A STAR IS BORN

Release Date: Malaysia, 18 Oct 2018

Genre: Drama / Musical

Running Length: 2:16

Cast: Lady Gaga, Bradley Cooper, Sam Elliott, Andrew Dice Clay, Ravi Gavron, Anthony Ramos, Dave Chappelle

Director: Bradley Cooper

Screenplay: Eric Roth and Bradley Cooper & Will Fetters, based on a story by William A. Wellman and Robert Carson

Note: The best way to enjoy the full experience of A STAR IS BORN is not to have watched any of the previous versions (this Bradley Cooper's take is the 4th, the last one was in 1976), read any reviews or even listen to any of the music from this soundtrack. 

I will keep my review as spoiler free as possible, but that said, please discontinue reading if you've yet to watch this movie.

What's this movie about?

In essence, A STAR IS BORN is about one comet rising while another crashes. 

Jackson Maine (Cooper) is a fading country rock music star who accidentally discovers a talented unknown, Ally (Lady Gaga). They started a whirlwind romance as he took her under his wings. 

We've seen this story many times, haven't we? Soon, Ally's singing career skyrockets, leaving Jackson behind. It doesn't help too that Jackson is an alcoholic.  

Highlights!

I'm in awe of Bradley Cooper's capability as a first time director. I could really feel his passion and raw-ness on every frame of the movie.   

The technical choices he makes; the camera angles, the sound and the very close-up shots of the characters, made me invested in Jackson and Ally at get go. It felt immersive - like I was right there next to Jackson and Ally when they were singing in front of thousands of audience.

As good as Lady Gaga's performance is (her acting and the her chemistry with Cooper's character is so very believable), I thought Cooper gave his best performance ever here. 

One can really feel him spiraling out of control and losing the battle to his inner demons. As a rock star, he is never cocky. In fact, he's a good man. That's why it was difficult to watch him struggle through his emotional agony. 

The supporting cast are all very capable too. 

And the songs - it's really good! A big portion of the movie's screen time is devoted to performances which ranges from familiar covers to original composition (some were co-written by Cooper himself). I read today that the soundtrack has held on to its No.1 spot this week on the Billboard 200 chart for the second straight week.

Lowlights

I thought the middle portion was a little flabby. I get what the filmmakers were trying to achieve, but yet, it was draggy at times. 

Also, I'm not sure if it was done on purpose but I couldn't seem to keep track of the timeline of this movie. There were moments I went, "Wait a minute, did months just passed by?" Maybe Cooper was trying to inform his audience that his character Jackson was so drunk, he just couldn't keep track of time? I dunno.  

And of course, the resolution. As emotionally heart wrenching as it was, I personally felt some people would take it the wrong way and may view it as a permissible way to cop-out. 

In summary

Bradley Cooper's A STAR IS BORN has Oscars written all over it. It has the package - strong performances, a very good soundtrack, capably directed and most importantly, it's relatable to today's social issues. 

This is a raw and heartbreaking movie man...

RATING: 8.5/10