"Oh well, at least we'll always have L.A. . . . "

Rating: 10/10 (17 January 2017)

. . . is probably the best Tag-line for this CASABLANCA remake (minus the War, but plus a lot more singing). "LA LA LAND" answers the question, "What if Sam were a White dude, and smoke NEVER got in his eyes, and he had a fling with Ilsa BEFORE she met Victor and Rick, would they have lived "Happily Ever After"? (SPOILER ALERT: The answer is "NO! Some things are just not to be.") For those of us who plodded through director Ken Burns one-man Jackie Robinson show (aka, BASEBALL) and lacked the patience to give his #42 follow-up JAZZ a listen, LA LA LAND doubtless is a more moving homage to the Pride of New Orleans (and probably about 60 hours shorter, to boot). It's also the 21st Century's Top Tribute to the attractions of 1900s Hollywood (especially the Fred Astaire\Ginger Rogers flicks). One can only hope that Ryan Gosling is Reteamed enough times with Emma Stone that they stumble across a LA LA LAND gin joint in which Gosling actually gets the girl.