Movie Review: La La Land

"Maybe I'm not good enough." - Mia

Just when you thought you have everything that you have ever wished and hoped for - getting all your success and ambitions in life - at the end, you'll realized that what matters the most is love and acceptance. And in every success that you have, there will always be something that you have to sacrifice. Love takes a two-way street, as always.


In this Golden Globe winning master piece by Damien Chaezelle, La La Land tells the story of two young aspirants in life, Mia and Sebastian, played by Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling, who met in life while they are both struggling to be make a mark in the industry - Mia as an actress and Sebastian as a jazz music savior.

Not your typical Tinsel Town movie (which, you'll realize at the end of the film, the story revolves around the two filled with fitting and sing-songy melodies encapsulating the film with such tremendous feelings and acting . If you think that "The Notebook" Ryan Gosling is something you would never forget in your life, wait til you see this Canadian lad takes the spotlight with his sexy dance moves and captivating singing voice. 


Gosling, indeed, did a great portrayal of his character from playing the piano to singing and dancing down to his acting and style. The most memorable part, for me, was the last scene where he was just sitting on the stage with the spotlight on his face waiting for Stone to turn around. The pain in his eyes was so piercing that will make you wish you never hoped the same way, but sadly, almost all of us have been through that stage in life, which made the scene so relatable.

Stone, on the other hand, was a real revelation. Her performance in some of her chick-flicks were remarkable, Spider-man included, but in La La Land, she was a stellar. Her acting performance while singing some of the most memorable songs in the film was so great that you'll get lost for words. I really love the part where she sung the "Fools Who Dream", the audition scene that led her character to be a successful actress. The melody, the lyrics and her facial expression all throughout this part was so remarkable, no wonder she won the Globe for Best Actress in a Musical Film.

Some other songs that I really enjoyed from the film were "City of Stars", which Gosling gave a really good justice, "Someone in the Crowd", which Stone rendered so beautifully, and their duet on "A Lovely Night", which opened the film and brought back its audience to that glorious black and white, Hollywood musical movies era, which star the world's favorite dames now.

John Legend is a must-see in this film too. Though, he wasn't seen that much and though his character is kinda his self, I personally think that he somehow add a nice rhythm to the movie.

Set and costume wise, everything was so great! I love all of Gosling's outfit! It kinda feel like I'm watching The Notebook again, but with a different Gosling - a real acting Gosling.

This may not be a kids' movie, but for musical lovers like, and for those who are into old Hollywood films, La La Land is an eargasmic jazz-centered musical film modernized version of those films - a Golden Globe and Oscar worthy film, which is now showing on your favorite cinemas.



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