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A STAR IS BORN
Starring: Lady Gaga, Bradley Cooper, Sam Elliott
Director: Bradley Cooper
Genre: Drama, Music, Romance
Rating: 15+
RUNTIME: 136 Mins
I KNOW, I’m about to show my age, but with regular film reviewer Kristian Harrison overseas, I had to step in and do the honours with a trip down memory lane.
I started my journalism career as a cub reporter at my home town newspaper in the UK and one of my tasks (as well as making the Editor countless cups of tea) was to write a weekly movie column.
One of the first films I ever reviewed at the Classic Cinema in Banbury in 1976 was A Star Is Born about a young singer (Barbra Streisand) who met and fell in love with an established rock ’n’ roll star (Kris Kristofferson), only to find her career ascending while his goes into decline.
The film was a remake of the 1937 original drama starring Janet Gaynor and Fredric March, which had also been adapted in 1954 as a musical starring Judy Garland and James Mason.
Step forward to 2018 and I’m sat with my teenage daughter, Imogen, at VOX The Avenues, for the Bahrain premier of the latest version.
This new take on the tragic love story finds Bradley Cooper playing seasoned musician Jackson Maine, who discovers – and falls in love with – struggling artist Ally, Lady Gaga.
She had just about given up on her dream to make it big as a singer until Jack coaxes her into the spotlight. But even as Ally’s career takes off, the personal side of their relationship is breaking down, as Jack fights an ongoing battle with his own internal demons.
A Star Is Born may be a remake, but Cooper and Gaga make the material feel fresh, urgent and relevant.
Star reputations were on the line here for both main characters. They were putting their talents to the test and could so easily have come unstuck by venturing out of their comfort zones.
The challenge appears to have worked in their favour. It was the pop star’s first major film role and for his part, the movie-man had to learn to play the guitar. The four-time Oscar nominee took music lessons for 18 months to master the musical instrument and even made a surprise appearance on Glastonbury’s Pyramid Stage in June, 2017, as part of live singing scenes for the film.
He, incidentally, preceded Kris Kristofferson’s set and later revealed to reporters the plan to sing live was down to Lady Gaga: “She said: ‘what I cannot stand in movies is when it’s playback and you can see they’re lip-syncing. We’re going to sing live’,” he recalled.
The stage performances by both characters are immerse and the music magnificent, so much so, that I’ve already downloaded the sound track (I’ll Never Love Again extended version is a cracker).
To be honest, I’ve never been a follower of Lady Gaga’s career until now and had to ask Imogen to play some of her songs in the car just to remind me what I’d been missing, but she has immense stage presence and an impressive vocal range.
In addition to playing Ally, Gaga, who earned an Oscar nod for the song Til It Happens to You from The Hunting Ground, performs original songs in the film, which she wrote with Cooper and a handful of artists, including Lukas Nelson, Jason Isbell and Mark Ronson.
A Star is Born 2018 was produced by Bill Gerber, Jon Peters, Todd Phillips, Lynette Howell Taylor and Cooper. Ravi Mehta, Basil Iwanyk, Niija Kuykendall, Sue Kroll, Michael Rapino and Heather Parry served as executive producers. The screenplay was by Cooper, Eric Roth and Will Fetters.
Collaborating with Cooper behind the scenes were Oscar-nominated director of photography Matthew Libatique (Black Swan), production designer Karen Murphy, three-time Oscar-nominated editor Jay Cassidy (American Hustle, Silver Linings Playbook, Into the Wild) and costume designer Erin Benach.
The cast also includes Andrew Dice Clay, Dave Chappelle and Sam Elliott and don’t be surprised if one of them picks up a supporting actor gong.
There’s a Simon Cowell-type character the audience just loves to hate in the form of Ally’s manager Rez (Rafi Gavron). With a cut-to-fit British accent he moulds her into a pop artist that sees her shelve her integrity for hits before whispering darkly in Jackson’s ear.
There’s one poignant part in particular when the self-destructing rocker is having it out with his brother and tour manager, Bobby (Elliott), in Bobby’s pickup truck.
Their relationship has been through the wringer a few times over now, and it’s always been complicated by their respective memories of their long-dead father. But as Jackson stands outside the vehicle, he hits his much-older brother with an emotionally surprising confession.
A moment later, Bobby turns to back up his truck, and the rugged music veteran, who’s seemingly seen everything, looks over his shoulder with bloodshot, tear-soaked eyes. The 74-year-old screen vet revealed that this magical moment was completely unscripted and unplanned.
It’s a moment made all the more tragic, considering the film’s subsequent events.
I’m still a big softie. I cried in 1976 and wept once again in 2018, despite knowing how it was all going to end.
- Now Showing in: The Avenues, City Centre, Seef II, Saar, Wadi Al Sail, Seef Muharraq
Stan’s verdict: 5/5
