"La La Land" - Review

Here's to the Fools Who Dream

Before I get started with this review... Hey everyone! Look who has returned to spew more more movie-related thoughts at you! (Good lord that's a gross image... I'm not taking it back.) What a crazy year 2016 has been! I regret not having updated this blog for as long as I have. Long story short: Google my name and you will find that I was writing for another publication for a short while before I was not able to continue. I took a quick break but now I am back on my own terms. I will be starting slowly at first and it may take a bit to get back into the swing of things, but rest assured I will compile some good "2016 IS FINALLY OVER!!" content with you.

I could not have asked for a better movie to come back to you guys with than La La Land. After a year with so much turmoil and division over nearly every possible reason there could be to be mad at each other about, here is the throwback to better times that we needed. This is a quintessential Hollywood film in the most classic sense. It is an original musical with a story that feels lifted straight out of a vintage Hollywood back lot, but with a modern sensibility that restores my faith in the power of the movie musical. It is a genre that has been dormant for far too long, save for a few adaptations of stage productions. Damien Chazelle has proven that the musical can be just as relevant today and I hope others have the creative courage to follow his lead.

La La Land follows Sebastian and Mia, played by Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone respectively, as they try to accomplish their different creative pursuits in the heart of LA. Sebastian is trying to resurrect jazz in a world that seems to want it dead and Mia is trying to stand out as an actress in a crowd of many hopefuls. In blissful musical fashion, they seem to meet by fate and begin to share their loves together. However, nothing is ever perfect as reality and musical fantasy collide in touching and truthful fashion.

This is where this movie soars. It embraces the classic tropes of the movie musical with joyful enthusiasm, but realizes that we live in a different world now than what Gene Kelly was tapping through back in the day. Musical numbers break out in the middle of slow-as-death traffic. iPhone text tones interrupt romantic ballads. The music in the film itself is of a bygone era, despite the current young stars performing. Singin' in the Rain explores many themes of how times change and how difficult it can be to have a dream or passion noticed, but the overly saturated state of today seems to be even more dire than anything Debbie Reynolds' Kathy comes up against in 1927. More compromises have to be made, it seems. This is perhaps why movie musicals have been so hard to nail down in a world that has seen the birth of the popcorn blockbuster. La La Land acknowledges this, but never lets go of the fervent hope of the films that came before. It allows it to color the melody it sings in a way that feels more grounded and true.

Damien Chazelle previously wrote and directed Whiplash, whose tone feels like the opposite of the one that La La Land inhabits, but they are both films that embrace music as a storytelling tool in ways that many other filmmakers have not been able pin down. In Chazelle's corner in the case of his last two films is impeccable use of film editing. The pace never lets up and it is pitch perfect in every moment. It also helps that Chazelle has assembled another stellar cast. Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling are so charismatic it hurts. They have starred together in films before and their chemistry is still just as strong, if not more so. They are comfortable with each other and the fun they have together is evident through every single moment they are on screen.

But how is the music? This is obviously the make it or break it element. If the music and songs do not work, then the movie collapses. Lucky for us, the movie soars. Damien Chazelle has once again teamed up with Justin Hurzel from Whiplash to put together an exciting and sweeping musical score. There is not a single dull musical number as well. They progress the story along and get stuck in your head long after the movie is over. Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone both get the their spotlights to shine in their respective solos, but a rendition of "City of Stars" with the two of them together made my heart melt to the floor. Every musical moment has a purpose in the film and every moment is a delight.

Just when I thought the movie couldn't get any better, the ending happened. Without spoiling any of it, it takes chances and ends on such a perfect note. It surprised me, moved me, and completely impressed me. I was scared that it would not stick the landing, but I would argue that the ending is perhaps the greatest moment of the whole film. It adds weight and relevance to everything before and is achingly romantic. When the credits began to roll, I knew that I had seen something special. Just as I felt with Moonlight (albeit in a completely different way), I felt that I had just experienced a modern classic; something that will be remembered for years to come. Film in 2016 does not get any better than Moonlight and La La Land. In the case of the former, it is a rapturously joyous experience that I want to live again.

The world may not be getting any easier, but here's to the fools who dream. Because of them, a little bit of beauty is restored. Thanks to Damien Chazelle, we have a little of it back in our movies.

The hype is real. Go see this on the biggest screen you can.

Grade: A+

La La Land is now playing in theaters everywhere.