A Review Is Born

A Star is born came out in October, 2018. It is the fourth version of the story. The film is both the debut of Bradley Cooper as a director and singer and a rare occasion to see world-famous performer Lady Gaga on screen.

The original film was created in 1937. The first remake came out in 1954, then twenty years later, in 1976, it appeared again, but every time with different lead actors. Originally, the 2018 remake was planned to be directed by Clint Eastwood and the female role would have been played by Beyoncé. Many actors, such as Leonardo DiCaprio, Will Smith and Tom Cruise turned down the deal to play the male lead, until it was confirmed that Bradley Cooper was going to be not just the main actor, but the director, too. The film was a huge success. The critics were amazed by the two leads’ performances and happy with the directing work of Cooper and also the soundtrack.

The plot is rather easy: a successful and famous musician, country singer Jackson Maine, who is a genius on stage, is struggling with alcohol problems backstage. One night he meets a girl in a drag bar called Ally, who is a waitress singing and writing songs in her free-time. The two fell in love, sing together and they become famous and popular. Ally finds herself in the situation of being a Grammy-nominee singer-songwriter and the wife of Jackson, who is still going down the slope. He humiliates himself and also Ally in front of the world, believes he has ruined both of their lives, and commits suicide.  The film ends with Ally singing Jackson’s song for her deceased husband.

The film was operating with only a few longshots, rather medium shots and close ups were used. The character development was amazing; anyone could see how Jackson got to the end of his career; everyone could understand the motivation of Ally and the change she went through from the beginning.

If you haven’t seen the movie, I strongly advise you to do so. The finish is incredibly strong and intense; however, I like how it ended with silence after two hours of singing.