People say musicals are a dying art. Less and less people leisurely watch live musicals or plays and many of the classic on-screen musicals are from the 20th century (with exceptions of course). I am hesitant to say that La La Land is the movie of our generation, but it is almost the perfect musical. It perfectly nails the nostalgic art of musicals from the opening scene. Throughout the entire movie I had a smile on my face and leaving the theatre all I wanted to do was tap dance everywhere and sing City of Stars.
Visually, La La Land is one of the most beautiful movies I've ever seen. Damien Chazelle (Director of La La Land) uses bright colors in each scene, especially through the actor's clothing. He often makes actors and actresses wear bright red, yellow, green, and blue, making them stand out in the scenes. Also, the scenery includes beautiful sunsets, bright Hollywood sets, stars, and lively Jazz bars. Each scene has you involved both visually and within the story.
Although I was hesitant to see a movie where Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone sing a dance (both actors without much experience in singing and dancing), La La Land is less about their ability to sing and dance well and more about the story they tell through song and dance. This is a story filled with nostalgia — both Mia (Emma Stone), a girl thriving to make it big as a Hollywood actress, and Sebastian (Ryan Gosling), a pianist who wants to open a Jazz club, are nostalgic in their own ways. There are scenes with people dancing on cars, through hallways, and literally floating within the stars.
Although La La Land is extremely nostalgic, the movie's ending is not so much. It touches on the harsh realities of life and how not every story has the perfect ending. At first, I was upset by the ending, but after thinking about the movie, I realized it was so perfect because the ending wasn't. It reminded the watcher that life doesn't always end how you want it to or how you think it will.
La La Land is a movie I would tell everyone to watch. You leave it totally giddy and it is an extremely fun movie to watch. It brings back the nostalgia of classic musicals; however, it also manages to remind the watcher about reality. If you want to have a good time and have the entire soundtrack stuck in your head the entire night, go see La La Land and experience its joy first hand.
