• Peter Travers said it best- Chazelle’s La La Land has a “passion for cinema that radiates every frame”. It’s a major achievement, one of the best films of the decade—Chazelle is throwing fastballs here and they’re all hitting
  • There’s hints of Jacques Demy with the primary colors and the genre- with obvious indications of realism (perhaps not as down as Demy in some areas but it’s a story of unrequited love—which is unique for a musical)
  • There’s I Am Cuba (or PT’s Boogie Nights) with the camera tracking through the party and going into the pool- a stunning sequence and shot
  • There’s 8 ½ with the opening in the traffic jam and surrealism break
  • There’s Singin’ in the Rain, Mulholland Drive (with the “audition” song/scene with Emma Stone), Rebel Without a Cause, Manhattan from Woody (the conservatory)
  • Gloriously shot in CinemaScope
  • The opening shot, the traffic jam—the tracking shot that also introduces the two characters- it has ambition, scope, humor (“winter” ironic)—it’s a sonic boom of cinematic style- the announcement of a major auteur- cinematography (camera movement) and choreography with detail in the décor and set design that leaves no stone unturned (every outfit and car color is careful chosen)
  • Intentional! Green straws at the coffee shop where Stone works. Blue parka she wears, yellow umbrellas, purple trash cans outside her apartment, red light in the corner of their bed
  • Whip pans galore
  • The song again- “someone in the crowd”- camera is flying through their house in perfect rhythm. Scorsese shooting Singin’ in the Rain
  • I couldn’t find a picture of it- but at Lipton’s place- after the beautiful drawings on the wall of the old Hollywood legends—there are red lights where Stone pauses—gorgeous lighting—cuts to his backstory after that
  • Gosling and his chops playing piano—unreal—dedication—believably and suspending our disbelief- I like the Chet Baker voice
  • Detail in the décor- Christmas lights at Lipton’s
  • The comedic talents of the two actors is readily apparent—as is their chemistry- this is their third time working together already in their young careers— retro, nostalgic, 80’s- piano guitar and “I Ran”- comedic chops
  • Ambitious and personal drive—auteuristic mark from Chazelle’s narratives— fate, compromise, determination
  • The purple sky- magic hour in long takes—again later with “City of Stars” song at the magic hour- pier at dusk- stunningly beautiful picture frame on a wall décor
  • Color tinting
  • Their apartment together- the Vertigo-like “green light”
  • Winner of 6 Oscars
  • Their fight during “fall” season- no long takes or shared mise-en-scene between the actors- it’s cliché maybe with the editing but it’s exemplary. The execution is perfect.
  • “audition” scene is the arrival of Emma Stone- actually it’s Birdman in 2014 but this performance, in this masterpiece, cements it
  • The flashback at the end is so expressionistic
  • It blows my mind that Chazelle and cast/crew did this in two years after Whiplash in 2014—
  • Gosling is absolutely perfect for the silent finale where his heart is just about removed- he’s stoic, an actor that underplays almost everything- and there’s no better actor to just do the Steve McQueen thing and “say it with your face”. Stone may give the better performance but Gosling wins the last moment
  • A Masterpiece