A Star Is Born (Bradley Cooper)

I can't really add anything else that hasn't already been said, except that I agree. Great first hour of meeting, with a neat directorial approach by Cooper where there's always energy going on.

After it descends into the second half, it basically repeats itself. Cooper's addiction is looked upon as more of a thing like, "Just stop drinking," and with no possible way to recover in the public's eye. Gaga's inner conflict is to basically shrug it off, which could really be something in itself, but kind of rushed. There's plenty of room for potential with a relationship that's public to the world, but it doesn't quite really know what to do.

Luckily, Cooper and Gaga both kill it in their performances, so the movie is certainly watchable. I was affected throughout, and in a way, I like that they didn't get into the media exposure, and simply kept it within those that were affected.

I, too, was pretty affected by Sam Elliott's reverse out of the house. Some great acting there.

Could this be the first film to go 5/5 in all major Oscar categories since Silence of the Lambs? I'm really not seeing much competition out there.

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Originally Posted by Watashi

Could this be the first film to go 5/5 in all major Oscar categories since Silence of the Lambs? I'm really not seeing much competition out there.

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Christian Bale for Actor is the biggest potential to derail.
I also figure Bradley Cooper can't win both Actor and Director... Just one.

But yeah, this is the closest it gets.

Maybe Spike Lee for Adapted Screenplay too.

It's not that well directed. Cooper shouldn't even be nominated.

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Originally Posted by transmogrifier

It's not that well directed. Cooper shouldn't even be nominated.

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Agreed.

My hope for the Oscars this year is that they nominate one of the Bradley Cooper songs for best original song and he winds up performing at the Oscars instead of Lady Gaga.

Also, I think it'd be fun if they only nominated people of colour in every category, and beheaded Woody Allen on stage during a performance by Beyonce, just to prove conclusively that, no matter what the Academy does, liberals on social media are never going be happy.

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Originally Posted by baby doll

I think it'd be fun if they only nominated people of colour in every category, and beheaded Woody Allen on stage during a performance by Beyonce, just to prove conclusively that, no matter what the Academy does, liberals on social media are never going be happy.

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This quote bears repeating, so I'm repeating it.

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Originally Posted by baby doll

My hope for the Oscars this year is that they nominate one of the Bradley Cooper songs for best original song and he winds up performing at the Oscars instead of Lady Gaga.

Also, I think it'd be fun if they only nominated people of colour in every category, and beheaded Woody Allen on stage during a performance by Beyonce, just to prove conclusively that, no matter what the Academy does, liberals on social media are never going be happy.

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The terrible shame that five male directors will be nominated again.

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Originally Posted by Ezee E

The terrible shame that five male directors will be nominated again.

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Theoretically, they could nominate Valeska Griesbach, Lucrecia Martel, Lynne Ramsay, and Hélène Cattet (with Bruno Forzani), and have the strongest list of nominees in the Academy's history.

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Originally Posted by Ezee E

The terrible shame that five male directors will be nominated again.

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I'm willing to bet this will happen with a more-inclusive Academy ten years from now, and nobody will bat an eye.

However, Lynne Ramsay inevitably getting snubbed for what she did with You Were Never Really Here WILL be criminal.

This movie feels like some of those term papers I'd write in school, where I'd labor arduously over the opening, go over every detail until I had the perfect introduction, and then realize I had wasted too much time or didn't have the substantive knowledge to execute on the rest of the paper. Inevitably, everything that came after the opening would be of noticeably different quality, drawing even more attention to the half-ass'ed and cliche-ridden writing in the meat of the paper.

There's one act worth a damn in this movie. And it's so good that I'm tempted to lean "yay" on the movie anyway. But man, what follows is a straight up VH1 cable movie. The opening suggests Cooper has some decent instincts as a director, but losing his grip on the film's tone so wildly in the second and third acts suggests he still has a lot to learn. For me, this definitely feels more like a wasted opportunity than a revelation.

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Originally Posted by DavidSeven

This movie feels like some of those term papers I'd write in school, where I'd labor arduously over the opening, go over every detail until I had the perfect introduction, and then realize I had wasted too much time or didn't have the substantive knowledge to execute on the rest of the paper. Inevitably, everything that came after the opening would be of noticeably different quality, drawing even more attention to the half-ass'ed and cliche-ridden writing in the meat of the paper.

There's one act worth a damn in this movie. And it's so good that I'm tempted to lean "yay" on the movie anyway. But man, what follows is a straight up VH1 cable movie. The opening suggests Cooper has some decent instincts as a director, but losing his grip on the film's tone so wildly in the second and third acts suggests he still has a lot to learn. For me, this definitely feels more like a wasted opportunity than a revelation.

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Yeah, as I talk about it more with people, I'll say the movie starts off really good, but gets so cliche at the end that I can't see how anyone would love the movie.

And as I think about it, outside of the "first peek reviews" is there really anyone that's loving it?

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Originally Posted by Ezee E

Yeah, as I talk about it more with people, I'll say the movie starts off really good, but gets so cliche at the end that I can't see how anyone would love the movie.

And as I think about it, outside of the "first peek reviews" is there really anyone that's loving it?

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The general public is loving it. It's one of the most talked about movies with my peers.

Also most people don't even know this is the 4th iteration of A Star is Born. I think the Garland version is the superior, but I still think the first act of this is strong enough to make me overall enjoy it even if the cliches are the fault of the overall formula set up by the previous films.

I don't think it's the film taking a dip in the second half as much as Cooper's loose-limbed, sensous, almost hang-out direction is so suited especially to the first half of blossoming romance, before the ascending/descending dichotomy kicks in proper. That direction can't sustain its effectiveness for the second half's necessary big-picture plot, so the film lurches and dwells in places. Still evocative and beautiful throughout (cinematographer Matthew Libatique may be the film's MVP), and that cut during the last scene is a gut kicker.

I haven't seen the 1937 original yet or have any intention to see the 1976 version, but I can't imagine any other pair's chemistry as potent as the one between Cooper and Gaga, or an early meet-cute section as achingly romantic as their stretch from the drag bar to the parking lot, which almost resembles Before Sunrise in its drunkenly swoony rhythm of growing romance. Part of why the first time Ally is up on stage is such powerfully cathartic (and best) scene is that the film has laid the groundwork so well via their developing relationship, so apart from the scene's crowdpleasing nature, Jackson asking Ally to trust him, and their interplay on that stage, have transcendent weight reverberating throughout as well. 7.5/10

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Originally Posted by Ezee E

And as I think about it, outside of the "first peek reviews" is there really anyone that's loving it?

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My mom has seen it twice now and my hairstylist was raving about it while she cut my hair. So yes. It's also doing bonkers box office and I imagine a lot of that is word-of-mouth.

This fucking rocked.

I think muscials are my thing now. I agree with most here that the first half is much better than the second. Already downloaded the album and I'm about to listen to it on repeat on the way to the Bahamas.

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Originally Posted by Dukefrukem

Already downloaded the album and I'm about to listen to it on repeat on the way to the Bahamas.

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Going to the FYRE festival? I heard it's gunna be litty. Blink-182, Major Lazer, hot models... let me know what you think.

Yeah, not much to add here. The movie has a good pulse at first and it eventually overstays its welcome - I got a bit bored with the characters long before their relationship was abruptly solved. Nobody has mentioned the Grammy scene as a highlight but that made me laugh, I liked that they went all the way with that.

I haven't seen any of the other versions yet.