A Star is Born (2018)

[aabattery]

Just take another look at it.

[Ezen Baklattan]

Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper deserve all the good in the universe.

 

A-

[CoolioD1]

not just an A but a 

 

 

two moments made me cry 1) sam elliott fighting the tears when bradley cooper tells him he's his idol, cos you know when sam elliott cries, coolio cries. 2) the shot of the dog sitting outside the garage after coop hanged himself, which is like the cheapest fucking thing in the world but godddaaaaaaamn it.

 

i have some nitpicks (rise to fame felt kinda rushed, slimy british manager is a character from a worse movie) but this is some transcendent shit. just gotta shout out the concert scenes especially because i literally did my film studies dissertation on concert films, i've seen a lot of them, and this had some of the best concert scenes i've ever seen like holy shit.

 

 

[Webslinger]

The basic structure of A Star Is Born may tread familiar ground, but star and first-time director Bradley Cooper’s take on this classic story is exceptional. Despite the disadvantages inherent in the fact that informed viewers will know the gist of where this film is ultimately headed, it’s so raw, passionate, and poignant that every twist and turn of the plot feels organic and every emotional beat elates or bruises with an urgency to match the intensity of the central romance. At the center of the film, the two leads deliver incredible performances worthy of the year-end plaudits they are sure to receive. As the titular ascending star, Lady Gaga gives one of the most impressive breakthrough performances in recent memory. Her music has always carried such a high degree of character-driven performance that her acting ability should come as little surprise, but she’s such a natural and so attuned to Ally’s dreams, insecurities, and complicated love that her work feels like that of a seasoned veteran rather than someone in her first cinematic leading role. It’s an extremely honest, vulnerable performance that contrasts with her often ostentatious musical persona, and she charms and cuts deep in equal measure. As the male lead, Bradley Cooper does some of the most impressively layered and internalized work of his career to date. Whereas most of his notable work prior to this point saw him inhabit extroverted characters with distinctive character traits, his turn as washed-up musician Jackson Maine is studied, mannered work in which Cooper powerfully conveys a life of discernible pain with flashes of hope largely through labored dialogue and gestures. Taken as individuals, Lady Gaga and Cooper are excellent; taken as a romantic couple, their chemistry is smoldering – so much so, in fact, that rumors of cuts made to the film’s steaminess do not lessen the white-hot intensity of their characters’ romance nor the peaks and valleys of their relationship. While much of the praise for the film’s acting will rightfully belong to the two leads, supporting players Sam Elliott and Dave Chappelle also make the very most of their limited screen time with soulful work that heightens both the joy and tragedy of the presence Ally and Jack have in each other’s lives. As could be expected from a film with a major musical star in a leading role, the original songs are superb and enhance the narrative in a powerful manner – particularly as that narrative nears its end and leans on music as a vehicle for exploring Ally and Jack’s relationship and the complex emotions associated with where that relationship stands at the end of the film. It’s such a strong, indelibly powerful remake that it feels less like a remake than it does an outstanding retelling of a story that still has the power to resonate through new voices in new generations. It’s my favorite film of the year to date, and sure to finish near – if not at – the top when the dust clears on 2018. 

 

A

 

Stray Thoughts:

- Matthew Libatique's cinematography is awesome here - maybe even the best work of his career to date. It trades the grittiness of his Aronofsky films for a prettier aesthetic, but it retains the intimacy in those films' visual styles to excellent effect in so many shots.

 

- The opening scene does a great job of setting the stage for Jack's struggle over the course of the film. The scene is loud, chaotic, and disorienting, but it shows viewers that Jack embraces the noise and disorder of his music as a distraction from the noise and disorder of his crumbling life offstage.

 

- It might initially seem hard to buy a superstar like Lady Gaga as an unknown up-and-comer, but it's actually quietly brilliant casting. Her musical persona is so steeped in artifice that seeing her give a raw, natural performance with minimal theatrics makes her seem like a wholly different artist than the eccentric boundary-pusher she came across as in the late-'00s/early-'10s. When she clasps her hands together out of nervous surprise at her ability to take the stage in front of thousands of people during her first live performance, it feels genuine - definitely not an easy feat for an actress who has performed in front of plenty of sellout crowds.

 

- The audience I saw this one with bawled their eyes out throughout the last 15 minutes or so. There was no applause at the end, but I'd call the silence a stunned one rather than an indifferent one; the chatter on the way out was gushingly positive.

[Fancyarcher]

My review.

 

https://dailyuv.com/968328

[Deja23]

So good! I was a blubbering mess by the end. 😭

 

The Great: 
Lady Gaga was a revelation! I haven’t seen her act in anything and she nailed this. She was Ally. I rooted for her. I cried with her. I cheered for her. I empathized with her. She just felt so real and strong and open. 
Bradley Cooper was also great. While Ally’s character was the one I identified with, Cooper’s Jack was a tragic character. Also cried when he cried in the rehab scene. And hated him for some of his actions, like DYING! I felt very conflicted about him, up to the end. Man was I cringing all through the Grammy Awards scene. 
The Chemistry! So palpable! From their first meeting through it all. Despite the bad stuff, I kept hoping they’d overcome everything and loved it when it seemed like they would. 

 

The Good:
The music was really good. Some songs were ehhh...though I get their purpose. I liked Black Eyes a lot. Didn’t know Bradley Cooper could sing. And Shallow! So good! There were points I wanted to clap and cheer. 

 

The Bad:
Honestly can’t think of anything bad in this. I think my only point of confusion was Dave Chappelle’s character’s getting Ally and Jack to get married immediately after the proposal. 

 

Will definitely watch again! A

[Cap]

I remember Bradley Cooper on Alias, so like, I am both so proud and so SHOOKTH.

[filmlover]

This is the best movie I've seen so far this year and I won't be surprised if it remains that way. I've seen all three of the previous versions, and this might be the most effective one of them all (this is worlds better than the Streisand movie from the 70s). While there's nothing here that will surprise anyone who has seen the earlier ones (or even those who haven't), it hits harder than you expect, and the entire audience is sure to be in tears by the end (I sure was). I never would've guessed that Bradley Cooper had something like this in him behind the camera. In front of the camera, he gives what is easily the best performance of his career. I can easily see him taking home an Oscar for this. He's often matched, and at times even exceeded, by Lady Gaga. While this isn't the renowned singer's major acting debut (that was the lame fifth season of American Horror Story), she convincingly sells Ally's transformation and has fantastic chemistry with Cooper. The soundtrack is also terrific and I'm sure to pick it up off of iTunes soon. Remakes often come criticized for trying to update stories that don't need improvement. Cooper makes a strong case for how necessary they are when they're done this well. A

[The Panda]

At the end Elliott’s character talks about every artist replaying the same 12 notes in an octave, all the same thing but each putting their own spin on it.

 

I feel like that was Cooper’s way of commentating about movies and art in general.

 

A Star is Born is a story that’s been told quite a few times, yet each one uniquely effective (or ineffective).

 

Cooper’s version is powerful, and left me floored.  Some great commentary on the industry, and a haunting tale of fame that remains so effective because of the truth it tells.  

 

Cooper is phenomenal behind and in front of the character, and has some of the strongest emotional gut punches of the film.  Lady Gaga’s performance is on an equivalent level in emotion and believability.  For two giant names they sure do get lost into their characters.

 

One of the best I’ve seen this year (if not the best)

 

A

[MrPink]

Hey...what I said earlier, y'know...about...stealing your voice...it was you I idolized not dad"

 

😭

[ainsleyb]

Really overhyped. Cooper both behind and in front of the camera is the best thing the film has going for it but a lot of the rest is generic.

 

There is one truly standout song which is played 4-5 times. The rest of the film jarringly goes between concert scenes to jack drinking to Gaga becoming world famous after a couple of shows. 

 

The story is so generic and obvious (ageing drunk musician) and a (self conscious girl with talent) that it’s hard to connect with the story or care too much about what happens to either of them. The Brit record producer is another bland character who’s every action is predictable.

 

overall it’s got one good song and a few well acted scenes but the story and characters are dull.

 

6/10

 

[baumer]

Absolutely stunning in every single way. I hope this gets nominated for every single Oscar that it's eligible for. Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga were amazing and Bradley's directorial debut was just stunning in every way possible.

 

10/10

[RichWS]

It slows a bit in the second half when Ally's STAR IS BORN, but that first half and ending is really terrific. It got a few tears outta me here and there. Shallow is the high point. It's probably gonna win Picture.

[tonytr87]

My review:

 

https://italianimposter.com/2018/10/08/a-star-is-born/ 

 

A modern classic. Bradley Cooper is for real. 

[IndustriousAngel]

8/10, A

Perfectly executed, good performances and (mostly) music, but what surprised me most was the very agile camera, no surprise when I saw the responsible's name in the credits.

[DAJK]

I want to do 2 reviews for this at some point, one right now at midnight so I can just sneeze my initial thoughts into a post, and one a little bit down the road once the movie's sunk in.

 

It's good. No, it's great. Really great stuff here pretty much throughout. I've definitely got some gripes which I'll get into,  but they may just be due to how freaking high my expectations were. Cooper and Gaga are both brilliant in this. While he's clearly a more seasoned actor, and does outshine Gaga in some of the serious more weighty moments, she takes all the spotlight away in the musical numbers. Don't get me wrong, Bradley's a great singer, but Gaga is just on a whole other level.

 

The songs were fantastic too (just about to listen to Shallow again) and their performances were top-notch. Directing was solid, especially for a first-time director. The first and third acts were fantastic, the second act did drag a little but not to the point where I was taken out of the movie. 

 

My main gripe is with the emotional impact IMO. Not that the final 10 minutes aren't gut-wrenching, but I think some of the storytelling could have been handled slightly better (considering the rest of the film is a master of storytelling). Comparing it to the camera work for a second, much of the shots are very close to the actors, which I think is a brilliant visual way of highlighting the personal effects of the story on each character. So while, once Cooper died in the film, I knew the film wouldn't go around showing how it affected everyone, I thought there wasn't enough of Gaga's reaction/dealing with the tragedy. If the movie really wants to focus on her and the consequences his death had on her, it should have really gone for it but instead it felt quite rushed at the end. Now while you can definitely argue that the final song highlights her emotional journey since his death, I think there should have been a bit more storytelling involved there.

 

Overall it's a great movie. Not perfect, and I think the ending's impact could have been stronger. But I digress, I would see it multiple times if movies were still free for me. Gonna be a big player for the next few months and throughout awards season. 

 

8/10

 

[baumer]

Shallow is such a hypnotic song!

[filmlover]

8 hours ago, DAJK said:

My main gripe is with the emotional impact IMO. Not that the final 10 minutes aren't gut-wrenching, but I think some of the storytelling could have been handled slightly better (considering the rest of the film is a master of storytelling). Comparing it to the camera work for a second, much of the shots are very close to the actors, which I think is a brilliant visual way of highlighting the personal effects of the story on each character. So while, once Cooper died in the film, I knew the film wouldn't go around showing how it affected everyone, I thought there wasn't enough of Gaga's reaction/dealing with the tragedy. If the movie really wants to focus on her and the consequences his death had on her, it should have really gone for it but instead it felt quite rushed at the end. Now while you can definitely argue that the final song highlights her emotional journey since his death, I think there should have been a bit more storytelling involved there.

I think spending most of the time alone following Jackson's death and having a breakdown by smashing up all of the posters on their wall was more than enough to convey the pain Ally was feeling.

[DAJK]

18 minutes ago, filmlover said:

I think spending most of the time alone following Jackson's death and having a breakdown by smashing up all of the posters on their wall was more than enough to convey the pain Ally was feeling.

Fair enough, but I just felt the whole sequence was very quick, and very structured. To each their own though, my older cousin was crying so I don’t think it was not effective

[Jayhawk the Hutt]

The Shallow scene is almost certainly the best movie moment of the year and an instant classic.