By Jenny Vo

As someone who had never cried during a movie in my entire 21 years of life, I sure as hell was not expecting to cry in a movie theater at some chick flick film. “A Star is Born” had me misty eyed throughout and at the end, sobbing.

The movie follows Jack Maine (Bradley Cooper), a famous country star, as he meets and falls in love with a struggling singer and songwriter Ally (Lady Gaga).  Jack helps launch Ally’s career and their relationship blossoms; however, his personal issues with alcohol and drug addictions jeopardize both their relationship and careers.  The title “A Star is Born” is in reference to Ally’s character as she rises to stardom, but the real star of the film is Bradley Cooper.

Cooper makes you fall in love with Jack, so much so that you completely forget that this is the same guy that did those “Hangover” movies. There’s something so sincere and personal about Cooper’s performance, which could be attributed to the fact that he himself had dealt with alcohol and drug problems. Cooper brought another level of rawness and emotions to the film that I did not know he was capable of. After humiliating Ally and ruining a momentous night for her, Jack is sent to rehab where he spends time working on himself. When they are reunited, Jack apologizes to Ally for everything he’s put her through.  His voice begins to break as he tries to make amends and when Jack breaks down in tears, I broke down like I never had in another movie.

For Cooper’s performance to stand out the way it did is saying something considering how amazing Gaga, Sam Elliot and the rest of the cast were.

“A Star is Born” is also Cooper’s directing debut and let me tell you that a star is born. The way Cooper plays with camera angles makes you feel like you’re on that stage when they’re performing. The opening scene of the movie is of Jack playing for a huge crowd, and Cooper pans the camera from himself to the audience as if the camera was just another performer on stage. When Jack performs by himself, the crowd is more of a blur giving you an idea of how Jack sees them. When Ally performs on the other hand, the crowd is more in focused.  There are also side stage, back stage and running on to the stage shots that makes you get a feel of what goes on as someone who is a part of the crew or show.

Cooper keeps you up close and personal most of the movie and you see every single bead of sweat as they’re performing, every tear that wells up as they are fighting. When Jack visits Ally backstage of a drag bar after seeing her for the first time, he playfully asks about her eyebrows and asks to take them off. The camera focuses on his hands taking off her eyebrows and pans back to his hands holding hers. The emphasis on his hands interacting with Ally makes the moment feel even more intimate.  

When Jack and his brother Bobby (Elliot) fight after Jack returns to their hometown, the two get into a heated argument. Cooper keeps you focused on their faces, making the scene even more emotional and intense. Details like the veins that pop out and the watery angry eyes of Jack and Bobby are all highlighted by the closeness of the cameras. The close up shots make you feel like you’re another person on the scene witnessing everything from three feet away.

To talk about a movie with a lot of music and not talk about the music itself would be criminal in a movie like this. Just as expected, Gaga wows in all her performances and the songs are mostly all things you want to keep listening to way after the movie ends. Again, Cooper is the one that leaves me in awe. Who knew he could sing like that? According to his interviews it took him about a year or so with voice coaches but when you’re watching him, you believe he is a seasoned music star.

A Star is Born is a masterpiece that deserves all of the recognition it has been getting. However the real star of the movie, Bradley Cooper, deserves way more than he is getting. Cooper’s performance as an actor and creativity as a director are something I have not seen in a long time. Even though I left the theater broken-hearted and only a broken shell of a person, this movie has easily become one of my favorites.\