One for the Romantics

Rating: 7/10 (9 February 2017)

We went and saw La La Land as a baby step on the long road to recovery following 'the Incident'. A journey starts with a single step. Unless you are driving. Although most folk walk to a car.... But what if that initial walk is away from your destination? I don't know. I don't care. Just put it in for the pedants.
The movie is about a struggling jazz musician. No surprises there. Is there any other kind? The only surprise is that he doesn't seem to be a smack freak. He plays Christmas music in a place where he has to give himself tips. He is unhappy. Fortunately the Gozza has a permanent preternaturally bleak look about him.
There is also a struggling actress, played by the Stoner who is good at crying and this is fortunate because her life as a struggling actress is as potholed as a Port Moresby road. Mebbe they've improved. Dunno.
The movie starts off with a big production number that is reminiscent of a Pepsi max ad with bucket loads of young, wild (yet oddly responsible) young people dancing and singing and generally making the best of a bad situation. In my experience, both as an observer and an historical actual young person, this just doesn't happen without alcohol and drugs and almost always ends badly with one vomit-filled shoe, bruises, and no underwear. I hate Pepsi Max ads and their ilk.
Anyway they meet and there are production numbers and jazz concerts and auditions and successes and failures before they both became wildly successful. Most of the music was unfamiliar to me. I did recognise A-Ha and Flock of Seagulls but they were peripheral. I am not proud of this.
They fall in love. Those who wish to see MacGuffies will be disappointed.
There are lot of flash backs and these had me for one confused, presenting alternate endings and suchlike. If you nod off, you'll go insane with an absolute hydra of possibility.
But we did enjoy the music and had I been a toe-tapper, these mini digits would've been tapping out a machine-gun beat.
There is dancing too, but Fred'n Ginger expectations will be dashed against the rocks of despair. Still, they are better'n me although I have a hip flexor injury, and am off the turps.
We walked out thinking that it hadn't been a waste of a seniors discount. The in-laws were sitting next to us, and they liked it too, I think. Not the best movie we have seen. But far fromma worst. One for the romantics. You know who you are.