A Star Is Born

GaynorOctober 21, 2018

There have been quite a few good movies this year. Damian (my hubby) and I have got into the habit of going to the movies a couple of times a month – last month we saw The House with A Clock in its Walls, which until last week was in our opinion the best movie of the year.

Each time you go to to movies, you get shown a trailer or two, and each time we saw the trailer for ‘A Star Is Born’ we nodded and said ‘that’s one to see’. It took a few views of the trailer to realise the female lead was Lady Gaga, and while we’d heard Bradley Cooper‘s name, we didn’t know much about him.

We saw the movie. And then went back the next week to see it again. Often, a movie trailer contains all the best bits of the movie and there’s nothing of interest in the rest of the movie. With ‘A Star is Born’, the trailer is compelling. It doesn’t tell you a quarter of what the movie tells you.

This is Bradley Cooper on directorial debut, in a lead role, in a singing role (for which he took vocal training for 18 months) telling the story of addiction and alcoholism with sensitivity which can only bring both understanding from those who are unaffected, and validation to those who are. I’m grateful.

This is Lady Gaga, acting (albeit as a singer) a role which took courage, because the one thing we all know about her is that she covers up her true self with her ‘way outness’. In this she’s the core of herself. She exposes the ‘falsity’ of stardom and the struggles singers, particularly female singers have to make it if you don’t have ‘the look’. I’ve gained a respect for her that I’ll have for the rest of my life.

In October, mental health awareness month, this movie is going to help us all.

On top of it, the sound track is fantastic, and there’s something for everyone.

This is the movie of 2018 in every aspect and it’s going to be hard to beat any year. Not since Forrest Gump has there been a movie as powerful and consciousness changing as this.

Last thing: we’re dog lovers and the fact that Bradley Cooper’s own dog features as Charlie is the cherry on top of this thought provoking movie.

If there’s one criticism, though it’s this (and it’s not about the movie itself). I think it should come with a trigger warning for alcoholism, addiction and suicide in the beginning and an informative slide afterwards about where people can get help if they are struggling. And that this is just one person’s interpretation of how to deal with his life. I’m sending this comment to my movie house and to the movie itself.

One thing’s for sure: We’re far from the shallow now.