A Star Is Born

It's a story as old as time, and that's evident in the fact that Bradley Cooper's A Star Is Born is the fourth (yes, FOURTH) remake of the movie classic. However, with clearly passionate directing and acting throughout, furthered by wonderful music and an efficient portrayal of the classic rags-to-riches story, this proves a thoroughly entertaining and memorable watch that absolutely flies by over the course of nearly two and a half hours.

But before we get into all that, I have to start with the film's opening half hour, which is exceptional. Despite its long running time, there's so much packed into the opening act, and it's delivered with jaw-dropping passion and energy, to the point where I felt absolutely exhilarated by the film within such a short period of time.

The passion with which Bradley Cooper is directing the movie is clear from the opening scene, and as we see our superstar musician form an unlikely and unexpected bond with a young local singer, the film begins to tell that age-old story about finding fame in beautiful and riveting fashion.

In fact, in the knowledge that it's a story that you know like the back of your hand, Cooper ingeniously ramps the dial up to eleven as we watch our young up-and-coming star caught up in an exhilarating whirlwind as she is suddenly transported from a small waitressing job to singing in front of thousands, culminating in a stunningly moving musical sequence that feels like a true epiphany, as you watch this young woman overwhelmed as she gets her first taste of stardom, something that I was absolutely blown away by.

That opening half hour is truly exceptional. Full of emotion, drama and moving at a pace that mirrors the dramatic transformation from ordinary singer to superstar, it's exhilarating to watch at every moment, and easily the best opening act I've seen from a film this year, setting up the rest of the film fantastically.

Rather unfortunately, however, things don't quite pan out in the same stunning fashion through the rest of the movie. While the remained of A Star Is Born is still good, I was left feeling a little disappointed that it couldn't keep up that same exhilarating energy and emotion from the first act, as things quieten down and become a little more predictable.

Of course, there's nobody who doesn't know this story, so being predictable isn't as much of a problem, but what I found frustrating about the film was how it failed to keep delving deeper into the lives of the lead characters as their careers start flying in completely opposing directions.

As a director, Cooper did an incredible job with the opening half hour, and his passion for the subject matter remains strong throughout, but the problem comes in the way that he portrays the main points of this age-old story in a rather plain fashion, moving a little too readily onto each new stage in the two singers' careers without leaving enough time for things to settle.

In that, the film has a good pace to it that makes it a thoroughly entertaining watch right to the end, but with the exception of the opening act and the finale, there just isn't enough depth to the individuals here, leaving me a little detached from their emotions throughout the middle portion, and having to rely on my knowledge of the classic rags-to-riches story to understand more about what they were feeling.

So, a little bit more clarity and patience would have gone a long way here, and I would have been genuinely happy to watch another half hour or so of the film.

While the second two-thirds of the movie aren't so profoundly moving, that doesn't mean there's nothing to praise, because along with Cooper's passionate directing, we see two fantastic performances from the director himself as well as Lady Gaga.

Starting off with Bradley Cooper, his portrayal of an aging and fading star is thoroughly fascinating to watch. While he doesn't appear as the story's main focus, the quality of his performance is such that I was at times even more invested in his character than the rise of the starlet, as he pulls off the maturity and likability of his battle-hardened character while still putting in a powerful portrayal of his deeper weaknesses, something that makes him both delightfully appealing and still deeply interesting to follow throughout.

Alongside Cooper is Gaga, who is a real revelation here. Given that she's never been in a role of this magnitude before, her acting ability is truly stunning, and she gives a performance that's just as profound and striking as any experienced A-list actress. Taking from her own experience of life in the music business and her rise to stardom in real life, the passion that she feels for her character is clear in every scene, with that previously mentioned epiphany-inducing musical number 'Shallow' featuring the best example of her incredible acting.

She holds fantastic chemistry with Cooper, and the two make their characters' relationship both convincing and genuinely appealing, even through the inevitable ups and downs of the story, keeping your interest strong as the film moves through the story towards the finish.

In the end, I was very impressed with A Star Is Born. It's unfortunately not pitch-perfect all the way through, but after a mind-blowing opening act, and featuring passionate and likable directing and performances throughout, it proves a massively entertaining watch regardless, with some excellent music to boot.

I know some will say this is a manipulative film. Perhaps, to some extent. When Lady Gaga began performing, I couldn't stand her. My old fogieness caused me to find her pretentious and doing anything for attention. Over the last couple years I have grown to really enjoy what she does. At an advanced age, I would love to see her in concert. Being able to here her great range and depth in this movie was a very pleasant experience. Also, the chops of Bradley Cooper were quite amazing. We all know the plot. I've seen all but one of the previous incarnations, so the big picture stuff was no an issue. There were a few slow moments but I think it worked very well.

Let me start by saying that the performances are solid. Not mind blowing but solid. For her first film, Lady Gaga did very well but I can't say she blew my mind...but hey it's her first film and I like her, so good for her. That being said, the film seems to be getting WAY overblown by people. The first act is really great and the chemistry between Gaga and Cooper is phenomenal but after that it sort of devolves into a melodrama. The character development of Cooper's character is lacking. He is an alcoholic and we certainly see him drunk many times but I didn't see enough struggle to justify his character arc not was Cooper's performance powerful enough to convey the devastating agony of addiction. The film then goes through a few cliches as we see Gaga's character ascend to fame but again, we also don't see enough struggle from her character either. In all, the character conflicts are addressed but the film never fully dives into them in the way it certainly could have. I loved the first song of the film but the rest of the music was surprisingly bland and didn't captivate me at all. Lady Gaga obviously has an incredible voice and Cooper held his own surprisingly. Overall it was a good film, not great, just good.

Being a film buff I never watched the older takes of "A Star is Born" however I watched this latest modern spin with Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga(who have great on screen chemistry together). The film is a joy as it touches your emotions and grows on you from the love of the two central characters and the pain combined with fame and sorrow make this musical drama(the songs are uplifting)a wonderful watch.

Jackson Maine(Bradley Cooper) is a hard living and hard whiskey drinking western rock singer who lives it up entertaining crowd after crowd. Jackson is a man who's got plenty of personal demons besides the bottle as his family friction with only brother Bobby(the great Sam Elliott) weighs on his heart heavy. Things change when Ally(Lady Gaga) captures his heart along the way the two get to know each other in an intimate way as passion becomes love.

Still the love is not without struggle and heartache as Ally becomes famous and well known while Jackson's music and personal life both take a downward path with alcoholism as he just can't escape his own dark shadows. It's like you as the viewer could see the tragedy coming all along.

Overall entertaining film with fine and beautiful music and the on screen chemistry between Bradley and Gaga is in top notch form, as clearly this is one love drama to see that showcases the rise of fame and stardom, also while showing a grim personal downfall.

This is the 4th version of A Star Is Born I've seen - 5th if you count What Price Hollywood - each version had a life of their own and reflected the times of the time in which it was made. The 2018 version is no exception. For me represented also the revelation of Lady Gaga as a phenomenal film presence. She is, quite simply, superb. Moving, powerful and real. Janet Gaynor had brought a form of overwhelming innocence, Judy Garland exploded in heartbreak in a Hollywood that doesn't exist anymore and she was, unquestionably, memorable. Barbara Streisand was tough with a strong sense of self even during her tribulations. Lady Gaga brings a little of each of them as well as something profoundly personal. Kudos to Bradley Cooper. His Norman Maine has a new name and a totally new presence. At times this version seems more about him than about her. In any case, I loved them both - Bravo!