La La Land

Originally published Feb 17, 2025

The review contains spoilers. Read at your own discretion.

For as much as I claim to be a “movie buff,” I oftentimes surprise people when I inform them which movies I haven’t yet seen. Such was the case for a fantastic movie I’ve only just seen, La La Land. 

Directed by Damien Chazelle, La La Land is a story as old as time: an aspiring actress (Emma Stone) and Seb, a down-on-his-luck pianist (Ryan Gosling) cross paths by chance and soon form an unexpected, but totally expected to the audience, romance. Said relationship faces challenges as they struggle to make their dreams a reality in industries that don’t guarantee success or wish fulfillment.

Despite my earlier cynicism, Stone and Gosling are so much more than a run-of-the-mill on-screen couple. Their chemistry is exquisite, and they’re just as captivating individually as they are together. You get lost in their performances because they feel like ordinary people who want to become extraordinary. The outcome of their romance is the definition of bittersweet, showing how a pair’s love for one another can remain even when they don’t work out in the end. However, for the extended hypothetical sequence at the end, Chazelle deserves jail time for the heartache he creates (not really).

The romance is certainly the highlight but the movie is still great beyond that. The songs range from toe-tappingly energetic and simplistically charming to somberly powerful. The musical score leaves me breathless, and the cinematography gives it a nostalgic appeal for fans of older cinema. Aside from an underutilized supporting cast and a few open story threads, I can’t find anything to reasonably criticize. Dare I say it, La La Land comes as close to that label as a movie can get.

Rating: 9.7/10