The 2025 film that felt the most real to me was one of the year’s final releases. Bradley Cooper’s (A Star Is Born, Maestro) is a poignant and personal look at the end of a marriage and the lengths we will go to overcome the loss that accompanies it. Will Arnett (Semi-Pro, Blades of Glory) delivers the best performance of his career as Alex, recently divorced from Tess (Laura Dern – Wild, Jay Kelly), trying to navigate a life in a new apartment and spending half as much time with his two elementary school-aged boys while still maintaining his career and career for his physical, mental, and emotional health. To escape his troubles, he ends up at a bar one night and on stage for an improv comedy skit.
Category Archives: Bradley Cooper (D)
Maestro (2023)
Each year, a handful of movies are made in a way that is less interested in audience consumption or interest and more in earning awards. The term for this is “Oscar bait.” The 2023-released movie most associated with this term is Bradley Cooper’s (A Star Is Born) sophomore directorial effort, Maestro. It will earn a few Oscars. Cooper might even earn one for Best Director. He’s likelier to earn one for Best Lead Actor for portraying the title character, Leonard Bernstein.
A Star Is Born (2018)
Wow. I really wanted to love this movie. Bradley Cooper’s debut directorial performance was so close to perfect and yet so far away at the same time. I admire his vision and ambition for this movie so much that I want to credit it even in the areas it struggled with. Watching it through the lens of a moviegoer looking for an escape rather than that of a wannabe movie critic would have allowed me to see past some of its many errors. Ultimately, however, this film was far too flawed to be a legitimate contender for Best Picture or Best Director, despite what many seem to be already predicting. I will touch on all of the good and all of the bad in what will be one of my more thorough reviews.