The third remake of the 1932 drama What Price Hollywood?, this adaptation of A Star Is Born moved the story into the mid-1970's and changed the milieu from the movie business to pop music. John Norman Howard (Kris Kristofferson) is a rock star whose career has peaked; he is numbed by booze and cocaine, his music has lost its edge, and his performances have become painfully haphazard. One night, after a concert, he stumbles into a club where he sees a singing group fronted by Esther Hoffman
(Barbra Streisand). John likes what he hears and loves what he sees; he tries picking her up, but soon realizes if he wants to see her, he'll have to ask her out on an actual date. He does, and before long the two become involved, although Esther has trouble with John's rock star lifestyle. One night, a typically burned-out John lets Esther sing a few songs at one of his shows; before long she's the talk of the record business. While Esther's star begins to rise, John's continues to sink, and while she desperately tries get John to clean up and focus on his music, it may be too late to save him. The song "Evergreen" earned this film an Academy Award for Best Song; the credits contain the amusing notice, "Ms. Streisand's Clothes from ... Her Closet." ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
Ms. Streisand has a great voice and a great stage presence, and she has made a number of good films in her career. For me, A Star Is Born is not one of them.
If only the Colonel had let Elvis play Streisand's John Norman, it might have been the camp classic closeted (very closeted) Streisand freaks insist A Star Is Born really is.
An ego project for Streisand and then companion Jon Peters, or a director (Frank Pearson), who can't handle his leading lady. Either way: This remake, marred by a fake, overly sentimental ending, is only worth seeing for Streisand's singing.
The weakest of the 3 versions, this one is tolerable due to Streisand and Kristoferson's charisma and some of the songs; Streisand's comments offer some interesting insights.
Very good movie. As always Barbara Streisand has a phonoemenal voice and despite Kris Kristostofferson's hairyness and his drug and alchohol abuse it was a very good movie.
December 14, 2008
Cassie Hill
Super Reviewer
Barbra sings like an angel but this is a crass vulgar shadow of the classic Judy version. Stick with that one
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