Why is everyone talking about A Star Is Born? Partly because it's a musical romantic drama that has been retold so many times in Hollywood (now, as well as in 1976, 1957, 1937). It's also because the film features two of the best-known faces in the film and music worlds: Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga. The film has already gathered Oscar buzz, especially surrounding the speculation that the two leads would receive matching nominations.
This remake of A Star Is Born is entertaining, crowd-friendly, a fairy tale-like drama with some tear jerking thrown into the mix (as in the Barbra Streisand version). But if you're looking for depth and complex characters, perhaps this isn't exactly what you desire.
Cooper both directs and stars as Jackson Maine, an alcoholic rock'n'roll star, who finds himself wandering into a local gay bar late one night after finishing his arena rock concert. The man accidentally spots hidden gem singer Ally (Gaga) while she is performing on the stage singing French pop standard La Vie En Rose to adoring patrons. With Ally's talent and beauty, Jack immediately falls in love. He approaches her backstage to take her with him out of her miserable life, and to a world she never dreamed of -- kind of like a musical version of Pretty Woman.
Soon after Ally's career and love life skyrockets -- dating a pop star, flying on a private jet, getting invited to go on tour, effortlessly performing a number of songs with Jack's band on stage without rehearsing, a record deal, and even Grammy nominations -- all in the course of only few months!
The first hour of the film is more appealing, with lovely moments between the two characters falling in love, getting-to-know-you conversations. The romantic chemistry between Cooper and Gaga is believable. The visuals are beautiful with great shots of the spotlight, blue skies, and Sun flares on the backdrops. But after that it sort of devolves into a melodrama, focusing on the contrast between a girl's musical career on the rise and a star in decline, surrounded by booze and substance abuse.
Lady Gaga does an impressive job in her feature film debut, even though her movement isn't as fluent as other more experienced actors in the film such as Rafi Gavron or Sam Elliott. Her voice is outstanding, as always. She's a truly gifted singer, and the film uses that to maximum effect (expect an Oscar nomination). What impresses me most is not her voice, but the film's make-up team that did a fine job at concealing every trace of her large tattoos for the entire film, even in her several nude scenes.
Despite all the hype and chart peaks, the music in the 2018 version of A Star Is Born is nothing new or interesting: typical blues, Americana rock to cheesy soulless pop ballads. Especially the heartache pop anthem I'll Never Love Again Gaga sings towards the end of the film bears an unfortunate resemblance to R. Kelly's I Believe I Can Fly. I'd rather suggest listening to the Judy Garland version of the song Man That Got Away from the 1954 film instead.
But if anyone really deserves credit here, it is surely Bradley Cooper. In his directorial debut, it's clear that he knows what he's doing and where to position the camera. He's a good actor, but admit it, Cooper is still way too handsome to convincingly play an alcoholic, coke-snorting, self-destructive musician.
While the movie is showing enough promise to warrant eager anticipation for Cooper's next directorial engagements, A Star Is Born is something that's easy to fall in love with but not all too deeply. Not perfect cinema, but maybe that's enough for now.
