There seems like a slew of decent movies have been hitting movie theaters lately. Honestly, it was hard to pick what movie to watch for a guy like me who enjoys almost every genre. Even narrowing it down between what me and my girlfriend would enjoy was difficult because even she wanted to see more than one of the movies in theaters. So it basically came down to the showtimes and what our friends wanted to see. So ultimately the movie we picked ended up being “A Star Is Born”.
First thing I have to say, for the sake of honesty, we ended up missing the first roughly six to ten minutes of the film because of troubles at the theater. We got there in time but the ticket printing machine gave us issues and wouldn’t print our tickets so that ended up taking some time. Even after all that, we should have had plenty of time to see the movie and pick up concessions. The concession line did not move however. I am not even saying it was the theater’s workers fault. They were working hard and I work retail and know how impossible some customers can be but it was still frustrating.
So the movie started for us with Lady Gaga singing in the drag queen bar while Bradley Cooper’s character was scooping her out. I may have missed something incredible or important so I just wanted to include that note. That being said, it was a strong scene to start the movie on.
So this remake tells the same story as the previous “A Star Is Born” films. A famous country singer who’s star is falling due to his alcohol and drug problems discovers a young singer who he is falls in love with but things start getting bad as her fame grows. The film showcases the pitfalls of fame and the hardships fame can bring. The film does a good job showing how the spotlight can strip away your humanity.
This film serves as Bradley Cooper’s directorial debut and it is a strong film to start with. There are a lot of beautiful shots and scenes featuring both spectacularly large concert footage as well as very intimate and personal scenes. That is an impressive success for a first time filmmaker.
The movie relies on the strength of the performances of both Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga. They are both very good in the movie and they both give stripped down and passionate performances. They both also share good chemistry together. You want them to work out. The film also features Sam Elliott as Jack’s (Bradley Cooper) older brother. Elliott gave a wonderful performance as well and helps elevate Cooper and makes him feel more organic. The cast also features comedians like Dave Chappelle and Andrew Dice Clay in supporting roles.
The biggest strength of the movie is it’s soundtrack. Lady Gaga was naturally good but who knew Bradley Cooper could sing so well? I was very impressed with his musical chops. The movie also had some levity that made the film feel more real. The scenes in the drag queen bar were among the best parts of the movie.
The film did have some faults in my opinion even though it was overall a very good movie. Much of the main story elements felt a bit rushed and thus took some of the believability out of the movie. The movie also felt, at times, more like a music video and less like a movie.
“A Star Is Born” is a very good movie which is receiving incredible word of mouth success. While it’s not completely unworthy of the success, I feel like the praise may be a little overblown as the music overshadows the actual movie.
Grade: B
No comments:
Post a Comment