I am not the biggest fan of musicals. I often think that they can get a bit out of hand. But going into La La Land my hopes were really high after hearing about the rave reviews that it had been getting at film festivals.  All I can say is that this movie blew me away. Directed by Damien Chazelle, La La Land bleeds passion and ambition.  Every musical number in La La Land has a purpose. None come off cliche or tacky, but pay homage to the genre classics like Singing in the Rain and The Umbrellas of Cherbourg.

The film follows the story between an ambitious couple who are aspiring to achieve their dreams. Emma Stone plays a aspiring young actress named Mia who is stuck at her job at a coffee shop on the Warner Brothers lot. Alongside her is Ryan Gosling who plays a jazz pianist stuck in the past trying to open his own jazz club. Eventually, these two end up crossing paths, and thus, the love story begins.

The chemistry between Gosling and Stone is impeccable and so intensely real that I wouldn’t be surprised if they were a couple off screen. Gosling and Stone both bring everything to the table and knock the challenging tasks of singing, dancing and acting out of the park. For Gosling it was learning how to intensively play the piano for over 4 months and Stone learning how to tap dance and ballroom dance with both having to step out of their comfort zones.  Although their singing voices are not perfect, it is still satisfactory. But it is important to keep in mind that  director Damien Chazelle did this on purpose. If Chazelle wanted trained singers he would have gotten broadway stars; instead, he grabbed two of the most up-and-coming actors of our generation and let them bring what they got to the table. Because of that it adds a sense of realism to the story.

The musical numbers in the movie add for some of the best moments and that’s because of the superb lyrics and lush melodies that composer Justin Hurwitz made which makes for some of the catchiest songs that stay in your head well after you’ve seen the movie.

Chazelle shot all of these musical numbers in one take and the movie even opens up with “Another Day of Sun,” a spectacular song and dance number that takes place on an interstate. Songs like “City of Stars,” “Another Day of Sun” and “Lovely Night” all bring catchy themes and lyrics that have kept me listening to the soundtrack on endless repeat long after seeing this movie.

With beautiful cinematography, incredible editing and very intriguing song and dance numbers La La Land looks to be another hit  that will for sure dazzle millions of people and inspire those who have dreams to go for them for years to come. Thanks to the  incredible direction and passion from Damien Chazelle this movie has a certain rewatch ability that will never seem to get old.  

Of course, La La Land has gotten huge recognition at the awards shows especially the Golden Globes and Oscars where it tied the record for most Golden Globes won by a single movie winning an incredible seven!  La La Land also nabbed an incredible amount of Oscar Nominations, tying the record for the most with 14 total nominations in categories such as Best Picture, Best Original Song, Best Actor, Best Actress and Best Director. It will be an interesting time watching the Oscars just to see how many awards La La Land will win.