User reviews

I went to Maestro expecting a film that would chronicle the life of one of America's, if not the world's, great composer/conductors. I've seen Leonard Bernstein many, many times, starting at age 8 when my grandfather took me to Bernstein's music for kids on Saturday mornings at Lincoln Center. I had no idea who he was at the time, only that people called him Lenny. My grandpa took me to meet him and he was spellbinding. I remember him looking right threw me with his expressive eyes.

He loved kids and loved to teach them about music. Turns out grandpa and Lenny went to Harvard together, hence I got a personal introduction. Bernstein is the guy that got me hooked on classical music and music in general, but I didn't learn anything about his musical career, his childhood, his years at Harvard, his work in Europe, who inspired him, etc.

The making of West Side Story is really interesting (if you know the story) but nothing about it in this film and I mean "nothing.; We get a tiny glimpse of Candide, but nothing about its composition or insight into the Maestro's process. We get zero insight into his Missa Brevis, perhaps on the highlights of his career.

Bradley Cooper blew me away. I've seen Lenny up close many times and I've talked to him a few times. Cooper nailed it, and the scene at St John of the Divine is probably one of the greatest musical scenes ever captured on film. Cooper's conducting is simply amazing. He worked very very hard to capture the speech, mannerisms, and the Bernstein attitude and texture toward music. I cannot speak highly enough of Cooper's performance, but we get so little insight into the musician, and that was so disappointing.

Carey Mulligan? Her performance is nothing less than spectacular, in fact all the acting is extraordinary, but it's not a story. The Bernstein children really have nothing to do in this film, and I have no idea why Lenny's sister was included as she has very little to say or do. Overall, a very perplexing film ... not sure what he was going for. In fact, I kept waiting for it to start. The emphasis was all on style, and believe me, it's beautiful to look at.

Think of a biopic of a famous person as like a complex cake - you can carefully dissect one slice of it to examine the contents, or you can bravely try to examine the whole lot to see what it's made of.

This biopic of American composer and conductor Leonard Bernstein is like looking at only the surface of the cake through a slice of Swiss cheese - a lot of loosely connected vignettes with no depth. If you don't know much about the man, you would leave the theatre with no great insights about him.

The film jumps around in time and gives you snippets of the man's life and work. There are scenes about his bisexuality and penchant for men, his role as a conductor and composer, his drug addictions and his relationship with his daughter, but none of these are examined in any depth at all. His bipolar relationship with his wife and her later death from cancer are given the most screen time, but still feels unfulfilled and lacking in substance.

Bradley Cooper directs in a rather disjointed style. The first half is shot in black and white, then we change to colour for no good reason except maybe historical chronology - it doesn't work. Neither does the curiously tight aspect ratio, which again inexplicably opens up to full screen near the end. Some scenes are beautifully shot but too often Cooper relies on the slow zoom in and the very long takes, which don't always seem to match the scene. The film also could have ended perfectly with the penultimate scene, but inexplicably ruins the moment with one extra shot that completely fails to land.

Carey Mulligan is excellent as Bernstein's wife but Cooper as Bernstein doesn't quite work for me. He tends to overact, gives you little insight into the man himself, and the nasal voice starts to grate after a while - maybe it was inevitable with the prosthetic nose he was required to wear.

Even the grand concert scene in the cathedral, conducting his beloved Mahler, didn't quite generate the depth of feeling it could have - contrast this with the Tchaikovsky concert scene in the French-Russian film Le Concert, which takes emotion (actors and viewers) to a much higher level.

All in all this is not a bad movie, and to be fair it does engage the viewer a little more in the second half. But it tackles too many themes with a disturbing superficiality, giving very little substance to almost any. It could have been a lot better. No doubt however it will get lots of Oscar nominations, but then the Academy lost the plot years ago and succumbs to hype more than merit.

We don't know much about Leonard Bernstein. We didn't learn why he wanted to be a composer or how he got in the business. His relationship wasn't very clear either. He's bisexual, but that doesn't go anywhere. His wife isn't explained much either other than being a stage actress. We don't know much about his children. The timelines aren't clear when the movie takes place. It seems to start in the 50s other than the opening scene of him as an old man. I do like Bradley Cooper's performance, but not much comes from the character. We don't know what made him famous since he was already famous before his memorable score in On the Waterfront.

The acting is superb and particularly Carey Mulligan who is astonishing, as usual, and Bradley Cooper's transformation is incredible. The look and feel throughout is very polished. But, and this isn't a minor quibble -- I found it really hard to understand the dialogue! Characters speak so quickly, in a mumble, that I actually considered putting on subtitles. Anyway, it wouldn't have made a difference, I thought the movie was so empty and plotless and uninteresting. There was really no tension in the wife's dealing with her husband's bisexuality, no real exploration or understanding of Bernstein's conflicts, and no delving into his achievements or their context, so there wasn't much left!

Obviously made for the Academy to truly honor Bradley Cooper remarkable transformation into the hoity toity world of Leonard Bernstein. Yes, we know he is going to be great in this role. But sometimes when you surround yourself with Oscar level material and talent, it could seem like it's just fishing for the Little Gold dude.

This is what it felt like. Though, simultaneously...he's just good.

Actor turned directors don't always work. Especially virtuosos that started clownish and end up in the serious zone. Cooper is that guy. Following in the footsteps of Clint Eastwood rather than, say Charles Laughton. It felt like a natural transition for Cooper who seemed to fine tune his energies towards more serious endeavors outside of things like "The Hangover" flicks.

"Silver Linings Playbook" was the start.

And who are his mentors in directing if it weren't the top tier directors.... David O' Russell, Paul Thomas Anderson, Spielberg, Scorsese or Clint Eastwood himself.

What this film struggles with, is the interest level. A lot will go over modern audiences head. Simply because we only know him as the guy who did the music to "West Side Story" And even THAT is stretching it. Cooper doesn't focus his energy on that rather this "love" story of a woman who fell for a gay guy. This would've been interesting 30 years ago. Now, not as intriguing.

Carey Mulligan is the best thing in this movie. At times, she is very much a Katherine Hepburn North Atlantic phony. But when some of the veil of her pain rises to the surface, she drops the pleasantries and tells it like it is.

There is a moment during a Thanksgiving party where we see some of the best acting I've seen between two people. Dialogue is somewhat on the nose, but boy do they both play it to the hilt. It's phenomenal, the ability to get to a screaming match with the words actually meaning something. That is an accomplishment.

Things get slow when the self-indulgent conducting moment creeps in. Yes, we know Brad studied a long time to get Bernstein's mannerisms. Do we really have to see all of it?

Other things that bothered me... it still feels like a very cold movie. Aside from Mulligan, his entire family seems to have been plugged in as trope characters to get you more understanding of the guy. They don't add much. Perhaps that was attempting to be subtle. It felt like subterfuge.

This was Oscar bait in absolute.

A struggling musician agonized by his own genius, talents, and creativity and trapped in loveless marriage filled with guilt. Both look the other way while one has an affair and realize the importance of one's own partner too late. Right now, at the top of my head I can think of 'Fosse/Verdon', 'A Star Is Born', 'George & Tammy', 'Walk the Line', 'Dreamgirls', 'Daisy Jones & The Six', and etc. (Wow, that's a lot.) Biographical genre is especially tricky because it has to excel the life of actual historical figures. 'Maestro' could have been so much better if it delved into the introspective and artistic side of Bernstein deeper or provided a different and fresh point of view on his life rather than reciting his personal life. His autobiography or research would be more fun and interesting than this explanatory movie.

There were a few futile attempts to make the movie look more artistic, abstract, and ambiguous. They failed because they serve no purpose but to look pretentious. White and black, camera movement, the use of light and shadows, and musical aspects. They are all good attempts, but for what? By doing so, is the story getting stronger? Do they enhance what viewers feel? Waste of time and films.

Bradley Cooper's performance is disappointing. He never acts; he imitates. When he's on the screen, we know clearly that he's acting. It's hard to be absorbed and immersed into the screen because he always pushes the audience away with his trying too hard. I get that he wants to emulate Bernstein's twangy voice. However, emotions and messages he delivers are more important than his likeness of Bernstein's tone, accent, sound, or mannerism. He focuses on what's outside of Bernstein rather than what would be inside of him. There is a 10 minute sequence of Cooper conducting, and it's screaming 'Look how good I am!!!'. It's one of the highest points for emotions to burst out for the audience, and I started to laugh.

I was very excited when I heard Maestro was coming out. With all this filmmaking firepower, it would have to be worthy of its subject. Now I've seen the movie and am stunned by the wasted talent and energy expended for what turned into another movie about rich, talented people who appear to have it all, but get sad and emotional just like the rest of us. They just talk about it a LOT more.

The film is beautifully photographed, but I have no idea what the format change and the black and white to color change accomplished. The acting was good, but rather than being shown that the characters are going through something emotional, we are told, All these immensely talented people seem to talk about is their feelings, not their motivations, plans and aspirations.

Leonard Bernstein wrote and conducted some of the most memorable music of the 20th century. He singlehandedly (with help from Bugs Bunny) kept interest in classical music alive when jazz and rock were kings. But we learn nothing of this in this film. Bernstein's talents and accomplishments are presented as facts, without exploration. What a waste.

It's an old (and unanswerable) question: to what extent is it possible - or desirable - to separate the art from the artist? Is it possible to appreciate the art simply as art, and not to delve into the (sometimes tawdry) details of the artist? Or are the art and the artist so inextricably entwined that you cannot understand the one without knowing the other?

I very much lean towards separation. I fell in love with Bernstein's music the first time I saw West Side Story mumble years ago at an impressionable age; which is why I was disappointed that there was so little West Side Story in this film. Surely a biopic of a composer should feature that composer's music pretty heavily?

Of course, we all know that beneath every great artist is a human being - usually with a collection of human flaws. But does this matter? Well, it matters here. What we mostly get is a film about Leonard the man, and his complicated marriage to Felicia Montealegre. Much of this was new to me. I knew that Bernstein was bisexual, but didn't care. I find that I also don't care about most of the other details of his life which were revealed to me - although if the film was truly about the man, not his music, his record as a human rights activist should probably have been at least touched on. But never mind that: I came for the music, and didn't get enough.

Not that this film is without merit. Bradley Cooper's performance is first class - there's one sequence in which he truly shows us the passion of a great conductor - and Carey Mulligan is as riveting as ever. Cinematography and sound are both excellent.

Overall, this is a good film, but ultimately a disappointing one.

Even with its 4 strong nominations at the Golden Globes (Picture, Director, Actor, Actress), I must say my appreciation of Cooper's new film is not as stellar, as organic and fantastic as A Star Is Born (2018) - 8 Oscar noms.

Netflix's firs real Oscar contender was Alfonso Cuarón's Roma (2018) which won 3 of its 10 nominations. Last year's Germany's remake of All Quiet on the Western Front (2022) was nominated for 9 Oscars and won 4. My all-time Netflix favorite is Noah Baumbach's Marriage Story which I rewatched recently. It is much better than that year's Best Picture co-nominee Martin Scorsese's The Irishman (2019) which was still as solid movie. Neither won and Netflix's overall 8 Best Picture nominees did not win since a decade at the Oscars.

This year, Scorsese produces Maestro (2023) with Spielberg, but his own slow burn of a movie Killers of the Flower Moon (2023) has more flair yet not a Netflix production (he produces it with DiCaprio). I think this year's Netflix better picture is Todd Haynes's May December (2023 - also nominated for 4 Golden Globes). So why did Bradley Cooper not exactly deliver?

Carey Mulligan's performance is certainly good, yet his directing lacks the creation of intimacy like he did with Lady Gaga in A Star Is Born. Most interactions are superficial, and you have to wait until the 75th minute to see the first powerful scene with strong dialogue and directing. The intro scenes are compelling up until the two main characters meet, but I found the rest of the first hour a mess. The second half of the film is surely better yet lacks urgency or dramatic tension in directing, even in the hospital scene. There is also a shortage of real wisdom or realisation in the script. We are left with a light and superficial understanding of the two main characters, even to the point where their respective love for music and acting and their love for each other is not really felt. Nolan's Oppenheimer (2023) was much more successful in that aspect and Emily Blunt's performance.

Cooper's acting also lacked some charm in my view, save perhaps a few scenes like in the end when he teaches a young conductor.

Finally, Cooper's directing choices for cinematography left the very talented Matthew Libatique with not much to work with. In Black & White, 4:3 aspect ratio or even 16:9 color, few scenes seem to tell the story like a more claustrophobic The Whale (2022) was able to with his Darren Aronofsky collaboration. Libatique was nominated for an Oscar for his work with Aronofsky's fantastic Black Swan (2011) and with Cooper's sublime A Star is Born (2018).

Better luck next time Coop! Good effort. 6.5/10.

We can still see growth, grit and gusto, but misses the mark as a whole.

As both director and actor, Bradley Cooper isn't afraid to go showy and flamboyant, and for the most part, his approach works within the contours of legendary conductor and composer Leonard Bernstein's larger-than-life personality and unfettered hedonism. With a prosthetic nose that is surprisingly unobtrusive, he captures Bernstein's theatrics as conductor without being excessive, though the lion's share of this 2023 movie is focused on the unconventional, time-spanning love story between Bernstein and actress Felicia Montealegre played with clipped authority and enveloping vulnerability by Carey Mulligan. Cooper gallantly gives her top billing, but this is far more his star vehicle even as their story takes an uninvited turn. Of course, Bernstein's closeted proclivities provide unavoidable complications throughout. Cooper the filmmaker effectively uses overhead crane shots and mise-en-scene transitions like the welcome "Fancy Free" dance sequence. In fact, I wish more of Bernstein's masterworks and his creative process were prominently showcased like, for example, "West Side Story" and "On the Waterfront" beyond their use as incidental background music. Regardless, the film is worth seeing for Cooper's bravura turn and Mulligan's quietly complementary work.

I found myself following Bradley Cooper's effort of acting more than being lost in the story that he was telling. He came off over the top theatrical. He laughs and and makes nonsensical movements at times just to fill space. His delievery of lines are too fast paced and comes off too rehearsed making his scenes about timing and not connecting naturally to other characters. Mulligan's performance was magical and real. She is so talented that the acting seems effortless, yet you know it is the extreme opposite. Maya Hawke is a joy. She is a gift and has proved to be a highly enjoyable talent in her performances. I think Cooper has a great intention and creative eye, but the effort falls flat. I almost want him to take the film and sit on it and comeback to modify his performance. I think as he grows his talent he will come to understand that people want to see the character and not see Bradley Cooper acting the character. The movie is worth the watch, but not worth the wait.

This movie is not real. It exists only as a selfish desire to be award bait from all involved. It's not the first one and not the last one. But it feels so devoid of realness that it hurts. It is also a contradiction because the actors are very capable of bringing a kind of realness that is necessary for bringing the characters to life but the realness is so painfully manufactured and not natural...it doesn't have that cinema magic, it's all in the eyes. They were patting themselves on the back after every scene: "My, my, this is so "insert generic award here" worthy." I'm talking here about the technical aspects as well. The black and white left me cold.

It's not a bad movie in any sense. I just wanted to be fooled more and not be so paperthin and melodramatic.

Maestro (2023) seems a very flimsy "biography" of Leonard Bernstein. We learn just about nothing of his life. Music. Wife. Boys on the side. Other than that?

The film stars Bradley Cooper and a fake nose. He (Cooper, not the nose) also co-wrote, directed, and produced and is being hailed for his work and artistic ambition. Coincidentally, I'm reading Barbra Streisand's new 970-page memoir and in her section on Yentl, she recalls the reviews that lambasted her colossal ego to star in a film she also co-wrote, directed, and produced.

Anyway, I found Cooper's performance to be hysterically hammy (yes, I know Bernstein was flamboyant) and Mulligan's wife just plain annoying. Such self-centered people who were always "on." They were exhausting to watch ... but that's the whole film. There's no background material, Just them swanning about like characters out of Auntie Mame screaming "I was never in the chorus!"

This will likely reap a slew of Oscar nominations and Cooper will probably beat of DiCaprio and Cillian Murphy for best actor. Wry. Hold the ham!

Maybe it's Bradley Cooper's commitment that took over my senses. His vision is on the screen. He didn't take the safe, the easy way out. His performance is so moving. Yes, he wrote, directed and plays the title role but look at the space he dedicates to Carey Mulligan, even the billing is a tribute to her and she is sublime. Sublime! I know that the scenes of Bernstein teaching and conducting are scenes that I'm going to see again and again. They are spectacular! Also, for anyone who loves movies, it's a beautiful thing to see the names of Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg as producers of this gem. Endorsing not just the movie but its maker. Bravo!

Carrie Mulligan is outstanding. Cooper the actor is almost as good. Cooper the director is often breathtaking.

I knew in advance that this was a study of the Bernstein's romance, and not of his creative process as an artist. It is hard to show that creative process in a film. Many times, to portray the trials of creation effectively, a director must expect his audience to have some familiarity with the process. Most of us are not painters, nor dancers, nor composer/conductors. Most of us don't understand how a composer can wrestle with choosing the next note... a 4th or a flat 4th? Such quandaries aren't fascinating to most and are largely unexplored. Films that partially succeed often have crazy protagonists: "Lust for Life"'s Van Gogh, or "Pollock".

Cooper's direction makes frequent use of the "long take", a single shot that can take minutes and has no cuts or edits. These shots give us a sense of "place", we are there: a long take (and long shot from a distance) of the couple talking with arbors of grapevines framing the scene, the couple on either side of a room arguing while the Thanksgiving Day parade floats past the window, and a wonderful six minute long take of Cooper conducting Mahler 2. Kudos to Matthew Libatique's photography.

... and a brief statement to those who complain about the prosthetic: grow up.

On the whole, the movie came up a bit short for me. My takeaways: Mulligan rules, and I can't wait to see what Cooper does next.

It's worth noting that at this past weekend's screening of "Maestro" for members of the Motion Picture Academy, the filmmakers received a standing ovation when they came onstage for the Q&A afterward. This from a crowd of around 800 folks who actually know what it takes to make a film, are willing to make the trek across town, and are not an easy group to impress to that degree. A standing ovation from that crowd is a rare event.

As others have noted, this is primarily a study of the relationship between two artists, one a well-regarded Broadway actress (played brilliantly by Carey Mulligan) and the other a once-in-a-generation musical genius. While others bemoan this approach to what some characterize as a biopic (it isn't really), I feel it was a smart way to let the audience in on Bernstein the man. Bernstein the musician is pretty easy to learn about - just check Wikipedia, YouTube and the gazillion recordings available.

Many major filmmakers, including Martin Scorsese & Steven Spielberg, have tried tackling a "biopic" of Bernstein, and struggled on the best approach; Spielberg essentially handed the project to the fresh-off from "A Star is Born" Bradley Cooper when Steven learned of Cooper's passion from childhood for conducting and his fascination with Bernstein. It didn't hurt that Cooper, even without the brilliant prosthetics (approved by the Bernstein children), looks remarkably like Bernstein, and was able to get his voice, accent and speech patterns down so perfectly that if I closed my eyes at that screening I would have sworn I was hearing the Lenny Bernstein I grew up watching on TV. Cooper, growing by leaps and bounds as a filmmaker with this one, serves his actors brilliantly, and leaves the viewer with a palpable sense of what maestro Bernstein was like as a human, flaws and all.

This movie has been shown and competed at many festivals around the world, so ive been very excited about it, because i also have a big interest for music.

I really enjoy the black and white format. It brings a very artistic style. Im actually getting some Wes Anderson vibe, of the style it has.

Filming, editing and cinematography is very good! I got a little surprised that Bradley Cooper actually directed this aswell being actor in it and he does it very good in both professions. Truly extremely well acted and directed with genuine passion!

Its also very well written! And the soundtrack is really good aswell and the use of Bernsteins real music makes it just better and feel more authentic!

Very well put together and very well made!

However, it has some confusing moments. But overall a good film. Pure art!

The cathedral scene is one of the best single shot scenes ive ever seen! One of Bradley Coopers best performances ever! Brilliant! Definitely deserves a Oscar academy award winner!

Definitely one of 2023s must watches!

A beautiful told lifestory!

A very deep and beautiful film that i recommend!