"A work of art does not answer questions. It provokes them; and its essential meaning is in the tension between the contradictory answers” - Leonard Bernstein

Bradley Cooper proves that his directorial debut A Star is Born was no fluke with this glorious symphony of a film that focuses on iconic American composer and conductor Leonard Bernstein (West Side Story, On The Town).

Cooper plays Bernstein himself, his passionate film charting his life from his famous last-minute debut with the New York Philharmonic aged 25 through his relationship with actress Felicia Montealegre Cohn Bernstein (Carey Mulligan), who he would go on to marry.

It is the story of a marriage and life between two people, one of whom is a devoted family man but still energised by his attraction to men during a period when it would have destroyed his career.

Switching between monochrome and colour, it is a rousing, complex and heartbreaking rhapsody to life and art.

• Screenings of Maestro on Tue 12 Dec are part of our Cinébites deal: get 30% off any main dish in the Café & Bar with a valid cinema ticket.