“Maestro” is a beautiful Oscar-winning film. Bradley Cooper is unlucky though [RECENZJA]

I didn’t even suspect that I would be so moved at the “Maestro” screening. And yet this story about life, love and, only at the very end, the music of Leonard Bernstein, shot with simplicity and even old-fashioned elegance, brought tears to my eyes. But not because someone is deliberately playing on emotions, but because the feelings shown on the screen turned out to be resonant. It’s also a strange feeling to watch the second film directed by this American actor and to have the feeling that he has fallen in love with European cinema.

“Maestro” on Netflix. Bradley Cooper has outdone himself

“Maestro” is a true love child who had his fingers in almost every aspect of this production. He wrote the script together with Josh Singer, was one of the producers alongside such greats of American cinema as Martin Scorsese, and, of course, he directed and played the main role. And he did it all with incredible reverence and impressive devotion. Steven Spielberg admitted this during a meeting with the audience – he said in front of the cameras:

When you first showed me your A Star Is Born – and at that stage we had each seen four different versions of A Star Is Born – I was incredibly surprised that I had never seen a Star Is Born like you had done before. I couldn’t believe this was the first film you directed. Now I’m doubly surprised that “Maestro” is only your second film as a director. It’s just amazing.

“Maestro” is, in fact, a film perfectly tailored to , but it also seems to me that Bradley Cooper did not make this film for awards, but for the love of cinema. And so that it turns out perfect. Because he is a perfectionist, as evidenced by the fact that he spent six years learning how to conduct an orchestra for six minutes and 21 seconds. This was important because the scene in which the film crew recreated Leonard Bernstein’s famous concert at Ely Cathedral in 1976 was actually recorded “live” by Bradley Cooper. He really conducted (and at the same time recreated the movements of his hero) the musicians of the London Symphony Orchestra, a chorus of 100 people and soloists during the performance of Gustav Mahler’s Second Symphony of the Resurrection.

For this purpose, Cooper carefully studied the recording with Bernstain himself, and at the same time enlisted the help of one of the most respected conductors today, Yannick Nézet-Séguin. He is the music director of the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Metropolitan Opera, as well as the life-long artistic director and principal conductor of the Montreal Orchester Métropolitain – he is considered one of the greatest masters of the baton. He recorded instructional videos especially for Cooper, showing key movements and tempo changes characteristic of Bernstein’s conducting style. And he was famous for devoting himself completely to music and conducting with his whole being. Cooper imitates him phenomenally, which is clearly visible at the end credits, when a fragment of a recording from Bernstein’s real concert appears.

‘Maestro’ Jason McDonald/Netflix 2023

Cooper’s crew recreated that evening with murderous precision: Cooper even spoke to the musicians in Bernstein’s voice between takes, each member of the orchestra had to sit in exactly the same place, the musicians were asked to grow their own hair, beards and mustaches, and even appropriate glasses were ordered for them from era. In fact, attention was paid to details that are almost or not visible on the screen – exact replicas of the programs of that concert were printed.

You can see the dedication and great love for this story and its characters. I can believe that all three Bernstein children cried with emotion after , because this film is actually a love letter to Leonard Bernstein. Not even so much as his work, but his life, love and what made him who he was. Contrary to expectations, “Maestro” does not tell us how detailed and brilliant the career of this brilliant musician was. Viewers will indeed learn that his fame rose when, due to an emergency and earlier rehearsals, he had to replace another conductor who was unable to perform at the legendary Carnegie Hall in 1943. However, they will not find out how many prestigious awards he won, where in the world he performed or that he composed the music for the famous musical “West Side Story”.

‘Maestro’ / Bradley Cooper and Yannick Nézet-Séguin on the set of the film Jason McDonald/Netflix 2023

Viewers will have the chance to get to know him as a man who, while having affairs with numerous men, loved his wife Felicia Montealegre (brilliant) and children madly. They will learn that despite his successes, his private life was not perfect, that he could not control himself, that his wife sometimes lost patience, and that she held various things against him. They will see a man who is torn by feelings and passion for both people and music. There may even be too little of this music here, but considering how much preparation it took to record a scene from one concert, it is easy to understand that Cooper preferred to show less of it, but better.

“Maestro” may not be extremely perfect, but it is moving, elegant and humanly captivating. It is certainly one of the most successful films of this year and one of the biggest Oscar contenders. The Oscar is definitely deserved for the make-up alone, because when in the last frames we look at Cooper, presented as Bernstein in a very mature age, his artificial skin looks terrifying, even realistic. Cooper really looks like he is at least 70 years old, and this impression is even more disturbing because the viewer knows that the actor does not look like that and is not that age. Impressive, especially since I watched it on a really big screen in a cinema hall.

“Maestro”. Bradley Cooper is unlucky

Bradley Cooper, however, is unlucky in all this. Not least because his second film is so polished and he will potentially be trying to do something even better for years to come. He’s unlucky, among other things. because he chose his on-screen partner so well. Carrey Mulligan absolutely stole this film – she plays masterfully, without exaggeration, but with mesmerizing realism. And so, in some respects, she overshadowed Cooper’s own acting.

The scene in which her character takes her last breath is something that students will potentially learn about in film schools. Just like what Christopher Nolan managed to achieve in “Oppenheimer”, which, together with “Barbie”, was the biggest cinema event of summer 2023. Let’s not forget that Martin Scorsese’s latest film, “The Bloody Moon,” also premiered this year. We also cannot forget about “Poor Creatures” directed by Yórgos Lánthimos. The Oscar battle will take place against really strong opponents. It is already expected that the creators of these titles will compete for the awards for the best film of the year, for directing, for leading and supporting roles and for editing. “Maestro” may fail compared to them, which is sad because it’s a really solid title. Meanwhile, the film can be seen from December 20.