Double Feature Review: A Star Is Born (2018) and First Man (2018)

In this double feature review, we take a look at two major awards contenders. One is the fourth version of a classic story, the other is the story of one of America's greatest heroes. 

A Star Is Born (2018)

D: Bradley Cooper

W: Eric Roth, Cooper, Will Fetters

Based on screenplays by Moss Hart, John Gregory Dunne, Joan Didion, Frank Pierson, William A. Wellman, and Robert Carson

C: Cooper, Lady Gaga, Andrew Dice Clay, Dave Chapelle, Sam Elliott

PLOT: "Seasoned musician Jackson Maine discovers—and falls in love with—struggling artist Ally. She has just about given up on her dream to make it big as a singer—until Jack coaxes her into the spotlight. But even as Ally’s career takes off, the personal side of their relationship is breaking down, as Jack fights an ongoing battle with his own internal demons." (From Letteboxd.com)

I was originally thinking of holding off writing a review for this until I watched all three of the previous films but I thought I might as well go ahead and review it. Also, there's no shortage of comparison articles and videos. 

One of the best I've seen was by the Youtube channel Be Kind Rewind. 

Also, this film should stand on its own. So, let's just look at this film as it is. 

First I have to acknowledge this film apparently a victim of production hell. 

Talks of it going as far back as 2011, Clint Eastwood was attached as the director with Beyonce playing the lead - and that's a sentence I never thought I'd say. 

They also went through leads including Christian Bale, Will Smith, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Tom Cruise. 

But now, after seven years of talks, we have this film with Bradley Cooper in the role previously held by Frederic March, James Mason, and Kris Kristofferson, and Lady Gaga filling the big shoes previously worn by Janet Gaynor, Judy Garland, and Barbara Streisand. 

This film is spectacular. 

As I indicated in a previous post I was at first a bit unsure about the film due to it being a remake and starring Lady Gaga. Of course, I overcame that because I remembered I don't have as much hatred for remakes and I do actually like Lady Gaga.

Both Gaga and Bradley Cooper have really good chemistry in this film which kind of makes up for scenes that come off as a bit rushed, to me. 

I'm still amazed at how well Gaga pulls off playing an average girl before becoming the mega-pop star. I say that because... well... have you seen Lady Gaga? This is a woman whose music contains some of the most lyrics and the videos consist of bizarre imagery. Then, of course, there are the dresses she's worn at red carpet events and such. Like, this is stuff she had to plan in advance to becoming a mega-star. 

But she does a great with the performance in playing both the pre-fame version of Ally and the superstar version. 

Cooper, also does a great job with playing the weary rockstar and with the directing. There are a few moments where the pacing seems a bit off, but there are some brilliantly directed scenes. Including one scene that will probably be the subject of a Little Moment, Big Meaning. 

I think Cooper has a good future as a director. 

The film also features some spectacular supporting performances with Sam Elliott, Dave Chapelle, and Andrew Dice Clay - seriously!

Then there's the music! Shallows, Always Remember Us This Way, and the rest are great! Even the "sellout" songs are enjoyable at least. 

Any problems I have with the movie are relatively minor and don't really take away from the whole experience. 

I'm sure I'll get around to watching the other films. I definitely see this getting nominated for several awards, especially for the music. 

SCORE: 4/5

First Man (2018)

D: Damien Chazelle

W: Josh Singer, based on First Man: The Life of Neil A. Armstrong by James R. Hansen

C: Ryan Gosling, Claire Foy, Jason Clarke, Kyle Chandler, Corey Stoll, Ciarán Hinds, Christopher Abbott, Patrick Fugit, Lukas Haas

PLOT: "A look at the life of the astronaut, Neil Armstrong (Gosling), and the legendary space mission that led him to become the first man to walk on the Moon on July 20, 1969." (From Letterboxd.com)

Oscar winner Damien Chazelle continues his streak of directing top-notch films by going out of the realm of jazz centered films. 

I'm a bit surprised it took this long to get a movie made about Neil Armstrong and the moon landing ... that aren't based around stupid conspiracy theories. 

I f**king love this shot!

I guess what's kept it from happening is the idea of whether or not the filmmakers who do the event any justice. Thankfully, I think Chazelle and write Josh Singer did a great job with this. 

Now, apparently, this movie is "controversial" to some - mainly people like Senators Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio - in that they don't show the American flag being planted on the moon. These people deemed it "unpatriotic." 

Fellow film lover Jake Hamilton thoroughly rips this claim to shreds in his review for Fox 32 News in Chicago. Link can be found here. By the way, Jake is definitely a film critic you should follow. 

But what about the movie itself? Chazelle does a great job with showing the moments of self-doubt that Armstrong may have had while training and taking parts in this space flights.

One of my favorite things about the film is how they decided to keep Armstrong a sort of blank slate with his emotions. I think this is tied around with the fact that Armstrong himself was a very quiet and humble man. This is in stark contrast to his co-astronaut Buzz Aldrin (Corey Stoll) who is blunter with his thoughts and feelings. At one point in the movie, he says, "I'm just saying what everyone is thinking" to which Armstrong says, "Maybe you shouldn't." That pretty much summarizes it. 

This is more of a character drama about Armstrong and his family. Earlier on in the movie, we see Armstrong care for his younger daughter Karen who is dying of cancer. During that we see him try to find the best way to treat her even looking at traveling to Canada to treat her. Ultimately, his daughter dies and it definitely broke him but keeps his emotions bottled up and only cries after secluding himself in his office. 

This stuff and moments of self-doubt about science especially after the multiple failed NASA flights really gives us a compelling drama about a man who wants to go forth but is worried it'll go wrong. 

There's also a great scene where his wife Janet (Claire Foy) at first tries to just be the supportive wife and mother but eventually can't contain her frustrations over Neil keeping things to himself and not talking to his sons about the dangers he faces. When she confronts him about the likelihood of him dying he starts to give statistics to which she replies with, "I don't want a f**king number!"

It's a powerful moment and Foy delivers a spectacular performance here. 

But it shows that in those moments of doubt and worry that these men at NASA are incredibly dedicated they were to this task that was seen as impossible and worthless. 

One of my favorite scenes of the movie is when Armstrong boards and launches Gemini 8 mission. For a lot of it, we see it from his point of view, and this was one of the most effective uses of it. Combining that with the sound design and editing, it truly is the closest I'll get to space travel. 

Much like A Star Is Born, any complaints about the film are minor. 

This is totally a film worth checking out, especially if you can see it in RPX or IMAX.

SCORE: 4.5/5

What were thoughts on the movies? Share your thoughts in the comments.

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