A Star Is Born - Review

I was having a discussion with a co-worker of mine and recent films we had seen came up in conversation. "I still haven't seen Bohemian Rhapsody or A Star is Born yet," he says to me. He then asks, "are either worth watching in the cinema?" To which I replied, "Bohemian Rhapsody, you need to see in IMAX if you can. A Star Is Born..." I blanked. That's when I realized that this film did not hit me as much as Bohemian Rhapsody did or even hit me as much as my other friends.

It's funny how a person's love for a movie works. With me, I can go through each aspect of the filmmaking process and analyze it and tell you that they did a great job. The directing, screenwriting, acting, cinematography, production design, sound design, editing, all of it. It is a really well-made movie, but I can't say that I was blown away or in love with this movie. In my eyes, what pushes a movie from a 4 rating to a 5 rating is that unexplainable feeling you get in your gut telling you that you love this movie. While A Star Is Born did not give me that sensational impact like it did for others, I can still appreciate what a great movie Bradley Cooper has crafted for the world.

I should also mention that I have not seen any other versions of this story before, but I knew how this movie was going to end as soon as it began due to some foreshadowing that I thought was quite obvious. However, the people I have discussed this movie with didn't notice this early foreshadowing and watched this movie not knowing where it was going to go and were completely surprised by the ending. So I guess it all depends on what you notice in movies, but what kept me watching was the brilliant acting performances by Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga.

Bradley Cooper, in his directing debut, shows off not only his directing skills but his singing chops. The dude can sing, what can I say. His acting too is superb as always. Here he plays Jack, a famous country/rock star who is very famous and talented but whose career is pretty much almost over due to his addiction to drugs and alcohol. His career, his music, and his life are devoid of passion until he meets Ally played by Lady Gaga.

This is where this movie really shines. Lady Gaga is amazing. She is such a believable actress and she has one of the most amazing singing voices. Now I have heard many Lady Gaga songs. Her first hit, Just Dance, came out when I was just starting high school and she was huge. I knew she could sing them and I also knew she could sing based on her performance of The Sound of Music at the Oscars, but I never knew that her vocals could be so powerful. I almost teared up in one scene where she was singing. She stole the whole show and her performance alone would be worth seeing this movie for.

And while I will admit that there were scenes in the movie where I felt my attention span challenged and my thoughts were drifting elsewhere, the reason I kept watching was that of the strong chemistry between the two of them. It didn't feel like two characters acting, it felt like two people falling in love.

This film also shows us the harsh reality of superstardom. You become a singer because you love to sing and you want to share your voice, but once "the system" takes a hold of you, you become a product. A brand that is to be sold to consumers. Ally's songs start to change, her look gets a complete makeover and fame causes jealousy in the relationship. This film reminds us that being famous definitely has its perks, but it also comes with a whole new bucket of challenges.

Bradley Cooper made a film that is an emotionally heavy piece of art that may not warrant multiple viewings in a short amount of time, but this film does leave a rather large impact that will not go away any time soon.