The credits of George Cukor's A Star Is Born (1954) open up with a scarlet red font set against the stagnant dark of a dimly lit up Los Angeles. A bittersweet valentine awaits in the form of a concept musical which depends greatly on the raw talent and heart of its star Judy Garland. She sings and performs all of the songs in the movie, and, as Esther Blodgett, an actress not unlike herself, she makes her way up the Hollywood ladder, which comes full-circle halfway through the film in a stylized number detailing Esther’s background to her present accomplishments. (Scroll down halfway into this post for my favorite shot from the film for Nathaniel Rogers' Hit Me With Your Best Shot series over at The Film Experience.)When we first meet Norman Maine (James Mason) and Esther, it’s at an exclusive benefit held at The Shrine where the younger and hardworking talent Esther is performing and Norman, a huge star with ebbing fame, is making a drunken and belligerent spectacle of himself. In her opening shot, she smooths out the wrinkles in her pantyhose while taking notice of the one-male trainwreck backstage, revealing an enamored twinkle in her eye. When the loose cannon asserts himself into the show he was not cast in, Esther improvises like a boss and goes with the flow, while her efforts to escort him off the stage are futile. She had just met him and not even carried on a conversation, and already she has begun the codependent cycle of putting a happy face on her despondent and mentally ill partner in life—the underbelly of what attracts audiences over the years to an unhinged actor’s charms. Right before their first meeting where Norman has sobered up, Esther foreshadows their love story, which had already begun, with “The Man That Got Away.”
Star also explores the glitz of Hollywood, a façade many of us remain entranced by, even when we're completely aware of all that is not real. Norman sees a great deal of potential in Esther, a singer traveling with a band, and convinces her to remain in L.A. and pursue a career in pictures. He molds her as she learns the ropes of the industry, while she takes jobs as a waitress (which she swore she never would do again) and day-player. There’s a poignant moment on her way to the publicity department where a confused Esther gets trapped in a gate she has just entered. She neither feels herself going forward and it’s too late for her to go back to the life she had carved out for herself. She feels pressured to get facial reconstruction and the studios impose a new name on her (Vicki Lester).
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| A revelation breaking the wall between real and imaginary, laced with delicious sarcasm. |
My Favorite Shot From A Star Is Born:
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| This blink-and-you-miss it moment best epitomized, for me, Esther's love for Norman--boundless coupled in the context of her professional high with his temporary ability to appreciate her success |
Esther is a giving actress, always willing to share. And after a successful screening of her latest film with her finally as the star, she steals a look at Norman in the lobby. Her feelings for him are palpable. After releasing a quiet, but grateful ‘thank you’ to Norman with full eyes, there is this subtle moment where she adjusts Norman’s tie. While she savors her personal success, her triumph wouldn’t conjure anywhere near the elation she feels if her man weren't there to celebrate it with her. She can’t believe she has him in her life, because it feels like a wonderful dream to her, one that she never imagined possible, simply because she never considered it could happen to her. It’s one of many moments which color just how deep her love is for the man, and how thankful she is that love is reciprocated. And it's my favorite shot in the film.
They soon settle into domesticity, where we reach the high point of the film and their lives, and Garland shows off just how much she’s carrying the movie (as well as Esther’s relationship with Norman). In one of my favorite scenes, Esther performs “Someone At Last” from her latest project for her husband in their living room. She’s spry and hams up the more ludicrous elements of her role, using every inch of that room and prop in sight to dress up her impromptu international number, while Norman giddily soaks it all in. It’s the calm before the storm.
People often throw around the term “robbed” a little to literally for my tastes when it comes to talented actors who have never been graced by an Oscar win. I’m not immune, but very careful when pointing out award injustices. I prefer a good distance in time between the subject’s legacy and the present tense. Though, especially in these times of the internet, a victorious Kickstarter movement for Veronica Mars, and campaign to get Betty White to host SNL, fans of current stars who still have their foot in the industry like Julianne Moore and Glenn Close might be wise to continue clamoring about the wrongness of it all that their favorite remains unOscared. But, I feel I can safely say the fact that Garland never won an Academy Award is quite unfortunate indeed. Up against two previous winners, she lost to blond beauty Grace Kelly. Ironically, though, her Esther/Vicki wins the Oscar in this self-referential industry film. How unfortunately fitting, then, that Garland's imaginary world, yet again, was painfully more preferable than her real one.
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| Norman's view of himself has moved from being center screen to backstage to, finally, a dark, lonely room of his choosing |
Similar to her off-screen marriages, she fell in love with damaged goods. She also had the additional pressures of being part of a celebrated couple who had to air their dirty laundry out to the smut-hungry masses. But, what do you do with two people who aren’t right for each other, but are so preoccupied with being in love? And they work in an industry where matters are settled from a business vantage, not personal. He hijacks her glory and accidentally physically abuses her in front of the audience and those watching at home (this film came out shortly after Oscar began live telecasts). It’s a moment that he will play over and over again in his mind that will crystallize his belief that he is unable to exist in this world. This runs juxtaposition to the private innocent, playful slap he gave her in the wings of The Shrine when they first met. Norman can’t stand being a relic in his profession and being married to someone so successful only accentuates his anguish.
Miscellaneous Thoughts
While the nearly three hour long film could have somehow been trimmed, it was pretty apparent how aware the filmmakers were of their running time and the difficulty they had preserving the integrity of their story while still having audiences in mind. During Esther’s early days in Hollywood, there’s an interspersed sequence of film stills which convey a tabloid feel. The stylized choice seems to attempt a passing of time and/or was due to budget constraints, but feels extremely dated and didn't work for me. I was also struck by the obvious lip-syncing, but found it immediately excusable and endearing. Garland is a pure singer whose emotions can’t be contained by the regimented exercise of matching one’s mouth movements to a prerecorded soundtrack. For her, it can’t be an exact science, but a messy and beautiful one. I ended up reveling in how out-of-sync she was, when she was.
And, then, of course, there’s this …
While the nearly three hour long film could have somehow been trimmed, it was pretty apparent how aware the filmmakers were of their running time and the difficulty they had preserving the integrity of their story while still having audiences in mind. During Esther’s early days in Hollywood, there’s an interspersed sequence of film stills which convey a tabloid feel. The stylized choice seems to attempt a passing of time and/or was due to budget constraints, but feels extremely dated and didn't work for me. I was also struck by the obvious lip-syncing, but found it immediately excusable and endearing. Garland is a pure singer whose emotions can’t be contained by the regimented exercise of matching one’s mouth movements to a prerecorded soundtrack. For her, it can’t be an exact science, but a messy and beautiful one. I ended up reveling in how out-of-sync she was, when she was.
And, then, of course, there’s this …
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| This Huckleberry Finn number “Lose That Long Face” may contain the most egregious stereotype blunders in a movie with many. That may all depend on your sensibilities and where you’re from. |
People often throw around the term “robbed” a little to literally for my tastes when it comes to talented actors who have never been graced by an Oscar win. I’m not immune, but very careful when pointing out award injustices. I prefer a good distance in time between the subject’s legacy and the present tense. Though, especially in these times of the internet, a victorious Kickstarter movement for Veronica Mars, and campaign to get Betty White to host SNL, fans of current stars who still have their foot in the industry like Julianne Moore and Glenn Close might be wise to continue clamoring about the wrongness of it all that their favorite remains unOscared. But, I feel I can safely say the fact that Garland never won an Academy Award is quite unfortunate indeed. Up against two previous winners, she lost to blond beauty Grace Kelly. Ironically, though, her Esther/Vicki wins the Oscar in this self-referential industry film. How unfortunately fitting, then, that Garland's imaginary world, yet again, was painfully more preferable than her real one. 
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