Every Aspect Perfect

Rating: 9/10 (14 December 2018)

All too infrequently the movie industry gives us a classic.This occurs even more infrequently in a remake. In a fourth? Unfathomable. In the 2018 version of A Star is Born the screenplay, dialogue, acting, pacing, editing, and soundtrack meld into a magnum opus. I suspect there is a certain element of luck involved as well.
To say that Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper generate on-screen chemistry would be
an understatement of universal proportions. They simmer, sizzle, then explode to the point that you almost fail to appreciate how brilliant Sam Elliot, Andrew Dice Clay and the rest of the cast portray their supporting roles. But, that brilliance doesn't go unnoticed.
Perhaps a small part of the reason classics come along fewer and further between these days relates to dialogue that often feels forced or trite, characters that are pushed outside their elemental spheres by the script. Their interaction can feel marginally unnatural. That simply doesn't happen here. Cooper and Lady Gaga as Jackson Maine and Ally Campana don't slip out of their roles. It is another aspect, as mentioned, that is perfect.
And the music? Lyrics and melodies that will bring tears, that is as powerful as it gets. I'm a romantic. (I am also an old rocker, so the ripping guitar scenes had me playing my invisible Gibson right along.) And who would have suspected Bradley Cooper had such a dynamic voice and energy?
There is one final aspect that warrants mention, the treatment of suicide. It is depicted in a truly appropriate and fully relevant manner.
This film, with all its components spinning in perfect synergy, will be talked about for many years to come.