A Star is Born finds us on tour with country-rock superstar Jackson Maine (Bradley Cooper) who, after stumbling into a bar on drag night, discovers former waitress and aspiring singer/songwriter Ally (Lady Gaga). After convincing Ally to join him on stage during a tour date to sing a song she wrote, the two embark on a whirlwind romance as Ally’s career takes off. The two soon find themselves adapting to their new dynamic as the changes in their lives, and relationship, rapidly develop.
Although music supplies the backdrop to A Star is Born the film is, at its core, a tragic love story. In Ally and Jack, we are treated to the all too common doomed connection between two ships passing in the night as famously described in the poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow; destined to meet and burn brightly and intensely before slowly drifting apart toward their respective destinations, never to meet again. The relationship between the couples finds Ally on the upswing, her star developing slowly and just beginning to find its sheen with Jack slowly beginning to succumb to the excesses of music super-stardom, drinking and partying, combined with his inability to outrun the demons of his life experiences. Most people at some point in their lives will have experienced a relationship with a partner where one outgrows the other or where one person’s cross becomes too much of a burden for their union to bear. The real world relatability of Ally and Jack’s love affair makes A Star is Born all the more resonant for its audience and allows for a real emotional connection and investment in both its story and characters. The film is also notable for its realistic depiction of addiction. Jack suffers from both an alcohol and pill habit that slowly overtakes the rest of his life, including both his music and relationship with Ally. From the first time he appears on-screen, walking onto the stage to perform, we can see signs of his problem lingering in the background, just hidden enough for Jack to keep up appearances. This mirrors how addiction operates in real life; his disease’s progression and how it contributes to the deterioration of his and Ally’s relationship provides the film with its roller-coaster emotional core. Watching someone you love struggle to conquer their demons and the guilt a partner feels at the effect those demons has on the ones they love is helpless, gut-wrenching feeling and that feeling is conveyed authentically in A Star is Born.
With A Star is Born, Bradley Cooper has officially arrived as one of the biggest multifaceted talents working in Hollywood. His ability to perform as both the film’s lead actor and its director, during his first time in the director’s chair no less, is a remarkable achievement and testament to his talent level and work ethic. Part of this heavy lift is of course attributable to his role as director and co-writer of the film, changing a role that had previously been much more lean in the other three incarnations of A Star is Born into one much more substantive and fleshed out. However, Cooper’s performance as Jack makes this a wise choice as his acting is the best the film has to offer, with the actor transforming himself from a Philly boy into a believable southwestern country-rocker with the accent and voice to match. Cooper’s ability to disappear into Jack is a key aspect in making A Star is Born work and results in the director also providing the film’s best acting. It helped that Cooper had Sam Elliot playing Jack’s older brother Bobby in the film to serve as a model for his character’s vocal inflections, and as director Cooper cleverly works the similarities into the plot as an aspect of the brothers’ tenuous relationship. Elliot shines in his supporting role as Bobby, paying a major role in providing background for the audience on Jack’s tumultuous backstory. The film is full of emotional threads and Bobby and Jack’s history is no exception, with the final conversation of the film between the two brothers serving as an especially poignant scene in a film that features many.
The topic of conversation surrounding the build-up to the release of A Star is Born has undoubtedly been international superstar and powerhouse singer and musician Lady Gaga. Her anticipated debut as a lead actress was of particular interest to this reviewer, as I have not been particularly impressed with her previous acting work, despite my respect and admiration for her considerable musical talent. Following A Star is Born‘s premiere at numerous festivals, much has been made of what many believe is her inevitable nomination for acting at the upcoming Academy Awards. While I didn’t leave the film as convinced, I was pleased with what she brought to the screen. As one half of the couple at the center of the film’s plot, Gaga’s performance took on obvious importance and, in the end, she was able to meet what was required of her as an actress. Her chemistry with Cooper and the progression of their relationship was believable and felt real. Gaga is able to fully convey Ally’s development from aspiring singer, still clinging to a dream but cynical about her chances to make it in an industry that values the superficial as much as the substantive, to a starstruck young girl smitten by a older star musician but weary of where it could lead, to a new artist both enjoying and suffering from the trappings of newfound fame. The whirlwind of emotions involved in such a journey help to shape the love affair at the film’s center and Gaga ably holds up her end. Despite her good performance, I did feel some room for improvement is still left to be had. As Gaga continues to develop as an actress, her ability to emote must develop with her. The difference in the level of emotion she communicates as an actress during her speaking parts and when she is performing is easily noticeable on-screen. Whether happy, sad, or frustrated, her brow remains steady and unchanged. When we laugh or smile, cry or yell, our brows and foreheads move alongside our emotions. For the majority of A Star is Born, when Gaga does these things as Ally, her brow remains flat. Compare this to scenes of musical performances where Gaga is using her world class voice to belt out emotional lyrics. Her brow rises or presses closer together, indicative of the passion, emotion, and effort she is utilizing in the moment. If Gaga could harness that into the conveyance of her dialogue, it would boost her ability as an actress that much higher.
While the film is not solely about music, music does play an integral part and Cooper and Gaga ensured that A Star is Born did not disappoint sonically or with its aesthetic. As director, Cooper obviously put time into how the music sounded, but also how it was conveyed on-screen. The sound design in the film is crisp and loud, fully utilizing the speakers in the theater, and the performance scenes utilized familiar backgrounds shot at their actual locations with real people serving as the crowds like Coachella and Saturday Night Live. The camera work during the songs is brought in tight, focusing on Ally and Jack and placing them and their connection at the center, but also creating a real, documentary feel to the scenes. The songs themselves have the Midas professional touch of both Gaga and the band Lukas Nelson (son of Willie) & Promise of the Real, who also perform as Jack’s fictional band. Shallow is the clear frontrunner for Best Original Song and sounds like any Top 40 hit record and not just something made for a movie. The talent in the studio crafting the film’s songs contributes to Gaga and Cooper’s performances in making both believable as music superstars. Gaga is her usual self, belting out the tunes with her amazing vocals and range and Cooper impressively is able to avoid an obvious chance for embarrassment an actor and singing amateur playing a role and not appear out of place singing next to the star.
A Star is Born is a heart-wrenching love story set amidst a convincing musical backdrop, appealing to our own experiences with lost loves and relationships that we couldn’t save. The film is a notable achievement for Bradley Cooper, an actor whose skill may not have been fully appreciated until now and whose directorial prowess is now something to watch intently. In adapting a Hollywood standard for the fourth time, he was able to change the film into something that he can reasonably call his own creation while also respecting the versions that came before and keeping in their spirit. Lady Gaga gives her best acting performance yet and musically, adds another impressive line to her resume with both her singing and writing for the film, at times struggling to fully emote, but holding her own alongside the great Cooper. Sam Elliot makes the most of his screen-time as a supporting actor, providing an additional emotional subplot that both fleshed out Cooper’s character, but contained enough quality to stand on its own. A Star is Born will compete for a plethora of awards during the coming winter and its hard to argue with the end product receiving such recognition.
Image: Warner Bros.
