QR entertainment review: A star is born
The 4th film adaptation of the classic story A Star is Born is a visceral look into the trials and tribulations of stardom. There are plenty of impactful performances throughout, but mostly musical. A Star is Born follows seasoned musician Jackson Maine (Bradley Cooper) as he discovers, mentors, and becomes romantically involved with Ally (Lady Gaga), an undiscovered talent. We are taken on a journey where we see Ally thrust into the spotlight, however, despite all of the media attention Gaga has been receiving for this role, this is Cooper's film. As well as being his directorial debut, Bradley Cooper manages not only to entirely encompass the character he plays in terms of accent and mannerism but also show a poignant, tender depiction of what it is like to struggle with addiction. In previous versions of this story, the female lead was the central focus, however here if anyone in this film is being set up for award season gold, it is Cooper.
A Star is BornA Star is Born Despite all of this, the film is severely lacking in original dialogue and storytelling. caters to our goldfish memories, with the plot jumping from one random out of place scene to another in a matter of minutes. The issue lies with the way that story is told, with the characters seeming to know relatively little about one another but they are also seemingly completely enamoured. This is not helped by the films technical style. for all of its merits is riddled in troubled star clichés like 'being true to your art'. The dialogue is sporadic with very little attention being given to Ally's family life and the random friends of her father who just seem to live in their family living room, and a lot of attention being given to the frozen peas Ally uses after her bar bust-up with an aggravating fan of Jackson. The film's random twists and turns lead to pivotal plot lines feeling disjointed and out of place. In a world where we as a generation have little to no attention span,
In the theatre, I referenced this film as being the 'Instagram story' of movies. The choppy, DIY style of how the film is shot at times makes you feel as if you are watching a tour documentary, however, this means that leaps and bounds of the story are just left on the cutting room floor. A positive element to the editing style is the enveloping style the camera work and sound engineering. The angles combined with the booming raucous sounds of the music, really capture what a concert feels like for the performer rather than the spectator. Bradley Cooper's directorial debut is intriguing from a technical standpoint with the sound editing giving a unique insight into the experience of hearing loss and the camera angles constantly creating a submersive experience for the audience. The music itself is one of the films strongest assets with 'Shallow' being a shoe-in for a best original song Oscar next year. However many of the other tracks while good, struggle to stand out. An interesting song used in the soundtrack is 'Why did you do that', an EDM pop song used to show what its like when a pop star becomes unoriginal and performs meaningless dribble. However, this song and performance by Ally were the most reminiscent of Gaga's own career. I found this fascinating as I could see Gaga for the whole performance almost hold her breath, afraid to offend the fans who made her but also having to go with the over-arching narrative.
Gaga's performance vocally was powerful throughout and proves that she definitely has more than the chops necessary for the musical portion of a production like this. However, her acting left a lot to be desired, with clunky movements and expressions being used to show the most exaggerated version of an emotion. From stomping her feet in the bathroom and yelling 'I hate men' to covering her face when emotional, the large gestures make the audience very aware that she, in fact, Lady Gaga acting. While it is harder to see established stars like Gaga play other characters, the very typical expressions and movements used by the actress completely threw me out of the story she was trying to tell through Ally. The emotion shown during performance sequences is perhaps when Gaga is most convincing but this should come as no surprise.
The shocking turn of events in the films final act packs a punch and judging by the audience in the theatre if you are partial to tearing up at films, tissues are advised. This tragic turn of events is when the acting and dialogue begin to become more interesting as we are actually getting an insight into the minds of the central characters. However, by the time we get here, it was a case of being too little, too late for me. Overall, I could have happily cut a good half hour off the film as the length in my opinion for such a basic story cannot be justified. If you worship at the altar of Gaga or want to see how this story has been taken into a modern context, maybe go check out this film. However, you have been warned that in terms of plot and performance, A Star is Born is exceedingly average.
By Oisin O’Brien