The Best Picture Winner (for 30 seconds)

Rating: 7/10 (1 March 2017)

"La La Land" is exactly what its whimsical and upbeat title would entail: a masterfully directed, wonderfully delightful, visually vibrant, and painstakingly realistic musical. The film's tremendous success and acclaim may leave some disappointed that are expecting the next great genre film. Although this film is not excellent, it certainly sings a catchy memorable tune.
This is one of the few films I have seen that made me wish people could just randomly break out into a synchronized song and dance. The music is perfect for the magical vibrancy of the dance sequences. The director, Damien Chazelle, was definitely Oscar worthy especially by mimicking Alejandro González Iñárritu's tracking shots in "Birdman" and "The Revenant" -- tracking shots done right are always deserving of an Oscar. Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone together create a convincing romance full of humor, hope, charm, and blistering sadness. The most surprising thing about "La La Land" is its handling of themes such as dreams vs. reality, and how much it takes to chase those dreams. The filmmakers were not afraid to take risks with the story. Those risks paid off because the movie was bitterly realistic when it could have easily been cliché. The only problem with the film is that it took awhile for any kind of conflict/drama to emerge resulting in a semi dragged out narrative.
For me, "La La Land" was as good as a musical could have been (musicals are my least favorite genre). I enjoyed it for what it was, and it was definitely deserving of those fourteen Oscar nominations, and six wins. It's really the only film that actually made me want to start singing and dancing at the end of it. Too bad it got Steve Harvey'd.