A Star is Born - Review

A Star is Born

Actor Bradley Cooper (Wedding Crashers, The Hangover, Silver Linings Playbook, American Hustle, American Sniper and Guardians of the Galaxy) expands his range by directing himself and singing in the combination musical - romantic drama story “A Star is Born”.

Cooper has had a rather successful 10 year run, He has taken on both diverse and challenging roles that has resulted in him having the rare acting distinction of being nominated for an Academy Award Oscar three consecutive years in a row for Best Actor. Now he has put another new challenge on his resume with first time titles of Producer and Director in the 2018 adaption - remake of “A Star is Born”, also starring Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta better known professionally as singer “Lady Gaga”.

Cooper wrote this 2018 screenplay along with writers Will Fetters and Eric Roth. It also is the fourth remake of this now American classic starting with the original 1937 film of the same name starring Janet Gaynor and Fredric March. The 1954 version starring Judy Garland and James Mason. And the last successful remake in 1976 starring Barbra Streisand and Kris Kristofferson.

In this latest "A Star is Born" we see Cooper and Lady Gaga as the central subjects of the story with a cast rounded out with Andrew Dice Clay, Dave Chappelle, Eddie Griffin and the always reliably great, baritone voice actor Sam Elliott (Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Roadhouse, Tombstone and We Were Soldiers).

As with all of the previous films before the story follows a hard-drinking seasoned musician this time named "Jackson Maine" (Cooper) who discovers and falls in love with a struggling artist named "Ally" (Gaga). When we first see "Ally" she has just about all given up on her lifelong dream of becoming a big time singer until "Jackson" charmingly coaxes her into a bigger and brighter spotlight. But when "Ally's career really starts to take off, the personal side of their deeply loving relationship starts to break down as Jackson fights a much bigger ongoing battle with internal demons of his own.

REVIEW: We all have experienced at least one rare event in our lives; something that left you star gazed by its intricacy, that manages to both nurture and sooth and yet overwhelm you as well. You become unknowingly motionless from just staring, no eye movement or blinking. Something that simply touches the mind and soul indelibly even if it for a brief period of time. Bradley Cooper’s “A Star is Born” (2018) is such a moment. In the very first 60 seconds of the film, I knew..............I just simply and instinctively knew I was going to see something phenomenal for 2:15 minutes...............I just knew.

Standard superlatives like “terrific, honest, electric and tremendous” share equally billing with more contemporary forms of praise such as “generationally relevant, culturally significant, in the moment and authentically real”. This film had me by my throat for its music and acting, never ever let me go. 

Its a bold and aggressive, subtle and sweet film. Brash and whimsical, touching and tender. Romantic and dreamy, kind and personable. Director Cooper has made a very intricate and intimate portrait of a fractured man who is both very talented and also out of control. Who's  garbled voice is a by product of way too many alcohol cigarette infused late night road trips and drug abuse. A voice that sounds almost like a poetic fog in its affect that will have you totally charmed by his presence on one hand and a bit worrisome on the other. A voice that belies and misleads the audience briefly from  something potentially negative to a more lasting conclusion that "Jackson Maine" the singer, the friend and brother is simply a very likable man with a real heart of gold. You just don't watch this movie with Cooper and Gaga in it, you inhabit their performances like being in the room with them every single frame. And with a story itself that is so fabulously written and so well executed I found myself literally hanging on every single word they said from beginning to end. 

On the technical side the film editing and the music were great. To an interesting point I discovered that Cooper made a specific point of not filming the many musical numbers and scenes with himself and Gaga performing in some relegated artificially constructed movie studio set. Instead, he went directly to live clubs and real music venues to film every scene. To open up the performances to appear being natural in the moment from all angles and thereby also incorporating live audiences giving the entire film a real sense of nervous tension of being isolated all alone on a stage while at the same time having an actual listening audience offer back their honest reactions and emotions in the way of thunderous applause, joyous laughter and heartfelt cheering and clapping. This was a masterful directing subtle touch.

I simply refuse to say much more about any aspect of the film’s plot or subplot. I will though offer my sincere opinion that Bradley Cooper has to get an Oscar nomination for both his directing and acting here. The film itself in my estimation should also receive a whole host of other Oscars nominations in all of the major categories including for Lady Gaga and for Sam Elliott who plays Cooper’s “Jackson” much older brother “Bobby”, who is both his manager, his personal confidant and who routinely keeps Jackson’s career from careening into flames any further than it already has.

I sincerely doubt over the next 90 days this adaptation of “A Star is Born” will be supplanted by another film...........its clearly my number one film for 2018 hands down. And I will be rooting for it hard to get as many nominations and to win as many Oscars as it can. This is the kind of film I grew up watching and loving as kid. It takes me back to that very time, posing a question in my mind today………. “Why in the hell can’t they,…… why don’t they,………. make movies like this anymore?” 

Be clear there is nothing new or ground breaking in the development of  the romantic story line here. But what is does have is an abundant heartfelt "living in the moment" quality that comes over you warmly and gently like a draped silk blanket. And when it does you will probably find yourself thinking, even mumbling as I did ………."Damn I'm glad I am watching this".

Actor turned Director and Producer Bradley Cooper truly has  broaden his range and it is on full display here in this film. He's proven to me with this first time directing effort he has the prowess, the thoughtful maturity, the genuine passion, the vision and the full range of imagination to create many more of these kind of spectacular films (as this is) with magically richness (as this is) ............ again and again and again.

“A Star is Born”, is absolutely the best film of 2018. See it on the big screen and you will discover as I did a phenomenal acting, writing, producing and directing star is truly born and his name is Bradley Cooper.

4.00 Stars