My quick thoughts on this Must see Film.

Rating: 9/10 (17 September 2016)

I had been anticipating this movie since i am such a big fan of Whiplash, hearing that it would be a musical only made me more curious to see what Damien Chazelle had in store for us, so i was really excited when i was able to score tickets to a screening at Tiff.
I came away very impressed, I'm not sure if i would call this a masterpiece (yet) but its certainly close, Damien Chazelle has brilliantly crafted a beautiful film, a great achievement and truly deserves to be seen by even the harshest skeptic, Chazelle is starting to show that he is one of best directors and has quickly become one of my favourite film makers in Hollywood.
The Cinematography is fantastic, this film is beautiful, the scenes pop out of the screen and feel magical at certain parts and while i was watching i couldn't help but think that this is the type of ambitious film-making that we have been missing lately, i wish studios would take more chances with original material and realize that it doesn't just have to always be reboots/re-imaginings.
Ryan Gosling plays (Sebastian) a jazz musician and does a good job doing so but make no mistake, this is Emma Stone's film and she truly excels in her role as (Mia) an aspiring actress. Stone's portrayal is absolutely wonderful and will most certainly be recognized by the Academy. The rest of the cast are also excellent and even though J.K. Simmons part is relatively short, he still manages to steal the scenes that he is in.
The Musical numbers are great from the exciting opening highway number to the closing somber look at what life could have been for "Sebastian and Mia", but its Emma Stone's rendition of "Audition" that truly stands out.
Rarely does a film remind me of the reasons of why i fell in love with Film-making, but La La Land did just that and definitely brought me back to the early days where i was truly discovering just how Spectacular film-making can be.
9.5 out of 10.