A Star is Born (2018) Review

Bradley Cooper's directorial debut is a saccharin tear-fest of woodstock proportions

There is often an expectation that by watching great directors and speaking with great directors and playing parts for great directors an actor will, by osmosis, evolve into a great director themselves. If that was how life worked, I would spend much more time standing close to Will in the hopes of finally growing a beard.

A Star is Born (2018) has the world deceived.

On a surface level, this is a film that imitates great directorial strength but is ultimately betrayed by extreme melodrama, a flat script and strong suggestions of narcissism.

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I find the whole thing astounding. As indicated by a 90% score on Rottentomatoes, the world loves this film and I stand with a small and bitter minority watching on. Owen Gleiberman of Variety actually went as far as to call the film 'transcendent'. Fascinated by this reaction, I scrolled through 4 pages of reviews in the hopes of finding an opinion that mirrored my own and was disappointed when I couldn't locate the words 'vomit-inducing' anywhere. I can suggest only two possibilities; either Bradley Cooper has drained his personal fortune in order to blackmail literally thousands of film critics or, after this week's Brexit negotiations, 'vomit-inducing' is a newly acceptable standard.

Anyway, for me, this film is a no-deal; here are my three reasons why.

Conflict (or lack thereof):

The original 1954 production (starring Judy Garland) explored the deep allures and pitfalls of fame. Arriving four years after All About Eve (1950) and Sunset Boulevard (1950), it belonged to an era that really set the precedent for tragi-thrilling Hollywood dramas. They were dark, seductive tales full of glamour and corruption that acknowledged both the glory and gory sides of fame. It is crucial when exploring this subject to provide a full vision of the perils inherent. Bradley Cooper refuses to wade into the dark side of stardom until 3/4s of the way into the movie and, even then, dares only dip a toenail.

In place of nuance, the film offers a one-sided, almost pornographic spectacle of money-splashing, wealth-wallowing and pillow-smooching. Inserting only cheap substitutes for actual conflict (her nose is too big, she spends too much time dance-choreographing instead of with him etc.), which are tacked on so that we can enjoy the wet, glamorous dream without feeling too guilty about it. The true corruption of this industry and the fame lifestyle is apologetically filed into a single stock antagonist (Lady Gaga's agent, played by the predictably-British Refi Gavron). Cooper refuses to acknowledge the true damages of fandom, of widespread laudation. His celebrities are pristine, wholesome and incorruptible caricatures, of which there are none in reality.

Narcissism

This is not a film about alcoholism, or corrupting power, or challenging relationships; it is a film about beauty.

It is highly romantic, highly picturesque and at no point unattractive. Without the courage to tackle any form of 'ugliness', the film's 'problems' feel inauthentic, gimmicky, even underhanded.

By the film's own admission, alcoholism is a disease inflicted upon the victim and, by that same logic, Cooper's protagonist is a victim. Highly-desirable, loyal, kind, talented and an ethically-uncorrupted victim of circumstance. In a fairytale fantasy, he is the handsome, loving (but weirdly attentive for a multi-million dollar rockstar) and slightly-broken prince, come to whisk cinderella off her feet.

It's worth considering that the reason Cooper cast himself in such a role may well be the same reason why he chose to feature himself stripping in the shower, twice.

Acting/Casting

Before watching A Star is Born (2018), I considered myself a tepid Lady Gaga fan. I love that her music is fierce, deeply vain but also proud. She is unconvincing as a meek character, who begins life in the movie as someone afraid of (or unsuited to) life in the spotlight. As soon as she sings, the fun evaporates (sort of like in her 3rd album) and any dramatic tension is lost. So powerful is her stage presence, that it's difficult to imagine her civilian persona as anything but a cheap veil.

In the 1954 original, Norman Maine takes a back seat to Judy Garland's character. In this production, the roles are switched and Bradley Cooper's character is at centre-stage. It is through his eyes that we first see Gaga, it is with him that we spend the film's most intimate moments. But this story is about a star being born, not falling; Cooper acts well but this comes at the detriment of his own narrative. The timing is skewed, the narrative focus shifts and the film, as a result, overstays its welcome by some 30 minutes.

Cooper does sing well but not well enough to achieve firm believability as a world-class country artist.

Conclusion

According to the majority consensus, this is a brilliant film and the hype-train shows no sign of stopping (it's already taken $380 million worldwide). It's easy to get swept up in it but, if you insist on stepping aboard, I'd advise bringing a sick bag on-board with you.

★★☆☆☆