Maestro

This study of the relationship between Leonard Bernstein (Bradley Cooper, who also directs) and actress Felicia Montealegre Cohn Bernstein (Carey Mulligan), gives us a peek at the woman behind America's first great conductor, all the while keeping the Maestro firmly in the spotlight. The film's first hour or so, much of it set in black and white, is often delightful with its playful and bawdy tone. Moving into middle age and the later years the film turns a bit mean and messy and eventually contemplative, focused on the hard realities of a complicated and  compromised relationship between the pair that was, nevertheless, built on a foundation of love.

Maestro is a strong movie with some great moments, but also drags in the middle acts. It's more notable for the performances of its two stars, and some nice small performances from the likes of Matt Bomer and Sarah Silverman. Even at its heights, Maestro never reaches the crescendo of last year's TÁR, but filled with great acting, and even better music, it's still an easy recommendation.

The film isn't without some issues. Although Maestro rebounds with a strong ending, the period of the couple's separation, and their limited scenes together during this section of the film squabbling, comes off mostly flat. Once the story becomes colorized there's less filmmaking going on as Maestro increasingly relies on its performances to carry the story to its conclusion. At times you can feel it almost chasing award acclaim. While name dropping some of his works here and there, the film never fully conveys the breadth of Bernstein's impact on music. And for all its it moments of giving us Cooper conducting an orchestra or sitting silently at his piano composing, it never really dives deep into what made him great at either profession.

• Title: Maestro
• IMDb: link

• Title: Maestro
• IMDb: link