La La Land – review

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The opening scene of Damien Chazelle’s newest film features, without a doubt, one of the most impressive musical numbers I have ever seen. It begins on a highway leading into perennially sunny L.A. Lines of unmoving cars stretch along it, craving the warm solace that the city offers. The camera pans along the road, focusing on the variety of music wafting from car radios. It stops on a particular driver, who erupts into song herself: “I think about the day I left him at a Greyhound station West of Sante Fe/ We were seventeen, but he was sweet and it was true.” The entire highway joins in, with men and women leaping out of their car windows, dancing along the roofs of cars and somersaulting down the road. It’s hard not to succumb to the charm of La La Land after this.

All eyes were on Chazelle after his directorial debut Whiplash was a roaring success among critics and movie buffs alike. Next came 10 Cloverfield Lane, which featured on Tn2’s top 10 films of 2016. And now, after months of media frenzy, La La Land has hit cinemas just in time for the ominous ‘Award Season’. Quite frankly, it deserves all the nominations it may receive in the coming weeks.

Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling play Mia and Sebastian, an aspiring actress and a struggling jazz pianist respectively. After a series of coincidental meetings, they fall for each other. In a car park that overlooks the glittering city and a glowing sunset, they dance together, each twirl and sidestep symbolising their blossoming connection. Their relationship unfolds before the audience in a blur of bright yellows and blues, narrated by the sound of a jazz band in the distance.

Central to the characters’ development is the cityscape of L.A, a place that Sebastian describes as “worshipping everything, but holding no value on anything in particular”. Like the Warner Brothers’ studio complex in which Mia works as a barista, the entire aesthetic of La La Land feels artificial, almost imaginary. Despite their very real connection to each other, Mia and Sebastian inhabit a world that is almost too romantic to be maintained.

For all it’s quirkiness and feel-good musical numbers, La La Land quickly takes a poignant turn. At its heart, the film examines an artist’s struggle towards a dream. There are many moments in the second half that will have you reaching for a Kleenex. The score, composed by Justin Hurwitz, complements the heartrending moments that Chazelle creates between Mia and Sebastian, with City of Stars already climbing the charts as I write.

Emma Stone is given full reign in her role as Mia. Her performance is exceptional and her ability to switch between comedic acting and dramatic acting in the same film is astounding to watch. Likewise, Ryan Gosling’s take on a jaded jazz pianist is layered with nuance, from the way in which he plays the piano with an uncertain, perplexed expression to the way his hardened stare softens whenever he speaks to Mia. Both actors carry this film on their backs, as there are few other cast members (J.K Simmons appears in a wonderfully understated cameo). It feels like a perfect combination, with Gosling and Stone working previously on Gangster Squad and Crazy Stupid Love together.

There is something so timeless and classic about this film, beyond the nostalgic Golden Age Hollywood style it often emulates. La La Land never drags or rushes, trips or stumbles; it is a beautifully performed waltz on screen, between a man and woman who are oblivious to everything around them but each other.

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