Maestro

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!

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.

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.

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.

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.