What is an “art monster”? Jenny Offill popularized the term in her 2014 debut novel, Dept. of Speculation, in which a youthful writer dreams of eschewing domesticity and becoming an “art monster” entirely motivated by her craft. But it is not just dishwashing, parenting, or, as Offill mentions, the licking of stamps that the typically male art monster delegates. Everything, including basic human decency, might be thrown aside in favor of the Work. This is where Claire Dederer picked up in her 2023 book, Monsters: A Fan’s Dilemma. If we concede that the art cannot be separated from the artist—that sometimes callousness is part of the craft, that it leaves traces in the final product—the question remaining is how much monstrousness we can tolerate. As Dederer writes, “A monster, in my mind, was an artist who could not be separated from some dark aspect of his or her biography.” These biographies, in turn, make for horrific journalistic exposés and solid Hollywood entertainment.

Actor turned director Bradley Cooper’s first two films, the 2018 A Star is Born and the 2023 Maestro, look at extraordinary women and the art monsters they love. In the former, singer-songwriter Jackson Maine (Cooper) marries unconventionally beautiful waitress Ally (Lady Gaga) and makes her a star before nearly dragging her down with his alcoholism and all-consuming envy. And the eponymous maestro, Leonard Bernstein (also Cooper), gives his lovely wife (Carey Mulligan) everything except fidelity and a moment’s peace. Charismatic, destructive narcissists, Maine and Bernstein may not be as monstrous as fictional nightmare (and rare female exemplar) Lydia Tár, but they are clingy and distant, self-righteous and messy, and they always hurt the ones they love, as the song goes.

With Cooper’s third directorial feature, Is This Thing On?, he appears poised to continue this streak. Will Arnett plays Alex Novak, a depressed father of two who discovers stand-up comedy in the wake........

© New Republic