This review may contain spoilers. I can handle the truth.
Zanderific’s review published on Letterboxd:
This review may contain spoilers.
This is my first rewatch this year. I rewatched it exactly a year after my second viewing of Whiplash last year. I followed it up that same day watching the short Whiplash was based on, having an interest in seeing the comparisons between the the first edition and the final print. I have always had the internal conflict of not being able to decide if I prefer La La Land or Whiplash as my favorite Chazelle film because they are both fantastic for different reasons. I went to see Babylon on Christmas Eve to see how it would connect to Damien Chazelle’s past filmography, and while some of the themes were similar but each delivered very differently, it was not as good as this or Whiplash. I recently saw Singin’ in the Rain earlier this year and was blown away by how well the film ages, especially after seeing Babylon. After that, I decided to reevaluate my opinion on this film and revisit it for real.
I must say that this whole movie is absolutely amazing, with very few things to nitpick. The only real negative is that the film felt long when I was watching it, but maybe that’s because I rewatched it in a bus on my school trip that had many stops rather than seeing it on a TV or theater screen all in one sitting. But that’s beside the point. I love the character study between Seb and Mia and how they are struggling to achieve their dreams in this harsh world. I love how they each feel like real people you could meet in real life rather than people who don’t seem realistic. This struggle they have is what sets up their spark so damn well.
One of my favorite things about this movie is the music. The score is absolutely perfect and the songs in this movie are so good that some are highly likely to stay in your head after the credits finish scrolling. In fact, there are two scenes in this film that I find to be perfect from top to bottom. The opening scene is a great way to start the film in an energetic manner and make for the first time we see these two characters. In fact, it’s my favorite musical number I’ve seen in recent years. The final scene is even better because it shows that these two characters are successful, but they have gone down their own road. Mia happens to walk into Seb’s club and sees him with his group as he begins to play the song we’ve heard him play passionately many times over the film. They both got what they want and got good things out of it, but are they happy? It all follows with a montage with the piece playing showing what it all could have been if they had settled together and lived their lives together. What I caught on this viewing is that this isn’t just a montage, but that this is all going through both of their heads as Mia watches Seb play his song. At the end of the vision of what could have been, she begins to leave. We see her turn back to see that Seb nods his head at her, giving clear encouragement to live her life and continue following her dreams in the life she has.
The through line between Whiplash, Babylon, Singin’ in the Rain, and La La Land is that life’s all about decisions and what you do to succeed and follow your dreams, even if it costs so much it causes loss of happiness and the people around you who you are close to. I love this movie so much, and this is my favorite Damien Chazelle film. It’s so good that it’s well worth the watch and the rewatch and the rewatch and the rewatch and the rewatch and the rewatch.
Grade: A
