IU students got to feel like VIP’s when they saw the new blockbuster movie, “A Star is Born,” a few days early on Oct. 3 in the IMU Whittenberger Auditorium.
“I’m ready to cry,” a girl shouted to her friends in the crowded auditorium as they waited for the movie to begin. “I need this. I need this.”
“A Star is Born” is the remake of a remake of a remake, the first dating back to 1937. All the movies involve famous, past-their-prime men who fall in love with a “no-name” talented woman and watch as they not only meet their star status but eclipse it.
This 2018 version is certainly a modern update to the same themes and ideas, with Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga in the main roles. “A Star is Born” serves as Cooper’s directorial debut and Gaga’s first serious role.
While everyone is going to be talking about Gaga’s acting chops and Cooper’s mesmerizing shots, just how excellent he is as the decaying rock 'n' roll star, Jackson Maine, might get overshadowed. His portrayal is humorous, tragic, charismatic and nuanced. It’s a combination of all his previous roles, as if everything had been building to this.
The plot moved lightning fast. The story constantly diverted the audience’s expectations. Many audience members still had tears lingering in their eyes as they walked out of the auditorium and into the October night.
“I liked that it wasn’t cliché,” Riley Petty, a senior marketing and international business major, said. “I heard a lot of buzz beforehand. Plus, there was Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga. Definitely lived up.”
Erin Poulsen, a junior advertising major, was one of the students helping organize and execute the event. Her favorite part of the movie was what will keep “A Star is Born” on people’s minds even after it has left theaters.
“All the original songs were my favorite part probably,” Poulsen said. “I felt like they really integrated it well, and it never felt like a pop musical or anything like that. It seemed really fitting.”
Poulsen said these advanced screenings happen by working with different sponsors, who help set up these special events. Spotify partnered with the University for this particular screening.
“It’s exciting to be able to show a movie early, especially one like this with such a star-studded cast,” Poulsen said.
Next Wednesday will be a similar event in the IMU’s Whittenberger Auditorium. This time it will be another early Oscar favorite, with Damien Chazelle’s “First Man,” staring Ryan Gosling as Neil Armstrong.
