A Star Is Born Again…and Again

Because Hollywood loves stories about itself and the pitfalls of show business, it’s not surprising that one of the most remade movies in film history is A Star Is Born. It’s the tale of a rising young talent who is discovered by a troubled superstar, and the new star skyrockets to success as the has-been fades away.

First filmed in 1932 as What Price Hollywood, starring Constance Bennett and Max Carey, it was remade in 1937 under the title A Star Is Born with Janet Gaynor and Fredric March in the leads. Judy Garland and James Mason starred in the 1954 version (produced by Garland and her then-husband Sid Luft), which added the musical element to the story and gave Judy some of her most memorable songs, including the haunting “The Man That Got Away.”

More than 20 years later, superstar Barbra Streisand brought A Star Is Born to the screen yet again, producing and starring in an updated musical version that moved the story from the movie business to the music industry, casting herself as the up-and-coming rock and roll hopeful who falls in love with an alcoholic singer on the skids, played by Kris Kristofferson.

The 1937, 2018 and 1954 versions are all well worth watching.

In 2018, Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper teamed up for yet another remake—practically a beat-by-beat retelling of the 1976 Streisand/Kristofferson version…which may be why Streisand gave it her stamp of approval. Directed by Cooper and featuring songs by Gaga collaborating with Cooper, Diane Warren and others, it was a solid hit with audiences and critics alike.

The 1976 A Star Is Born was a massive box office success, and the soundtrack album hit #1 on the Billboard charts, remaining there for six weeks. But the movie was savaged by the critics, who deemed it a failure and a poorly conceived vanity project.

It was Streisand’s first foray into an official role behind the camera, and for A Star Is Born she teamed up with an equally inexperienced collaborator, her live-in lover, former hairdresser to the stars Jon Peters. Indeed, Streisand and Peters knew next to nothing about producing a big-budget film (although Barbra had always been passionately curious about every aspect of filmmaking), and this first effort for both of them really shows that lack of experience. 

Actress/Singer/Producer/Director Barbra Streisand

Producing partners and paramours Jon Peters and Barbra Streisand 

But of course, both would go on to greater success. As director of Yentl, The Prince of Tides and The Mirror Has Two Faces, Streisand added another hyphenate to her job description and expanded her sphere of influence in the industry. Peters would go on to partner with Peter Guber as the presenter of megahit blockbusters including The Color Purple, Rain Man and the 1989 Batman. On his own, Peters acquired the rights to the Superman franchise and produced Superman Returns (2006) and is credited as executive producer on Man of Steel (2013).

A Star Is Born was their training ground…

Originally, Streisand and Peters wanted Elvis Presley for the role of the burnt-out rock singer, and Presley, who had been absent from the big screen for almost a decade, seriously considered the offer.

Whether the role hit a little too close to home, or domineering manager Colonel Parker refused to allow him to do it, the pairing of the two icons never materialized—but it could have been an exciting combination had Elvis been able to rise to the challenge. Indeed, it may have changed the trajectory of his own life and career.

Presley’s deep, lush baritone would have been perfect for Streisand’s new composition for the love theme, “Evergreen,” a dream duet that might have been and now we can only imagine.

 

It would have been a different movie with Elvis in the Kristofferson role

Perhaps Elvis was in no condition to act before the cameras anyway. Bloated and tired, he continued a grueling touring schedule and would soon pass away in the summer of 1977, looking far older than his 42 years.

Instead, they cast the handsome and charismatic rock and folk singer turned actor Kris Kristofferson, which looked like a stroke of genius. And the screen couple showed real chemistry and photographed together well—it might be said that it was the very sexy shot of the stars embracing bare-shouldered on the movie poster and album cover that sold all those tickets. 

But the movie definitely does not work. Though there are several iconic moments that shine and make the film worth watching, the results are lukewarm at best.

They certainly looked good together and had screen chemistry

The soundtrack was one of the top selling albums of the decade, and in the film Streisand performs some of her most beloved songs, but the story is incoherent and hard to follow. The supporting characters are poorly drawn, wasting the talents of skilled actors like Gary Busey and director Paul Mazursky. The film lacks a coherent center, veering too far away from the human drama inherent in the original story.

The script is a mess; one suspects it was a classic case of too many cooks spoiling the broth. I wish I could read the original adaptation of the story by the brilliant team of Joan Didion and John Gregory Dunne, who are credited for the screenplay along with director Frank Pierson. Streisand and Peters tinkered with story and dialogue, added and cut scenes, and micromanaged every aspect of the production despite their lack of knowledge.

They even waged war against the director himself, according to Pierson in a scathing article he wrote for New West magazine before the film’s 1976 release, which added to the myth and image of Streisand as a domineering diva who must always get her own way, no matter the cost. Pierson disclosed an on-set screaming match between Kristofferson, Peters and Streisand on how a scene should be played. He painted a picture of Streisand as a control freak who wrested creative control away from him and ruined the film on final cut…perhaps just sour grapes, but the film suffered nevertheless, and the ever-ambitious Barbra Streisand is still viewed in that negative light to this day.

(Barbra herself addressed the controversy in her 2023 memoir, but seemed to place the blame for the film’s critical failure on everyone else but herself, the film’s producer.)

Sadly, Kris Kristofferson’s underwhelming performance in the final product is a particularly weak link to the 1976 A Star Is Born—likely through no fault of his own. 

Barbra designed her own wardrobe—and is credited in the film

Generously baring his tanned, well-muscled chest in practically every scene (remember when the macho men used to unbutton their shirts all the way down to the navel?), Kris certainly brings the sex appeal. But the taciturn, man-of-few-words persona that charmed Ellen Burstyn in Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore doesn’t come off as well in Kristofferson’s one-note portrayal of the crucial role of fading superstar Jon Norman Howard.

Jon Norman is a primitive character sketch of a reckless cowboy; Kristofferson reveals no vulnerability or even a clue as to what made him a great entertainer. Why is he an alcoholic? We never find out. In the dearth of a good script or subtext, the film literally forces the actor to rely on his good looks and sex appeal.

Despite having three songs on the soundtrack album, in the movie there’s a mystifying lack of singing from Kristofferson, a best-selling recording artist and songwriter himself, who gave Janis Joplin her final iconic hit, "Me and Bobby McGee." Why didn’t he sing more in this musical film?

Director Pierson claimed Streisand and Peters had re-edited the film to favor her performance, allegedly cutting scenes that added depth to Kristofferson's character to keep the focus on her. Only snippets of songs sung by Kristofferson made the final cut; even in the wonderful “Watch Closely Now” we are not allowed to see him perform the entire song. Yet later, Streisand sings a long, drawn-out arrangement of the song at the memorial after his character’s death.

Hampered by a threadbare script and surprisingly few musical moments in which to highlight his undeniable talent and charisma, Kristofferson’s performance seems wooden and hollow.

(By contrast, Bradley Cooper’s portrayal of the character in the 2018 film which he also directed, was better by far…though never celebrated as a singer, Cooper’s vocals are remarkable here, the duet with Gaga on “Shallow” being a particularly memorable moment.)

I don't remember this scene in the film—did they cut it?

For a movie billed as a rock film, there is a stultifying lack of real rock music here…Marilyn and Alan Bergman, Rupert Holmes, Kenny Loggins and Paul Williams are more well known as composers of light pop, standards and folk…great music, but it’s not rock and roll to me.

Predictably, the focus of the 1976 film is squarely on Barbra Streisand, the film’s titular character. An admirer of Judy Garland ever since the two worked together on television in 1963, Streisand saw the opportunity to update the story and display her versatility as an actress, musician and producer—the world’s greatest entertainer, now as a rock singer who skyrockets to fame when discovered by a fading superstar.

Suspension of disbelief is necessary to picture the already legendary Barbra Streisand as a total unknown, naive to the workings of big time show business. (Similarly, you have to do the same in the 1954 version to believe the 32-year-old Judy Garland as a starving young singer.) 

As usual, Streisand, ever the pro, is strong in her role of the singing sensation Esther Hoffman and comes off best in the film, though she has little to play against, chiefly because all she basically does in the film is sing song after hit song, albeit winningly. 

In the film, Barbra memorably sports a startlingly tight afro-perm that certainly changes her look, as if to exorcise the ghosts of musical dinosaurs Dolly Levi and Fanny Brice (whom she had just played a second time in Funny Lady) for good and all. Some of her fans were horrified; others applauded her contemporary new look, created by her hairstylist lover and Star Is Born coproducer Jon Peters. Streisand would keep the tight curls for a couple more years longer than she kept Peters, through her 1978 Superman album and 1979’s The Main Event. For A Star Is Born, the star also designed all her own clothes (and gave herself screen credit for it).

Did Streisand and Kristofferson have an on-set screaming match?

Barbra had previously dipped her toe into the rock genre, scoring hits with cover versions of songs like Laura Nyro’s “Stoney End” and Carole King’s “Where You Lead,” but here she is more balladeer than rock diva. “I Believe in Love,” “Everything” and “Woman in the Moon” are highlights, beautifully and excitingly performed by Streisand in the live concert sequences, but the songs are basically contemporary pop standards. Streisand composed the music for the love theme “Evergreen”; Paul Williams provided the lyrics. Both took home Oscars as it won the Best Original Song award that year.

If only the creative team had spent as much time on the dramatic possibilities as the music. Despite the physical chemistry of the two stars, you don’t understand why Esther cares so much about Jon Norman. And Esther doesn’t seem nearly as ambitious as she should be either; it’s as if she merely gets a lucky break…there is no hunger for fame or even artistic achievement. Esther hits the stage, wins over Jon Norman’s disgruntled audience, and suddenly becomes an icon.

In one of the film’s brighter moments, the Esther and Jon Norman  “Evergreen” recording studio scene captures a spark of iconic movie magic (though, again, we barely get more than a phrase or two of the love theme vocalized by Kristofferson).  But the story of their artistic collaboration, deepening love and tragic loss is never fully realized. 

"Evergreen" won Barbra her second Oscar, this time for Best Original Song

Though it’s an essential in the Barbra Streisand filmography, and one that launched her to even greater success, this film doesn’t hold a candle to the 1937, 1954 and 2018 iterations. Of course, as a big Barbra fan, I own the DVD and have viewed it many times but always find myself fast forwarding through to the musical numbers.

For those who want to see this oft-told story really come to life, I heartily recommend the 1954 Judy Garland version.

This is an entry in the Film. Release. Repeat Blogathon hosted by the Midnite Drive-In and Hamlette's Soliloquy. Looking forward to reading all the essays over the weekend.

X Marks the End of an Era

As a pair of iron gates open and we sweep up the drive to a stately East Coast estate, a feverish piano concerto swells and the opening credits announce her name in a stylized cursive typeface: “Lana Turner” in the title role of Madame X (1966). Fans of Miss Turner will know exactly what to expect--they’ll forget their real-life troubles for a while and immerse themselves in melodramatic splendor and manufactured tragedy for the next couple of precious hours. The movie is no masterpiece, but the actress who plays her is, if not a work of art herself, definitely a piece of work. She is the raison d’etre for the picture.  

Lana Turner, Queen of the Weepies

Variations on this hackneyed plot are as old as the hills, but die-hard fans of its star (like me) will pay no mind. In Madame X, Turner’s Holly Anderson, newly married to a rising young politician,  makes a shameful mistake that could destroy the reputation of her husband and the future of her young son. She agrees to falsify her own death in order to save them from scandal, sacrificing her identity, her own happiness and ultimately her life in the process. Cue the Kleenex box.

As her appeal as sexy sweater girl and smoldering femme fatale of the 1940s began to wane, a still-glamorous Lana Turner reinvented herself to become the queen of the scandalous soap opera in the late ’50s and early ’60s, extending her shelf life far beyond that of the garden variety sex symbol. The over-the-top melodramas that marked this successful second act in her career, from Peyton Place and Imitation of Life, Portrait in Black to By Love Possessed, cemented her status as a lasting film icon--and even seemed to mirror the dramas in her personal life, most notably the 1958 stabbing of her gangster lover Johnny Stompanato (reportedly by Turner’s daughter Cheryl Crane, but audiences could certainly picture Lana herself wielding that knife).  And Madame X is Turner’s swan song as a top-billed, above-the-title star. If only it were a better movie...but does that really matter?   

The fault is not Lana’s. Turner gives it all she’s got, and still looks remarkably well-preserved in the early scenes that depict her as a newly affluent young newlywed, bedecked in chic Jean Louis gowns and dripping with diamonds by David Webb. Her descent into alcoholism and despair is appropriately gripping for the film in which she’s appearing...the trouble is, the mannered and surreal  “imitation of life” style of storytelling is already years out of date.

John Forsythe and Keir Dullea 

Released in 1966, the same year as the searing and groundbreaking Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf and refreshingly risque comedies like Georgy Girl and Alfie, this sudsy, sexless G-rated confection is already hopelessly dated, even for its time. Filmgoers were now interested in gritty realism, social issues, and sex--savvy 1960s audiences were no longer content to be fed pablum served under a veneer of glamour and artifice.

Scene-stealing character actor Burgess Meredith

The ’30s version of this film with the long-forgotten Gladys George rang truer, as did similar films of this genre that were so popular in that decade, most notably Barbara Stanwyck’s Stella Dallas. The 1966 retelling loses touch with reality in favor of gloss, glitz and over-the-top sentimentalism.

A G-rated pas de deux with Ricardo Montalban

Legendary producer Ross Hunter gives Madame X a stylish production. After all, this was the man who gave Doris Day back her sex appeal after a decade of tomboy and matron roles with 1959’s Pillow Talk, and elevated sorrow to tragedy with Turner and Sandra Dee in Imitation of Life--but at its heart the picture, based on an ancient French stage play, is still a hoary old chestnut: a sobber, a weepie, the already-dead movie genre once known as a “woman’s picture.” And without a visionary director at the helm like a Douglas Sirk or even a camp stylist like a Mark Robson, cliched material such as this is bound to fail, even if dressed up with star performances, stylish trappings and an overbearing music score.

The brilliant Constance Bennett in her final film

But what makes this film compulsively watchable is Lana Turner herself. This woman is a pro as she propels her audience through the pedestrian script and bravely attempts to enhance the inanities she must utter with meaning. The lady works her ass off to tell the story, and we applaud her courage, we stay with her, because she promises to deliver in the last reel, and so she does. No wonder poor Madame X is so tuckered out by the end of the picture that she simply drops dead. The final scene in which Lana expires in her son’s arms is pure pathos, and probably failed to elicit a single tear among 1966 audiences. We’ve seen this all before, and more artfully executed. But Lana tries valiantly to make it a movie moment worth remembering. 

The unforgettable dialogue...

"So you've killed your lover, my girl!"

The supporting performances are entertaining, essayed by skilled actors with lots of charisma, but with little help from the threadbare script. Burgess Meredith chews the scenery, adding layers of attention-grabbing business to his role as the two-bit hustler. Ricardo Montalban seduces with his smile and Latin charm. Handsome John Forsythe is a bit wooden (he did loosen up a bit decades later on Dynasty), but his inimitable speaking voice (Charlie: “Hello, Angels”) already seems comfortingly familiar. A young Keir Dullea is earnest and attractive, and as the young public defender, displays good chemistry with Miss Turner as the ailing defendant who turns out to be his long-lost mother. 

Properly deglamorized to show the effects of the "toxic liqueur" absinthe

Practically stealing the film is the legendary Constance Bennett, the classy dame who frolicked with Cary Grant in Topper and countless 1930s films. In this, her last role, Bennett lacerates with studied bitchery as Lana’s still-glamorous but poisonous mother-in-law.

Madame X is forced to protect her identity

Unfortunately, this was Miss Turner’s last major motion picture, although she made several appearances in exploitation films, TV movies, guest shots on series like The Love Boat, and played a recurring role on Falcon Crest before her death at the age of 74 in 1995. Her presentational style of acting was passé, based so fundamentally on her movie star image of female glamour, that she simply could not change with the times. 

Get out the Kleenex...

Contemporaries like Bette Davis, Joan Crawford, Olivia de Havilland and Joan Fontaine found their footing as scream queens in successful horror films. Her MGM colleague Elizabeth Taylor had successfully made the transition to character roles starting with the raucous middle-aged Martha in Virginia Woolf. But beyond their allure and razzle-dazzle, those gals had all proven themselves real actresses. Lana Turner had always been more of a sensation and a personality than an artist. She made more headlines for her personal travails than raves for her performances, though she did receive a Best Actress Oscar nomination for Peyton Place. Stripped of her perfectly coiffed blond hair, red lips, high heels and designer gowns, the icon she’d manufactured would cease to exist. So instead, she clung to her accoutrements of glamour and became a bit of a caricature of herself in later years, and worked less and less. 

But in Madame X, Turner commands the screen one last time--and triumphs in her own unique way, while signaling the end of the era of the once-beloved “woman’s picture.”