Lady Gaga stars in the aptly titled new movie, A Star Is Born, and critics are loving it.
In this 4th iteration of the now-famous story (previous versions in 1937 with Janet Gaynor, 1954 with Judy Garland, and 1976 with Streisand) of a fading star falling in love with an unknown on a meteoric rise, Gaga is making her film debut as “Ally,” a singer/songwriter who is discovered by Bradley Cooper’s hard-drinking country rocker, “Jackson Maine,” performing in a drag bar.
Sparks become chemistry becomes love, and off we go with Cooper and Gaga as he introduces her to the world and she tries to save him from his own self-destruction.
The movie, also Cooper’s directorial debut, recently premiered at the Venice Film Festival to spectacular results.
Critics raved:
Entertainment Weekly says Gaga “deserves praise for her restrained, human-scale performance as a singer whose real-girl vulnerability lands miles away from the glittery meat-dress delirium of her own stage persona.”
“There's a lot to love in Bradley Cooper's entertaining remake of A Star is Born,” writes The Hollywood Reporter, adding Gaga is “captivating.”
The Guardian gushes about the film using terms as glowing as “outrageously watchable.” “colossally enjoyable” and “supercharged.”
Variety can’t seem to find enough superlatives: “Rapturous and swooning, but also delicate and intimate and luminous.”
And TIME gives much credit to Cooper’s directorial instincts that know the proper moments to step out of the spotlight: “Cooper fades into the corner at just the right moments, allowing Gaga to shine.”
A Star Is Born currently rates a 95% on Rotten Tomatoes.
The film is set for wide release October 5.
Check out snaps from Gaga’s gorgeous arrival on the red carpet at the Venice Film Festival below.
