A Star is Born: Still Deep In The Shallow

(WARNING: This will contain spoilers.)

"Maybe it's time to let the old ways die."

NOTE: I have not seen the other versions of the film. I suspect watching them would change some of my thoughts on this one, and will get to them at some point, but keep in mind that as I am writing this, this version is the only Star is Born I have seen.

As I sat down to watch A Star Is Born, I really wanted to like it. I had heard so much about Gaga's performance and the soundtrack and just wanted to know what this was all about. 2 hours and 15 minutes later, I understood why these two elements were the only things I had truly heard about. Everything else not only felt empty, but kept trying to convince me that it wasn't.

It is a common opinion that the first act is the best one. Nothing about it really blew me away, but at the very least, it showed hints of identity. Ally's character in particular showed some personality traits that could have easily been expanded on later on in the film. The scene where she punches a man bothering Jackson while they were talking at a bar seems to indicate that she not only has issues with celebrity culture, but can also be aggressive.

It seems like the rest of the film just... forgets about it. She never rebels against her new superstar status. Her distaste for some of the things her manager puts her through is never expressed violently. I don't know what the timespan of the film is supposed to be, but I know that it isn't enough to justify the erasure of a complete personality. Ally is an incredibly bland lead: her defining traits are "likes to sing" and "loves Jackson".

When Jackson sings her song on stage in front of hundreds of people, presumably without asking her first, she seems totally fine with it. Ally simply seems to accept all the narratives that Jackson puts on her, and the only thing they truly argue about is when she writes a song he doesn't like. She's the star of the film, and yet she always feels like a supporting character to deepen Jackson's narrative.

There are hints of a deeper personality there. When she "sells out", it actually seems clear to me that she likes these songs. At the very least, the scene in the bathroom where she defends them makes it look like it. However, simply because it is pop music, it is assumed to be insincere. The lyrics of "Why would you do that?" are pushed to a ridiculous extreme of vapidity - but in what way is "Black Eyes", the opening song of the film which is constituted of four lines that Bradley Cooper repeats over and over, different in any way ? Why is pop music inherently lazy and a synonym to selling your soul ? Why shouldn't Ally be happy in her pop career ? What started out as a possibility of exploring the damage of celebrity culture in quite an interesting way just ended up being incredibly simple and condescending in its treatment of music genres.

Of course, one could argue that Jackson is actually the face of this damage caused by celebrity. He is an alcoholic from his very first appearance. There is more background to his alcoholism than simply him struggling with celebrity, but it is one of the elements. Once again, it isn't explored in the slightest, and then... Well, he kills himself. I have no problem with a film giving me subtle hints and telling me to piece things together, but I do take issue with a film barely saying anything about any of its themes.

I don't know if A Star Is Born has anything to say that hasn't been said a million times before. I don't even know if it has anything to say at all. To be fully honest, I'm frankly lost seeing the praise about it (we went to see it with my film class, there were about twenty of us - only two, including me, didn't like it). And yet, I have trouble seeing what I could be missing. It all felt hollow, and honestly quite cynical, although it doesn't seem to be too aware of that. I just wish it was as great as Lady Gaga seems to think it is.