The protagonist, Niki, is the ultimate “woe-is-me” sad boy who has such little energy that it’s hard to really feel anything about him. It doesn’t help that Leo Woodall in this film is practically a charisma vacuum. It’s unreal how lifeless his performance is.
I get it, he has a sad backstory and is somewhat aimless in life. But does that require him to have no personality? Charisma? Charm? Anything? Woodall is just dry from start to finish. Maybe that’s how Roher was directing it, but even then, the guy just didn’t have much screen presence.
On top of that, he possibly had a negative amount of chemistry with the actress, Havana Rose Liu, who played the love interest. This romance is supposed to be the beating heart of the whole thing. Well get the defibrillator, because the relationship always feels entirely forced. They have a meet-cute and it leads to dating, but the performers don’t sell their connection.
At the very least, Liu does portray her character’s passion as a musician with conviction and that works. But it doesn’t add much with her limited screentime. There’s also a rather bizarre creative decision by Roher in the film’s ending which sort of diminishes her character. It’s honestly the off-putting cherry on top.
At the very least the movie does boast the talent of Hoffman, and the guy is a real pro. He plays a rather stock mentor who’s very opiniated and a bit too stubborn, but has a heart of gold. It’s a common type of personality in movies, but Hoffman does fine in it when he’s present. Speaking of stock, though, the criminals on screen all feel like lazy, forgettable archetypes.
As mentioned before, “Tuner” does have some merit in its flashy style with intense editing. It boasts some positives from a technical level, and that prevents it from being a total loss. However, that doesn’t mean it’s not a largely boring affair with lackluster characters and a weak central romance. 2 out of 5.
Photo courtey Black Bear Pictures.
