Bradley Cooper, finally “master”?
Bradley Cooper is an undeniably gifted actor, director and producer. Also very talented, and the first success of him, A star was born in 2018, he had received a shower of awards and nominations (in particular the Oscar for best film and for best actor in 2019), which made him stand out. His second feature film, Masterwhich he produces, directs, co-writes and in which he plays the main role, affirms this reality: Bradley Cooper is a talented artist.
And this ambitious biographical account of the American composer Leonard Bernstein, through his very personal approach to the theme, wants to convey it in a disturbing way.
The complicated art of counterweight
The biopic has once again become an attractive genre, as Christopher Nolan did earlier this year OppenheimerBradley Cooper went to great lengths to tell the story of the man who was the American composer Leonard Bernstein. It was he who introduced him to the revelation in 1943, when, at just 25 years old, Bernstein replaced German conductor Bruno Walter at short notice to conduct a radio symphony concert.
Right now the world is at war, we look inside black and white – which Matthew Libatique does very well with photography -, and the young composer, exceptional pianist, passionate conductor and aspiring composer, has dreams of greatness.
Bradley Cooper, who plays Leonard Bernstein, captures in his staging and conveys in his interpretation all the enthusiasm of a generation of artists, its youth, its aspiration for excellence and a bright future. After the war everything had to be rebuilt, retransmitit’s time to move on to colors, to joy, to emotion, to sharing.
During this time, the 1950s and 1960s, Leonard Bernstein became very popular, ubiquitous on television where he conducted orchestras and played roles in classical music. Modern composer with a very energetic direction possessed, he also broke with the classicism associated with his profession. Well known for his interpretations and conducting of other composers, Leonard Bernstein is also known for one of his greatest compositions: History of the West Side.
But the more Bradley Cooper progresses with the character, the more a form of anomaly emerges. Despite appearances, despite precedents A star was borndespite its topic, Master it’s not a musical film. And it is not the composer who reveals himself here, but the man, in his romantic intimacy and his oppressed identity.
Why Bernstein?
Fans of musicals and films History of the West Side it will be at their expense. We do not see the composer engaged in this task and we only hear, for a brief moment and extradiegetically, a piece of this great composition. And don’t talk about it History of the West Side is equivalent to meaning that it is therefore not a question of musical genius Master.
Or maybe the topic is the thwarted genius ? The one who suffered all his life from not being recognized for his original compositions, the one who experienced more popular appreciation than recognition from his peers? The most modern and liberal classical composer of his time, who never really hid his homosexuality despite his union with the actress Felicia Montealegre?
Why Bernstein? It is by asking this question that Bradley Cooper’s profound intention emerges. By choosing Leonard Bernstein, recognized more as an interpreter of genius than as a great creator – which he also was – Bradley Cooper therefore seems to have done the choice to talk about him, which has been denied (for the moment) the most prestigious awards. A very popular actor, whose gaze, childish and energetic, reflects an aspiration for creativity and beauty, but an artist who cannot find his place, disoriented by their own ambitions and contradictions ?
Paradoxes and genius
So, to tell the story of Leonard Bernstein and himself, to develop his unique character and his difference, Bradley Cooper chooses to turn off the music to show his marriage to Felicia Montealegre, played admirably by Carey Mulligan. The two actors are the beating heart of the film, and the long, focused shots of their faces crossed by a thousand emotions are among the most successful one.
But at the same time as Leonard Bernstein finds in his couple one of the most beautiful roles of his life, this also confines him in what he is not – even though he would like to be -: a classic man. Because, it was when he became a family man and at the height of his popularity that the Master went from black and white to color.
This is the paradox of the character: intoxicated by his popularity and his modernity, adored by the younger generations, Leonard Bernstein wanted to be perceived as a “classical” composer, recalling in public the perception of the traditionalism and seriousness of which he was as in private, in reverse. This is why, to underline the depth of this contradiction and, ultimately, its difficulty in adapting to the times, Bradley Cooper talks about the Bernstein – Montealegre couple to highlight above all Bernstein’s homosexuality.
Don’t make any mistakes, Master he is technically brilliant. With Steven Spielberg and Martin Scorsese in co-production, the cinematic quality of Master places it at the top of the cart on the Netflix platform. The interpretations, the images, the writing in ellipsis, the original soundtrack, everything is very beautiful. But “beautiful” is truly beautiful when it becomes an emotion, when a true aesthetic experience occurs.
A confusing emotion
Bradley Cooper has for him astonishing sincerity, and this is what makes him, above all, an artist. But in his ways, the radicality that he seeks… Master has in places like desires Blond hair – seems to be overcome by a form of simplism. In many ways, Master East a classic biopic, with its performances at the Oscars, its veneration for a great figure, its punctuated but still linear story. Yet Bradley Cooper chooses Bernstein and decides not to transform his music into a film except in a very cute dance scene, and in a prodigious sequence where Bradley Cooper/Leonard Bernstein conducts Symphony no. 2 by Mahler and reconciles with Felicia.
More than an artist who has reached the Grail, what is celebrated is the man who rediscovered the love of his life and resolved some of his contradictions.
Who was Bernstein? The character of Master he asks himself the question, and Bradley Cooper asks the same question in the mirror. Is he an actor or a director? Is he an original artist or a very gifted imitator? He is pursuing a narcissistic endeavor, as his character does, or he really wants it give something to the world ? It is this field of reflection, opened by the actor-director, that gives the film its originality and great quality Master. But paradoxically it doesn’t arouse many emotions, other than the touching, if a little confusing, invitation to the hearts of these two artists.
Master by Bradley Cooper, on Netflix on December 20, 2023. Above is the trailer. Find all our trailers here.
Source: Cine Serie
Ray Ortiz is a journalist at Gossipify, known for his coverage of trending news and current events. He is committed to providing readers with accurate and unbiased reporting, and is respected for his ability to keep readers informed on the latest news and issues.
