Rewatch: La La Land

Despite being nominated for Best Picture, and at the time being a viable candidate to take home the award, La La Land is not regarded with the same  love that other runner-ups have been. This occurred to me last week while flipping through Netflix trying to find a movie to watch for Thirty Minute Reviews so I sat down and rewatched the movie having not seen it since watching it in a theater in 2017. That said, the movie holds up surprisingly well, aside from the key relationship at the center of the movie.

The biggest issue with the movie comes from Mia and Sebastian's relationship but that is also kind of the point of the movie. Both parties are equally self-centered and narcissistic to the point that both are somewhat unlikeable. As the movie progresses and their relationship grows, their egos grow and they become more of an obstruction to other people around them. It is both of their unwillingness to compromise that inevitably dooms the relationship, even if it is fairly obvious that Sebastian is the one in the wrong almost all of the time. The smallest amount of discussions like adults would have alleviated all the problems in the movie which is probably what makes it the most frustrating aspect of watching.

The rest of the movie is great though. The musical numbers, especially during the first half of the movie, really pop and are expertly choreographed. Across all of Damien Chazelle's films, La La Land is probably his strongest from a directorial standpoint considering how well he manages to nail all the aesthetic he sets out to over the course of a pretty concise runtime. The costuming is also fantastic and manages to recreate the look and feel of old Hollywood films, arguably better than Babylon did. If someone has not seen La La Land, they definitely should see it. If it is offered at a second run theater near you, watch it on the big screen although you will also get a similar experience just watching it on Netflix at home.

★★★★★