A Star is Born is
a film of two halves. That may appear redundant or reductive to say where the
theme is the rise of one musician and the fall of another and it comes in at a
little over two hours. But, A Star is
Born really is two different experiences, while remaining one very solid
and consistent narrative.
The story is simple, but powerful. A musician at the height of his fame begins his downward spiral, thanks to drink and drugs, while the undiscovered singer/songwriter he discovered (and marries) flourishes into a Grammy award winning pop star. The star that she becomes is, like all stars, born under immense pressure and here that pressure comes from her husband’s disease that has very real implications for her own career.
The first hour of the film is exceptional. Utterly compelling, from the opening shots of Cooper’s Jackson Maine walking on stage to his meeting of Gaga’s Ally, which is perfectly delivered through an unusual song choice, setting the tone for their relationship. The film captures the early exhilaration of a new relationship and a possible new career with slight, but powerful touches. It is difficult not to feel twinges of excitement as these two are revitalised by each other. It is not melodramatic, but feels real and intimate and the direction is close without intruding. The film also has important things to say about fame and celebrity. By the time Maine pulls Ally on stage to surprise her with her own song, A Star is Born has you, emotionally. Then not long after, it spends the last hour pushing you away.
The story moves in the direction it should, this is not the problem. Ally becomes the singer/songwriter she always wanted, with Jackson’s support, but his fame has come at a price and he is ill. These are the struggles we want to see these two face. The issue is that the film doesn’t know how to capture what essentially becomes a very familiar and well told story, with any freshness. The second half becomes a slog. It is as if the film didn’t know how to make marriage and fame interesting, only the anticipation of both. Everything falls flat. And the decision to make Ally’s manager become a boo/hiss pantomime villain is odd and distracting. We spend too much time of the mechanics of her industry (performances, rehearsals) and not enough seeing them as people in their own lives, which are passing each other by. There are moments towards the end that show us what the film could have been. Ally visiting Jackson in rehab and his recognition in her and how own fear of saying it, that she might be thinking of moving on is very well handled.
Part of what makes the film so magnetic to begin with and watchable in second half are the two central performances which are, even when lumbered with tired scenes, fantastic. Cooper and Gaga are nothing less than believable and if the film regains any power in its ending it is only because of these two. Impossible to hate, but difficult to love.
The story is simple, but powerful. A musician at the height of his fame begins his downward spiral, thanks to drink and drugs, while the undiscovered singer/songwriter he discovered (and marries) flourishes into a Grammy award winning pop star. The star that she becomes is, like all stars, born under immense pressure and here that pressure comes from her husband’s disease that has very real implications for her own career.
The first hour of the film is exceptional. Utterly compelling, from the opening shots of Cooper’s Jackson Maine walking on stage to his meeting of Gaga’s Ally, which is perfectly delivered through an unusual song choice, setting the tone for their relationship. The film captures the early exhilaration of a new relationship and a possible new career with slight, but powerful touches. It is difficult not to feel twinges of excitement as these two are revitalised by each other. It is not melodramatic, but feels real and intimate and the direction is close without intruding. The film also has important things to say about fame and celebrity. By the time Maine pulls Ally on stage to surprise her with her own song, A Star is Born has you, emotionally. Then not long after, it spends the last hour pushing you away.
The story moves in the direction it should, this is not the problem. Ally becomes the singer/songwriter she always wanted, with Jackson’s support, but his fame has come at a price and he is ill. These are the struggles we want to see these two face. The issue is that the film doesn’t know how to capture what essentially becomes a very familiar and well told story, with any freshness. The second half becomes a slog. It is as if the film didn’t know how to make marriage and fame interesting, only the anticipation of both. Everything falls flat. And the decision to make Ally’s manager become a boo/hiss pantomime villain is odd and distracting. We spend too much time of the mechanics of her industry (performances, rehearsals) and not enough seeing them as people in their own lives, which are passing each other by. There are moments towards the end that show us what the film could have been. Ally visiting Jackson in rehab and his recognition in her and how own fear of saying it, that she might be thinking of moving on is very well handled.
Part of what makes the film so magnetic to begin with and watchable in second half are the two central performances which are, even when lumbered with tired scenes, fantastic. Cooper and Gaga are nothing less than believable and if the film regains any power in its ending it is only because of these two. Impossible to hate, but difficult to love.
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