A Star is Born is a remake of a classic Hollywood story first made in 1937. This is the fourth adaptation, now directed by Bradley Cooper – who is also one of the protagonists. As Cooper makes his directorial debut, he delivers a masterpiece of great precision and talent. The movie also introduces Lady Gaga as his romantic interest. Famous for her pop career and extravagant personality, the singer appears without any accessories, with just her pure talent and voice. In addition to proving to be a complete artist, Gaga happened to be a risky bet that fit perfectly into the script.
Mixing passion and drama in equal measures, the plot establishes a solid and complex narrative structure. The story begins with an energetic rhythm, portraying the main character, Jackson Maine, during his performance at a big show. He is a successful country musician who meets Ally, an unknown songwriter, when he happens to enters a drag queens club. From then on, he encourages her to pursue a career as a singer, and a love story starts to develop between them.
Image source: IMDB
The first hour of the movie is funny and romantic, but after that, as Ally achieves her place in the music industry, Maine’s life steadily declines because of his addiction to alcohol and drugs. The plot, however, goes far beyond that and adds multiple human traits to the characters.
Bradley’s character is extremely complex and, throughout the story, we find out that he carries an intense emotional load and unresolved issues. One of them involves his relationship with his older brother, Bobby, played by Sam Elliott. Sam is another highlight of the cast, and has been highly rated by critics for his resourcefulness in the movie as well.
Image source: IMDB
Besides that, Cooper and Gaga have managed to build a compelling and very enjoyable romantic chemistry. Their emotional involvement is immediate, and the script succeeds in not romanticizing the relationship all the time, by showing the ups and downs of the couple. Another good point is the critique to the construction of self image since we are part of a society, which is constantly based on appearances.
The changes characters go through while searching for fame, and also its consequences, are remarkably profound – and the film makes a point of exposing this aspect. Last but not least, the movie has a great soundtrack, which serves both to elucidate the different phases of the characters life’s and to please the viewers in a romantic and heartbreaking way.
There are plenty of reasons to check out this beautiful remake out in theaters. I hope you love the movie as much as I did!