A rapturous and heartfelt story of big dreamers finding love in the city of Angels, La La Land also establishes Damien Chazelle as a filmmaker of immense talent and unique vision.
Musicals are always a tricky venture. Much like westerns (that other long gone favourite of the Studio Era), it’s not enough to simply have the components in place. There need to be a spark, an extra something to make it all work, especially in this day and age where the sight of character on the big screen bursting into song is something of a rarity. La La Land has that spark, that extra something, that song and dance driven romance that will have toes tapping and hearts swooning. Directed and written by Damien Chazelle (who broke through in 2014 with an altogether different music driven film in Whiplash), La La Land is a throwback to when musical driven fair contained much dazzling spectacle, while also remaining remarkably contemporary.
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The casting of Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone helps with that. The duo play Sebastian and Mia (respectively), one a jazz pianist trying to keep his music pure and the other a struggling actress waiting for that big break. Through the gauntlet of fired gigs and humiliating auditions, the pair find strength in one another while their professional lives slowly see them drift apart. This romantic drama interplay is well written by Chazelle and beautifully performed by Gosling and Stone, their third collaboration (following the forgetful Gangster Squad and charming Crazy Stupid Love) a thing of almost supernatural chemistry, the kind of on-screen partnership that will be talked about in years to come as an example of how to play a love story.
Of course, La La Land is a musical, and the beautifully sung, expertly choregraphed, and immensely felt compositions written by Justin Hurwitz bring much in the way of melodic and visual pleasures, stylistically impressive and filled with depth, brining much spirit and soul to its narrative of dreamers dreaming big and lovers dealing with the emotional ups and downs of such a journey.
Chazelle – along with cinematographer Linus Sandgren, editor Tom Cross, and production designer David Wasco – have created scenes of breathtaking, magical splendour that invigorate with its unique and bold visual tapestries. But what makes these moments of mouth-a-gap wonder truly great is the beating heart of a love story that gives La La Land that depth and momentum and demands an investment of heart and soul. In Chazelle’s hands, it’s a safe investment indeed. |