Heavily publicized and mostly fawned over by critics, La La Land is beginning to suffer from the inevitable backlash. People who wouldn’t normally watch musicals are going to see the film, and guess what, they seem to be moaning about the characters breaking into song! If you can’t cope with that, then La La Land isn’t going to change your mind about the genre, but for anyone else this should prove to be a joyous experience.
Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone play an aspiring jazz pianist, Sebastian and Mia, struggling actress, in modern day Los Angeles. Their relationship follows the standard rom-com formula for the most part. They don’t like each other to start with, gradually fall in love, before events conspire to tear them apart. But will their love prevail?
It is no surprise to say that Gosling is excellent, as he probably is the most consistently impressive leading man in movies today. Stone isn’t someone I’ve been too taken with in the past but this is by far her best performance I’ve seen. They both totally convince in their roles, and there is great chemistry between the two. Their singing and dancing is good rather than great, but they both have so much charm that doesn’t matter.
There are some hilarious moments, especially at the 80s themed party and some excellent set pieces. The opening dance routine is terrific and I loved the sequence where the two of them leave the aforementioned party together and their relationship starts to thaw.
If I have a criticism it is that, the film does sag a little around the two-thirds mark, but it is redeemed by a stunning last 15 minutes. Emotional and poignant, it was a brilliant way to end such a fun movie to watch.
Rating: 9 out of 10