A Star Is Born (1954)
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A struggling singer finds stardom while her mentor's career collapses into a tragic spiral of alcoholism.
The story
Esther Blodgett is an aspiring singer with a band, and Norman Maine is a former matinée idol whose career is beginning to decline. When Norman arrives intoxicated at a function, Esther saves him from public humiliation by pretending he is part of her act. Realizing she has saved him, Norman invites her to dinner and encourages her to pursue a movie career in LA. After Esther is cast in a small film role and eventually becomes a huge success under the name Vicki Lester, her relationship with Norman flourishes as his own career and health continue to deteriorate.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Esther Blodgett is an aspiring singer whose career takes off when she helps save her mentor, Norman Maine, from public humiliation. Norman encourages her to pursue acting in Los Angeles, where she is rebranded as Vicki Lester and becomes a massive success. As Vicki's stardom grows, Norman's alcoholism worsens, rendering him unemployable. During Vicki's Oscar acceptance speech, a drunk Norman interrupts and strikes her. He is eventually sent to a sanitarium and later arrested for a drinking binge. After being released from jail, Norman overhears Vicki telling a studio head she will retire to care for him. Realizing the damage he has caused to her career and life, Norman walks into the ocean and drowns himself. At his funeral, a despondent Vicki is eventually convinced by her old bandmate to attend a charity function, where she finally acknowledges her new life as Mrs. Norman Maine.
- First release year
- 1954
- Runtime (minutes)
- 154
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- George Cukor
- Writers
- Moss Hart · screenplay
- Cast and characters
- Judy Garland · Vicki Lester; James Mason · Norman Maine
- Genres
- musical drama; romantic drama
- Themes
- stardom; alcoholism; self-sacrifice
- Tone and mood
- heartbreaking; grand
- Premise and plot tags
- musical; backstage; rise and fall
- Source material / true-story basis
- 1937 film based on a screenplay by Robert Carson, Dorothy Parker and Alan Campbell, and from the same story by William A. Wellman and Carson
- Franchise connections
- A Star Is Born
- Content notes
- alcoholism
- Reception
- The film received widespread critical acclaim, particularly Cukor's original uncut version, and was noted for its grand scope and intimate moments.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 98% · review count: 40
- Awards and nominations
- Academy Award · Best Actress · Nominated; Academy Award · Best Actor · Nominated
- Production trivia
- It was the first Warner Brothers picture to use CinemaScope.; The film was originally announced to be made in 3-D.; The song "The Man That Got Away" was ranked No. 11 on AFI's list of 100 top songs in films.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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