A Fine Musical in Every Way Imagineable.

Rating: 10/10 (27 January 2017)

La La Land is an incredibly colourful, refreshing and creative film in the otherwise disastrous year that was 2016; this movie makes you happy to be alive and take any given opportunity you have. There's lessons to be learned here but it never forgets to be escapist fun at its core. La La Land is a film about dreams and goals, what it takes to achieve them and coming to terms with what comes out of personal circumstances. This is a film for dreamers and those looking to have a good time at the cinema. This rejuvenating musical is exactly this; and more.
Damien Chazelle, the writer & director of Whiplash (2014), wrote and directed La La Land; he takes the concept of music's importance in both films but tells completely different stories in each film. The thing these two share in common is that it's about the desire of the protagonist/s to pursue happiness. Both films do this without feeling overly pretentious or sappy, and that's a hard way to tell these kinds of stories; it's personal in a way that the viewer has complete and synchronized empathy for the characters: we've been in their shoes before (emotionally).
La La Land is a love letter, re-invention, and resurrection of the classic Hollywood musical. From An American in Paris to Singin' in the Rain, La La Land is a retro film set in the modern day but it has the high-flying and gorgeously colourful spirit of 1950s musicals.
If you haven't seen this movie yet, please do so. It's a day-brightener and will put a smile on your face for sure. It's a movie you can relax to.
Enjoy the finest film of 2016.