Review of A Star Is Born (2018) by Shay Z — 16 Oct 2018

A Star is Born was made 5 times in Hollywood (1932 by George Cukor, 1937 by Selznick & starring Janet Gaynor, 1954 and BEST one with Judy Garland drawing parallels to her own life 1976 one with Barbara Streisand and then once in Bollywood in 2013 with relatively newcomers and which was copied frame by frame with songs in Tollywood in 2014.

A Star Is Born keeps getting remade for a reason: It's a story of romance and mortality, with a swooning arc that borders on the epic. and mostly because it describes the American celebrity-making machine. No wonder it's proven so attractive to the filmmakers and actors who keep retelling the story, retooling it for another generation. A Star is Born follows an essential arc that has, thus far, stayed the same: An aging male celebrity, hamstrung by his addictions, meets a talented, younger woman with whom he is instantly smitten. He connects her to the platform and contacts she needed, and she becomes a sensation almost overnight; meanwhile, his career is bottoming out. The two fall in love and marry, and her success then becomes a problem for him. Some of the above mentioned remakes have switched the careers of the lead artists as singers, rock music players, actresses, directors but the essence of the film remains the same. This one resembles more closely to the 1976 and 1954 one.

As far as the production values and performances go I will have to start with the dynamite screen chemistry that Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga share. I vividly remember how gratuitously Gaga thanked Cooper on the Graham Norton Show for giving her this role after talks with Beyonce fell out. This is a tailor-made role for her and like Judy Garland, it mirrors parts of her career waning away. Since the story is set in the country music industry, its her home ground and hence eats the role like that slab of meat she wore a decade ago. I would not be surprised if she nabs a Oscar nomination and wins the Globes in the Best Actress- Musical or Comedy category. Bradley Cooper's best of all he has done, he seeps into his role as an actor, director, performing, cowriting. You can see the manifestation in every scene, he has put his heart and soul into everything he touched. Sam Elliott makes a sterling presence, despite towering performances by the leads.

Like all the other movies the music by Lukas Neeson (who is the son of country singer Willie Neeson) is electrifying and seamless and the leading pair perform with full gusto and required depth and zeal. The cinematography and A rate and so is the direction which is ace for a 1st time movie director. Bradley Copper knew what he wanted to make and put the paper on celluloid with utmost exemplariness. I did think the editing department cut a few corners though!

Will this be the final A Star Is Born? It seems unlikely. As long as there is Hollywood, there will probably be more versions of the same old story. The shape they take and the details will morph with the times, but the core story - a love story, a melodrama, and a tragedy all wrapped into one - seems to hold unending appeal.