A Star Is Born (2018 film)

A Star Is Born is a 2018 American musical romantic drama produced and directed by Bradley Cooper (in his directorial debut) with a screenplay by Cooper, Eric Roth and Will Fetters. It stars Cooper and Lady Gaga in lead roles, with Dave Chappelle, Andrew Dice Clay and Sam Elliott in supporting roles. It follows an alcoholic musician (Cooper) who discovers and falls in love with a young singer (Gaga). It is the third remake of the original 1937 romantic drama, following the 1954 and 1976 films. Principal photography began at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in April 2017.

A Star Is Born premiered at the 75th Venice International Film Festival on August 31, 2018, and was theatrically released in the United States on October 5, 2018, by Warner Bros. Pictures. It emerged as a major critical and commercial success, grossing over $436 million worldwide and receiving widespread critical acclaim for Cooper, Gaga, and Elliott's performances and Cooper's direction, as well as the screenplay, cinematography, and soundtrack. The film received numerous accolades, including eight nominations for the 91st Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor (Cooper), Best Actress (Gaga) and Best Supporting Actor (Elliott); it won Best Original Song for "Shallow". It also earned five nominations at the 76th Golden Globe Awards, including Best Motion Picture – Drama, and won Best Original Song for "Shallow".

The film's soundtrack received a BAFTA Award and four Grammy Award wins out of seven nominations, including nominations for Song of the Year two years in a row. For her acting and soundtrack contributions on A Star Is Born, Gaga became the first woman in history to win an Academy Award, BAFTA Award, Golden Globe Award and Grammy Award in one single year.

Plot

Forty-three-year-old Jackson "Jack" Maine, a country rock singer privately battling an alcohol and drug addiction, plays at a concert. His primary support is Bobby, his manager and older half-brother. After a show, Jack goes out for drinks and visits a drag bar.

There, Jack witnesses a tribute performance to Édith Piaf by 31-year-old Ally, who works as a waitress and singer-songwriter. He is amazed by her performance, and they spend the night talking. Ally discusses her unsuccessful efforts in pursuing a professional music career. Ally shares with Jack some lyrics she has been working on, he tells her she is a talented songwriter and should perform her material. Jack invites Ally to his next show. Despite her initial refusal, she attends and, with Jack's encouragement, sings "Shallow" on stage with him. Jack invites Ally to go on tour with him, and they form a romantic relationship.

In Arizona, Ally and Jack go to visit the ranch where Jack grew up and where his father is buried. However, they discover that Bobby had sold the land, which was converted into a wind farm. Angered at his betrayal, Jack attacks Bobby, who subsequently quits as his manager. Before doing so, Bobby reveals that he did inform Jack about the sale, but Jack was too drunk to notice.

While on tour, Ally meets Rez, a record producer who offers her a contract. Although visibly bothered, Jack still supports her decision to sign with him. Rez refocuses Ally away from country music and towards pop. Jack misses one of Ally's performances after he passes out drunk in public. Jack recovers at the home of his best friend George "Noodles" Stone and later makes up with Ally. There, he proposes to her with an impromptu ring made from a loop of a guitar string. They are married that same day at a church ministered by a relative of Noodles.

During Ally's performance on Saturday Night Live, Bobby reconciles with Jack. Later, Ally and a drunken Jack fight over Ally's growing artistic success. Jack criticizes Ally's new image and music, as her success is outpacing his recent decline in popularity. At the Grammy Awards, where Ally is nominated in three categories, a visibly intoxicated Jack performs a tribute to Roy Orbison. Later in the evening, she wins Best New Artist. As Ally is giving her acceptance speech, a still-inebriated Jack staggers up to her, where he publicly wets himself and passes out. Ally's father, Lorenzo, berates a semi-conscious Jack while Ally attempts to help Jack sober up.

Jack joins a rehabilitation program shortly thereafter. He discloses to his counselor that he tried to commit suicide at age 12 and reveals his progressively worsening tinnitus. Jack tearfully apologizes to Ally for his behavior. While returning home, Jack admits to Bobby that it was he whom he idolized and not their father. Ally asks Rez to bring Jack on her European tour, but Rez refuses, prompting Ally to cancel the remainder of the tour to care for Jack.

Rez confronts Jack and accuses him of nearly ruining Ally's career, stating that Jack will certainly relapse again, and that it is "embarrassing" she is married to him. That evening, Ally lies to Jack and tells him that her record label has canceled her tour so she can focus on her second album. Jack promises he will come to her concert that night, but after Ally leaves, he hangs himself in their garage. Grief-stricken and inconsolable after Jack's suicide, Ally is visited by Bobby, who tells her that the suicide was Jack's own choice. The closing scenes reveal a flashback of Jack working on a song about his love for Ally, which he never finished writing. Ally performs this song as a tribute to Jack, introducing herself for the first time as Ally Maine.

Cast

• Bradley Cooper as Jackson "Jack" Maine, an established singer-songwriter and alcoholic. He is Ally's mentor.
• Lady Gaga as Ally Campana, a singer-songwriter who is discovered by Jack.
• Andrew Dice Clay as Lorenzo Campana, Ally's father.
• Dave Chappelle as George "Noodles" Stone, a retired musician and Jack's best friend.
• Sam Elliott as Bobby Maine, Jack's older half-brother and manager.
• Rafi Gavron as Rez Gavron, a music producer and Ally's manager.
• Anthony Ramos as Ramon, Ally's friend.
• Drena De Niro as Paulette Stone, Noodles' wife.
• Greg Grunberg as Phil, Jack's driver.

Additionally, Shangela appears as the drag bar MC, Willam Belli as drag queen Emerald, and Ron Rifkin as Jackson's rehab therapist Carl. Barry Shabaka Henley appears as Little Feet, a veteran session musician. Rebecca Field portrays Gail, while Michael Harney portrays Wolfie, a friend of Lorenzo. Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real appear as Jackson's band. Members of the supergroup band include Don Was, Victor Indrizzo and Lenny Castro. Eddie Griffin appears as a local preacher and Luenell appears as a cashier. Marlon Williams, Brandi Carlile, Alec Baldwin, Halsey and Don Roy King cameo as themselves.

Production

Pre-production

Previous remakes of the original 1937 film included the 1954 musical and 1976 rock musical. Furthermore, the Bollywood romance film Aashiqui 2 (2013) was inspired by A Star Is Born but was not a remake. Development of a new adaptation dated as far back as the late 1990s with Will Smith the intended lead player. However, Smith's participation was nixed by his decision to star in Ali. In 2000, Jamie Foxx and Oliver Stone were rumored to be seriously interested in remaking the film, with Foxx first seeking out R&B singer Aaliyah and then rising actor Paul Walker for the leading duo roles. Lauryn Hill and Mariah Carey were also sought for the lead roles, and Alicia Keys turned down an offer to play the female lead in the film. Plans for the adaptation were shelved for several years.

In January 2011, it was announced that Clint Eastwood was in talks to direct Beyoncé in a third American remake of the film A Star Is Born (1937), with Bradley Cooper playing the male lead. However, the project was delayed on account of Beyoncé's pregnancy. In April 2012, writer Will Fetters told Collider that the script was inspired by Kurt Cobain.

Over the course of the film's development, talks with Christian Bale, Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Cruise, Johnny Depp and Smith to play the male lead failed to come to fruition. Eastwood was interested in Esperanza Spalding to play the female lead. Jennifer Lopez, Rihanna, Shakira, Janelle Monáe, Selena Gomez, Demi Lovato and Kesha were also considered for the lead female role. On March 24, 2015, Warner Bros. announced that Cooper was in final talks to make his directorial debut with the film. Beyoncé was again in talks to join, though still unsigned. In order to secure his first directorial commitment and in lieu of receiving an upfront salary, Cooper took a back-end deal in order to get the film made, resulting in a $39.9 million salary.

Cooper revealed that originally he planned on only directing the film and did not want to star in it because he wanted to focus on directing. His first choice for the male lead was musician Jack White, but the studio rejected the idea. It was then that Cooper agreed to star in the movie as well. A major issue in the development process was Warner Bros.' reluctance to deal with Jon Peters, who held the rights to the material dating back to his producing the 1976 blockbuster but had become a pariah due to his behavior. While the studio made a deal with him for the rights, they made sure his name was not listed in the credits (including those that were submitted for the Oscar nomination bids which the movie earned), and Cooper bluntly stated that a major reason his goal of having a happy and respectful set was met was that "Jon wasn't here."