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La La Land Review - A Baffling Disappointment


I don't dislike La La Land solely because it's popular. It's not really its fault so many people love it. Plus, I unashamedly love Star Wars and you don't get much more popular than that. Still, in the case of La La Land, it irritates me. In my opinion, Star Wars deserves to be that popular. La La Land does not.

Alright, La La Land isn't terrible. For one, the cinematography is beyond gorgeous. Colours burst vibrantly out of every frame and the camera extravagantly sweeps the viewer through Los Angeles. Meanwhile, Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone are likeable leads, providing a relatively accessible point for the audience to enter. Pretty much everything else about La La Land is... fine. The screenplay is good, with witty and authentic dialogue. The songs are also good, with enough fun and bouncy numbers balanced with slower, mellower ones. None of it's that impressive, though. It's done well, but it's no masterpiece.

Also, La La Land never seems to have a clear intent. It's been advertised as this revival of classic musicals and its dynamic, highly saturated cinematography supports this. Yet everything else is too mundane. Whilst pleasant, the song numbers are dreadfully forgettable and the choreography is pathetically unimaginative. Plus, whilst it's nice the characters are more down to earth, Stone and Gosling frankly aren't great singers. Some elements pop out like they're supposed to, but most just sit back, content with being functional.

For me, the nail in La La Land's coffin is its ending [SPOILERS IF YOU SOMEHOW HAVEN'T SEEN THIS FILM YET]. The main leads don't stay together. That's not inherently a problem, challenging conventions is usually a good thing. Except it doesn't make any sense in the context of the film. If the whole thing had been a subversion of the genre, I'd have no problem, but isn't this supposed to be a revival of classic musicals? The rest of the film follows the tropes it's supposed to, yet all of a sudden it rejects this one.

What's worse is how it ruins the lead character's arcs. There wasn't anything in the way of their relationship. In fact, it looked like they were about to resolve their conflicts. Then, the film jumps a few years and Mia is married to some random bloke we've never met and never get to know. It's such a bizarre choice that screeches their character progressions to an inexplicable halt. The audience is left completely unsatisfied. Not in a clever way, like Inception, but a completely unnecessary way that serves no narrative purpose. The film doesn't really explain itself either, expecting you to accept that this is what happened to the characters without ever exploring it in any detail.

So, La La Land is a decent film with a rubbish ending. I would be pretty content with saying that, giving the film a middling review and just moving on. Except I was sold a masterpiece. Why? It has a couple of redeeming qualities, but for the most part, it's weirdly uninspired. Admittedly, I am not a musical person, so maybe I'm not the film's audience. Still, I can't imagine how musical fans will find much in La La Land that hasn't already been done better. At least it didn't win Best Picture in the end.

6.7/10

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