La La Land
lukejenkins

Review by lukejenkins Patron

La La Land 2016

★★★★

Rewatched 12 Oct 2023

A very good film, that could be very great, if it for a lackluster middle act. First off, this film is bursting at the scenes with vibrant colors and infectious energy. The viewer is immediately drawn in through incredible musical scenes and cinematography. However this ends up failing the film later on. For how magical this film starts, it seems to lose this magic about halfway through. On my first watch, I was so caught up in the first bit off magic, I hadn’t noticed it had worn off, until this watch.

The pace of the film is completely thrown off and it feels as if you are watching a completely different film. I found myself becoming uninterested in the story as my initial interest was not on the characters but the magic built by the director around them. This faulted the film, however it was still able to bring it home during the last act. 

What a great ending. The montage of Seb and Mia is fantastic and has direct parallels to early Hollywood musicals. The set design, choreography, and score are incredible. Seriously, Justin Horowitz is one of the best composers working today. 

All in all, a magical film that seems to drag in the middle from a lackluster script. Also, I think Ryan Gosling will always be Ken on screen for me now.

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