La La Land (2016)
I would give anything to watch Damien Chazelle’s La La Land (2016) for the first time again. This movie was such a magical experience, I’ve never seen a film simultaneously realistic yet whimsical. La La Land is definitely one of the first movies that started getting me interested in film as art, and I’m about 99% sure that watching this movie made me want to move to L.A., which I still do to this day. I’ve seen this movie several times, and it truly never gets old.
La La Land stars Emma Stone as Mia, a struggling actress, and Ryan Gosling as Sebastian, a jazz enthusiast. Mia and Sebastian are drawn to each other because of their strong aspirations to be stars in Los Angeles, but the steps they have to take in order to be successful jeopardize their special connection.
One of my favorite parts about this movie is that it’s a musical, but not in a broadway/musical theater type way. Stone and Gosling’s voices are nowhere near perfect, but that’s part of the charm of this film. Unlike many musicals I’ve seen, the sudden breakout into musical numbers is far from cringe worthy. The original songs are actually quite good, and the choreography, especially for Another Day of Sun, is really excellent. Composer Justin Hurwitz, a frequent collaborator with Damien Chazelle (he also composed the soundtrack for First Man and Whiplash), does a great job of making the music not overly musical theater.
La La Land has a great aesthetic. It’s a big beautiful Hollywood movie about (and referencing many!) big beautiful Hollywood movies. Everything still is gorgeous. Every costume is perfect. Every detail is so meticulously alluring. The smoggy city of L.A. has never looked better. This movie is truly a sight for sore eyes.
When you think about it, this movie is very simple. But even with only a few characters and a relatively simple plot, this movie still managed to dazzle me. This movie reminds you of the power of movies and the power of Hollywood, in all the best ways possible. This movie is a gorgeous splash of light, color, and sound.
This is the amazing opening number of the movie!
