Film Review: A Star Is Born (2018)

It is always perilous to predict the future, particularly when Hollywood’s gilded carousel is in motion. Yet, as the autumnal mists settled over the 2018 awards season, a prevailing consensus emerged amongst critics and industry followers that the perennial Oscar question – who would triumph? – had found its presumptive answer in Bradley Cooper’s A Star Is Born. This musical drama, lauded as that rare beast beloved equally by critics and global audiences, appeared perfectly engineered for Academy adulation: a tragic romance steeped in showbusiness mythology, boasting powerhouse performances and a soul-stirring soundtrack. How ironic, then, that when the golden envelopes were finally opened at the Dolby Theatre in February 2019, Cooper’s labour of love emerged with merely a single statuette for Best Original Song ("Shallow"), a stark contrast to its eight nominations.

A Star Is Born carries the weight of cinematic history, serving as the fourth incarnation of a narrative first told in 1937 with Janet Gaynor and Fredric March. Unlike that original Hollywood-set drama, Cooper’s iteration – following the 1954 and 1976 musical adaptations – immerses itself in the contemporary music industry. Cooper himself stars as Jackson Maine, a grizzled country-rock troubadour whose stadium-filling fame masks a profound dependency on alcohol and prescription drugs. His fateful stumble into a drag bar introduces him to Ally (Lady Gaga), a working-class waitress whose raw, Piaf-inspired rendition of "La Vie en Rose" ignites his creative and romantic spirit. Their whirlwind courtship, cemented through collaborative songwriting and cross-country touring, blossoms into marriage even as Jackson’s demons intensify and Ally’s star ascends under the calculated guidance of industry shark Rez Gavron. The narrative arc, while faithful to its predecessors’ tragic blueprint, undergoes significant reinterpretation through Cooper’s directorial vision.

Crucially, Cooper recalibrates the narrative’s emotional centre. Unlike earlier versions where the male lead was already a faded relic, Jackson begins as a viable superstar – affording private jets, luxury suites, and the trappings of enduring fame that seem fantastical to Ally’s grounded existence. More significantly, Jackson, not Ally, becomes the film’s true protagonist. His psychological complexity, rooted in childhood trauma and fraternal rivalry (poignantly embodied by Sam Elliott’s Bobby), overshadows Ally’s comparatively archetypal Cinderella trajectory. This structural choice ignited debate; some feminist critics contended Cooper, consciously or not, perpetuated Hollywood’s patriarchal tendencies by sublimating Lady Gaga’s formidable presence to service Jackson’s tragedy. Others drew uncomfortable parallels between Jackson’s mentorship of Ally and the predatory dynamics exposed during the #MeToo movement – a tension the film acknowledges but arguably fails to fully interrogate.

This is not to diminish Lady Gaga’s extraordinary achievement. Shedding her flamboyant pop persona with astonishing conviction, she delivers a performance of remarkable vulnerability and vocal power, silencing sceptics who doubted her dramatic range. Yet, as the awards season unfolded, it became evident that Cooper’s directorial ambition and transformative performance ultimately defined the film’s identity. His meticulous preparation – mastering guitar, developing Jackson’s whiskey-soaked baritone (inspired by Elliott’s own distinctive voice), and conveying profound internal desolation – represented a career-defining metamorphosis. Supporting turns from Elliott (rightly nominated) and an unrecognisably restrained Andrew Dice Clay as Ally’s father added textured authenticity, though the film occasionally buckled under its own ambition. Its 136-minute runtime accommodated superfluous scenes, and the central romance, while passionate, sometimes lacked the nuanced development needed to fully justify its tragic denouement.

A Star Is Born resonated because it dared to articulate uncomfortable truths about fame’s corrosive nature – truths eternally relevant to an Academy membership intimately acquainted with industry perils. Its power lies less in Ally’s stratospheric rise than in Jackson’s harrowing descent, a narrative of addiction and self-destruction rendered with unflinching honesty. Cooper crafts a surprisingly caustic critique of the contemporary music machine through Rez’s manipulative machinations, exposing an industry that discards human connection for commercial gain. Yet, whilst audiences flocked to its visceral melodrama and chart-topping soundtrack – "Shallow" rightly securing its Oscar – the film’s broader awards ambitions foundered. The Academy, perhaps wary of honouring another showbusiness melodrama, or swayed by competing narratives of racial reconciliation (Green Book) and historical prestige (The Favourite, Roma), ultimately withheld its highest honours.

In retrospect, A Star Is Born’s Oscar fate reveals more about Hollywood’s capricious nature than the film’s intrinsic worth. While its single victory for "Shallow" feels like scant reward for such audacious craftsmanship, the film is nevertheless a significant artistic statement. Cooper succeeded where many remakes fail: he reimagined a classic template with contemporary urgency and profound emotional intelligence. Its themes of love, sacrifice, and the destructive allure of celebrity retain their power long after awards season fades. The film may not have claimed the Best Picture crown many predicted, but its raw humanity and technical mastery ensure its legacy transcends the Academy’s final tally. Sometimes, true artistic triumph lies not in golden statuettes, but in the indelible resonance of a story courageously told – a realisation Hollywood, in its relentless pursuit of validation, often forgets.

RATING: 8/10 (+++)

(Note: The text in the original Croatian version is available here.)

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