kot426 I am still dumbfounded that Bette Midler got passed over for the best actress Oscar for this movie. She really got shafted! She was so awesome in this movie. I am watching it again right now and still love the singing in this movie not to mention the great acting. But, then again, the Oscars are a farce, anyways. Who cares what those people think! It's what the fans, like me, think (LOL). I love you, Bette, for this movie ;) It is one of my all time favorites and rightfully deserves a 10 out of 10 stars on this site! This movie brings back all the memories, good and bad, of the 70's for me. Every single song you sang in this movie was just spectacular! The gay bar scene was another great part. I just want to say thanks for this Oscar performance, once again!

Claudine Well first off, of COURSE this is a loose life of Janis--all you have to do is look at the crazy clothes & the booze & the screech. It doesn't have to match exactly. Don't make me have to tell you again.Second, sometimes a person just disappears into a role: that's what our Bette did on this one. There's no reason to quibble about details, anymore than there would be to go to the stadium to see the Rose in concert without bringing yer favorite choice of um *cough* recreation drug. Sex, drugs & rock n roll. Peace out, dude.I feel as though many attempts, such as Gwyneth Paltrow's recent country western voyage, sort of co-opt the experience of the road. Whereas, if you really get into it, you almost OD on the music, such as when trying to watch Neil Young's bio a few years back. OMG, so much extended riffing as to be almost a...raga! Unable to meditate, though. One cannot, or at least I cannot, let go enough to last through a 20 minute guitar solo. This does not make a good movie.As to The Rose not having a plot. It starts, it moves towards a more or less inevitable conclusion and then it ends. What the movie goer expects might be more conventional, but this is not a conventional character, ya know.

sddavis63 Bette Midler offers a performance that is both powerful (for the actress) and troubling (for the character.) She plays Mary Rose Foster, a girl who grew up on the wrong side of the tracks in Florida, but by 1969 (when the movie is set) ended up as a mega-rock star known simply as "The Rose." Unfortunately, in the midst of all her success her life falls apart. She ends up (by the time the movie begins) as a lonely alcoholic close to burnout, but with a manager (Alan Bates) who won't let her have time to recuperate, and instead just keeps pushing her on and on to the next show. Rose just wants to play one last concert - in her hometown to show the locals what a star she's become and then (as she says repeatedly) she wants to take a year off (and from the looks of her she could use it.) Midler made this movie. It was her first starring role, and it was a challenging one, but she pulled it off perfectly. I'm not a huge fan of her style of singing, but the behind the scenes look at life on the road was interesting enough, at least for a while. Admittedly, the story became a bit monotonous after a while and there were extended scenes that really didn't seem necessary to the development of the story, but director Mark Rydell does manage to pull the viewer into Rose's life, and make her a sympathetic character. The movie also featured a decent performance from Frederic Forrest as Rose's love interest Huston Dyer, who started as her chauffeur and ended up as her lover, but eventually had to get away from her and the life she was leading, although I found the romance a bit too contrived to be believable.I thought this was a good movie, memorable mostly for Midler and the music. Even with the weaknesses that are clearly present, I'm still going to 8/10 for this.

Holdjerhorses Contrast, please, Midler's "The Rose" with Streisand's "A Star Is Born." That's really all I can say.But I have to say more, to post this.Okay."The Rose" is raw and real. Features a truly astonishing acting and singing performance from Bette Midler."A Star Is Born" is smooth and glossy. Phony, to be exact. Nothing "astonishing" in the acting department. Lovely songs. So what? In retrospect, Streisand's "Star is Born" ranks down there with Lucille Ball's "Mame," compared to "The Rose." Plus: ever see Midler's "Mama Rose" on TV in "Gypsy?" Miss Midler can act rings around Miss Streisand. And that's saying something! Of course, Streisand can outsing ANYBODY.Guess it all evens out.