La La Land

I can see why this won Best Picture, even if it was only for 30 seconds. This film was fantastic! I'm not usually a fan of live-action musicals, which is why I waited to rent this one, but this was a great movie! Although, it is a little pretentious and narcissitic, but hey, it's an Oscar-nominated film. That's the very definiton. Given that this is the only movie that I've seen Ryan Gosling in, I can't really compare his role in this film to previous works, so for what I got it was great. His singing is pretty good. And now we move to Emma Stone. As far as acting goes, she was fantastic, but her singing ability is average, and at times a bit off key. I've heard better, but I've definietely heard worse. This movie goes into date-night movie territory, but never chick flick territory, thank goodness. (Hey, I'm a guy. I'm not the target audience for those). Overall this was a fun romp, and it deserved every award it was nominated for and won with the exception of Best Costume Design. (What costumes? It's just regular clothes.) The story was pretty good, the chemistry between Gosling and Stone was believable, although sometimes the drama and arguments were a bit overacted, and the choreography and songs were awesome! I am going to be listening to the soundtrack on repeat for a long time. I cannot get these songs out of my head. It's a mix of jazz, pop, funk, a little bit of everything. There's something for everyone to love in this fun musical romp.

Grade: B  8/10  3.5/5 stars