La La Land Movie Review

Released: January 12th 2017 (UK)

Length: 128 Minutes

Certificate: 12A

Director: Damien Chazelle

Starring: Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, John Legend and Rosemarie Dewitt

The classical age of Hollywood is quite the distance away, the stylised look of the fifties having all but disappeared from the medium. Merging together elements of musicals, drama and classical Hollywood, Damien Chazelle’s La La Land is a hypnotising piece of entertainment without any real stumbles, even if you’re not a fan of the musical genre.

Set in the glitzy city of Los Angeles, Sebastian (Ryan Gosling) and Mia (Emma Stone) are two average individuals looking to make their way in the entertainment world. Both have their dreams and both end up meeting each other by pure coincidence. Sebastian wants to start his own Jazz club whereas Mia wants to leave her average café waitress job to become an actress. We follow them through the ups and downs of their lives as they form a bond and try to reach their goals while contending with the difficulties of modern life. With the changing circumstances faced by the characters, the film effortlessly swaps in and out of numerous musical pieces, while also getting across its more emotive moments without falling into cheesy territory. Then of course, there’s the film’s namesake in which the ordinary fades into “La La Land” as it were. It’s a series of dreamlike shifts that replace the mundane with a soothing, artsy backdrop, one which the characters use to escape from their problems. In effect, it becomes its own setting, shutting out all the facets of the real world and switching to a dazzling, idealistic backdrop. It speaks to the escapades in the audience while also conveying its themes of passion and the notion of modern times pushing people down, driving them away from what they want to accomplish. The film is clearly a love letter to those who dream and in this regard, a hopeful uplifting tone continues to hang over the narrative.

La La Land focuses almost entirely on the two main leads and their perspectives allow the film to maintain an unwavering grip on the audience. Both Gosling and Stone pour their hearts into their performances and the chemistry between them delivers a tremendous amount of heart. The relationship between them, shown through singing, dance and traditional acting creates a trifecta of styles which enhances the film’s central theme. Whenever they burst into song, there’s a real passion to it, showing how much the dreams mean to the characters, to the point of romanticism. Sebastian and Mia stand external from the side characters who are all portrayed in a realistic manner. John Legend supplies his singing voice and an anchor for the demands of today’s society while the others bring a heap of talent to bear in the musical moments. Despite their dips in and out of reality, the characters all feel human, their struggles conveying a sense of relatability typically reserved for serious drama productions.

La La Land is a fantastically produced film; in fact, many of its techniques have a theatre-like edge to them; the lighting drains out of scenes to focus on the main characters, the city lights turn to a beautiful blue and purple and the proceedings launch into full-blown musical at all the right moments. All of it is endlessly engrossing but the use of music is the lifeblood of the film; it always serves to set the tone and keep things humming along. It pours out the emotions to gel with the character’s highs and lows whether it’s a subdued solo song or rocking jazz piece. The heavy use of an older text style, swinging drums and trumpets marks the film’s tribute to its past contemporaries, something which has been deftly woven into its presentation. A hefty contrast between the saturated colours of reality and the imaginary world creates an ambience, as does the shift between a sunny studio backdrop and the neon-lit exteriors of nightclubs and other venues. The camerawork takes great advantage of the film’s musical tendencies as well, expertly panning around the extravagant action and following the main characters. It provides a gorgeous view of the action, transplanting the audience fully into the setting without a single drop in immersion.

La La Land is a pure dose of delightful escapism, a lovingly crafted homage that seamlessly blends our modern society with blissful, absorbing imagination. Far from being confined to its cinematic outlet, the film reaches above that bar to become one of the best modern musicals ever produced.

Rating: 5/5 Stars (Exceptional)