It’s funny how La La Land, writer and director Damien Chazelle’s first film since the intense Whiplash, sells itself as a feel-good throwback to classic Hollywood musicals with a generally optimistic view of show business. Reality is far messier and less glamorous, and this movie understands that, providing the audience with a more complex, funnier and occasionally sadder story than you might initially think.
Don’t get me wrong, there are quite a few song and dance numbers that are not only extremely catchy, but really do capture that spirit of a bygone, less cynical era in entertainment. Emma Stone’s barista/aspiring actress Mia and Ryan Gosling’s jazz pianist Sebastian (“Seb” for short) express themselves far better through tapping and crooning than they do with simple words. Yet their particular type of chemistry is refreshingly outside the norm of most movie romances. Their dynamic isn’t solely rooted in physical attraction, but also their friendship and respect for the other’s ambitions alongside that.
Seb and Mia are awkward and flawed, but clearly not bad people by any stretch, and they’re easy to empathize with as they manage the ups and downs of their careers. He’s something of a purist hipster who scoffs at most contemporary forms of jazz, hoping to eventually start his own club that plays more of a traditional sound, while she’s unable to make it through any of her audition successfully- something always seems to go awry for poor Mia, resulting in some pretty funny scenes like her shirt being splattered in mocha or having to read the most ludicrous dialog (“No, YOU be trippin’.”) Her long term goal is to eventually open her own one-woman show, but she just can’t seem to catch that lucky break.
After a meet-cute encounter at the restaurant where Seb plays (run by a stern manager played by Whiplash star J.K. Simmons), the two creative souls hook up again at a pool party where Seb is stuck in a personally demeaning (but still funny) 80’s cover band. While walking back to Mia’s car, they engage in some small talk that eventually leads to an impromptu dance-off.
Gosling and Stone’s chemistry in this scene is arguably at its peak here, as they transform from rivals into friends with common interests, and possibly something more. Neither of them are natural singers and dancers, but they’re far from bad by any stretch- they’ve clearly put in the work in preparation for La La Land. But the fact that Stone and Gosling aren’t super-polished performers somehow also adds to the authenticity of their characters, helping them feel more relatable.
That relatability is a huge boon to the film as their relationship evolves and their respective dreams are challenged. As Seb’s fellow musician friend Keith, John Legend turns in a pretty solid performance as an unwitting antagonist who throws a wrench into his and Mia’s plans. He offers Seb a spot in his band The Messengers, which pays well but would also require him to play a more modern style of music he’s clearly not comfortable with.
In all fairness, the Messengers’ song “Start A Fire” is actually one of many great numbers in the film, also including the opening “Another Day of Sun” which does a great job of setting the tone for the rest of the film, Seb’s poignant ballad “City of Stars”, and Mia’s “The Fools Who Dream”, which serves as an anthem for her personal awakening. In particular, Emma Stone shines in this number and in fact throughout the whole film, displaying a wide range of emotions convincingly, while Gosling is full of heart and boyish earnestness.
Much like 2011’s The Artist, La La Land is unabashedly a movie about Hollywood celebrating its history, which is always likely to entice voters during awards season- and it’s aware of such. But underneath that is a surprisingly moving love story with not only great musical numbers, but a more messy, often painful and believable arc for Seb and Mia than the studio advertises. Chazelle alternates between reality and fantasy sequences throughout the film, and the climax does pay homage to that old Hollywood spirit, but without offering any easy, simple solutions. As a whole, it isn’t a perfect work of art. But it’s hard to deny the energy and emotion put into it, and that’s enough for a strong recommendation from me.