While it seems natural to wonder why we needed yet another remake of A Star Is Born, nobody can deny that the genius casting of Lady Gaga in the principal role will go down as one of the most inspired of all time. Stepping into a role which has been immortalised by the likes of Janet Gaynor, Judy Garland and Barbara Streisand, Lady Gaga is without a shadow of a doubt exactly what this new reboot, which also stars and is directed by Bradley Cooper, needed to make it fit into a modern setting.
In its new incarnation, A Star Is Born presents a beautifully told and hugely affecting love story between Ally (Lady Gaga), an aspiring singer, and Jackson Maine (Bradley Cooper), an almost washed-out rock star who sees a huge potential in her after a chance meeting at a drag bar.
We first meet Jackson Maine as he is still packing stadiums with thousands of adoring fans and a career that is showing no signs of slowing down.
Addicted to drugs and alcohol and suffering from a severe case of tinnitus, Jackson sees in Ally a way out of his daily misery and self-hatred.
Inviting her onstage to sing with him, Ally becomes an overnight sensation and is subsequently noticed by a British impresario, Rez (Rafi Gavron), who promises to make her a star. Soon the once perfectly in-tune couple start falling out over Jackson’s inability to stay sober and his unwillingness to ask for help, which culminates in an embarrassing showdown at a televised awards show.
While the Streisand/Kristofferson version will always hold a special place in most people’s hearts, what makes this adaptation different resides in director Bradley Cooper and co-writer Eric Roth’s ability to move away from the original idea of two careers going in opposite directions. Maine is offered as someone who is still very much at the top of his game but who is also suffering from self-doubt, whilst Ally is far from the innocent ingénue waiting to be rescued by her knight in shining armour.
Just like Gaga herself, Ally is feisty, scrappy and massively motivated by the love she has for a man who just can’t seem to get his life back on track.
A Star Is Born delivers on all of its promises by offering a beautifully well observed modern twist on a decades old story. Singing live throughout, Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga deliver two of the most impressive performances of the year so far and, if the current Oscar buzz is to be believed, they are both a shoe-in for a nod come awards season.