Siblings Jamie, Alexander, and Nina Bernstein talk about the Venice Fest audience, reliving their mother’s death on screen, and why Bradley Cooper was the perfect embodiment of their legendary father.
Maestro is Bradley Cooper’s biopic about the personal and professional life of legendary conductor Leonard Bernstein and his wife Felicia Montealegre, played by Carey Mulligan.
The siblings took center stage at the Venice Film Fest, leaping up after screening for the standing ovation that greeted the world premiere.
“We would see Bradley and Carey, and they would come already in makeup and clothes. They would walk around the garden, the rooms, it seemed both strange and natural,” says Nina.
“At a screening, when we were photographed with Bradley and Carey, we each other and said, ‘This is very strange family picture, our parents are younger than us!’” notes Alexander.
“They’ve been trying to make this film for 15 years,” says Alexander. “Originally it was Scorsese, who kept renewing the option, but no decision was made. Fred Berner and Amy Durning were attached as producers. We just asked to read the script, to talk to the writer or director who would do it.”
“It had become a joke, all this talk of life rights, options. We had resigned ourselves to the fact that this film would never be made,” says Jamie.
Enter Spielberg
Alexander says: “When everything stopped moving, when it seemed impossible to bring it to the screen, came the twist: Spielberg. Before he remade West Side Story, he entered the production, and it looked like he might direct go as well. The idea of Bradley playing the lead came from him. But the more Bradley got involved in the project, the more he felt the story was his.”
Jamie was the first among siblings to see Cooper’s directorial debut, A Star is Born. “She just told us: ‘Go see it.’ We did, and we fell out of our chairs,” says Alexander. “We were really impressed with his work. And when we found him in front of us, he was like we imagined him to be after seeing the film: Focused, attentive, committed, and full of generosity.”
“There was an atmosphere of mutual trust,” Jamie stresses.
Cooper’s Prosthetic Nose
The trio brushes over the criticism over the prosthetic nose Cooper wears, calling the “scandal” absurd and undeserving of comment.
Much more painful was watching the darkest moments of their parent’s lives revealed on screen.
“The most difficult part was when our mother gets sick and then dies,” says Jamie. “We read the script, but seeing it was real punch in the gut, even though Bradley handled it with delicacy.
“If we had seen it all at once, in a preview, it would have destroyed us, we would have fallen apart.”
“I don’t know if by seeing the film I learned more about our family or about Bernstein,” adds Alexander. “But I learned a lot about Bradley Cooper. Now we are removed from everything, I am able to say that he and our dad are alike. There’s the same intensity, focus, and perfectionism. The ability to devote oneself to art, being able to handle tension better than anyone, not sleeping for days when inspiration comes. The same charisma.”
Almost in chorus, they say: “They hug in the same way. They are both full of warmth, of wanting to connect.”
Responsibility of Legacy
Maestro explores the challenge Felicia Montealegre faced being the wife of a genius. But what is it like to bear the responsibility of his legacy?
“It is tremendously difficult,” Nina admits. “You have expectations of yourself that you can never meet,” says Jamie.
“We had a book when we were little kids,” Alexander notes. “On the cover, it was called ‘Just like mommy.’ Then you would turn it upside down and the back cover said, ‘Just like daddy.’ It was all about a businessman getting up in the morning and having breakfast with children, And his wife is making breakfast. He goes to work with his briefcase, takes the train.”
