A Star Is Born (2018)

Director: Bradley Cooper
Stars: Lady Gaga, Bradley Cooper, Sam Elliott
Runtime: 136 minutes

Synopsis: A famous musician helps a shy songwriter gain the confidence needed to make it big.

• Performances: 7/10

Why? It's no secret that Lady Gaga is an amazing singer. And yes, she nails every single song she performed in the movie. The surprise for me was Bradley Cooper's voice. He somehow managed to be Gaga's equal without stealing the spotlight. I did have some issues with their performances however. I didn't truly buy their characters as Cooper basically spent two and a half hours acting drunk and doing a Sam Elliott impression (who was also in the movie, appearing here and there without adding anything to the story). Gaga was good, but her performance didn't make me particularly excited for eventual future projects of  hers. I thought she played herself for most of the movie, but have to admit that she did it  pretty well. 

• Screenplay: 6/10

Why? This is the fourth time this story was made into a film. And while I'm not against the idea of remakes or reboots, I always look for innovations in them that set them apart from previous iterations. I didn't get that from "A Star Is Born". The story felt familiar and never really took me by surprise, a problem when that's the main reason I even watched the film. The dialogue was also cheesy, the characters not fully fleshed, and the romance a bit tacky and even cringe worthy at times. I like quite a few things in Bradley Cooper's directorial debut, but unfortunately the story didn't grasp me as much as I wanted to.

• Costumes/Makeup: 8/10

Why? Their design reflected the characters' personas and transformations really well. No complaints whatsoever here. 

• Editing: 4/10

Why? My biggest issue with the film, but it's probably not going to bother a whole lot of people. Other than the fact that the movie was way too long and could've been at least 20 minutes shorter, there were a lot of cuts that bothered me personally. Some jumps from really dark scenes to really bright ones, multiple quick cuts, and a particular editing decision featured in the last song took me out of the film for a little while. 

• Cinematography: 6/10

Why? Shaky, much like the editing. I appreciate the fact that it mirrored Bradley Cooper's character's state, but it ultimately just became annoying. There were a couple of interesting shots featured, but nothing I'll be remembering in a couple of weeks' time. 

• Score/Soundtrack: 9/10

Why? Definitely what kept me invested. There are 3 songs I'm going to be listening to for weeks without a doubt. The rest of the soundtrack is a bit more forgettable but works well with the context of the events unfolding.

FINAL GRADE: 6/10