Keith Adams Jr.’s review published on Letterboxd:
Quickie Review
After all the hype and all the fanfare, I finally got around to watching the short-term best picture Oscar winner. I say short-term because it only lasted for 3 minutes due to a mistake and they had to give up the statuette to the true best picture Oscar winner Moonlight, which I already reviewed this year. My take? It’s good. Not exactly impactful for a first-time viewing but it was entertaining to watch. Paying tribute to the golden age Hollywood musicals, the kind that MGM used to be kings of way back when, it’s the story of a romance between L.A. dreamers Sebastian (Ryan Gosling), a pianist looking to bring jazz back to the forefront, and Mia (Emma Stone), an aspiring actress looking for her big break. Together, they’ll have a whirlwind romance while pursuing their dreams in the City of Angels. Even though I’m still more of a stan for Grease and Newsies, this was still a enjoyable retrofitted musical, right down to the old school variant of the Summit Entertainment logo and the CinemaScope title screen. Gosling & Stone refresh their chemistry left over from their previous films Crazy, Stupid, Love and Gangster Squad and work great together. Plus, the music is pretty fantastic as well. One problem that I have with the movie: Gosling’s character is a self-righteous, self-important so-and-so who thinks that jazz is end all, be all of music. Jazz is important. That much is true. Heck, I use smooth jazz to help me sleep. However, jazz is not THAT high-level of a music genre. That still goes to rock, pop and R&B. Nevertheless, despite the problem I have with Seb, La La Land still manages to be a magical, old school movie musical with a modern touch, complete with vivid cinematography, great performances and lively tunes.
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